Stage Fright at the Music Shop

[Artie Owl]

I know there are many a gigging musician among us, and some of them still get stage fright. That's totally normal it happens in every profession. What I'm asking members today is; when you're at the music store, testing out a new guitar or amp or pedal or whatnot, do you get a kind of stage fright or shyness? Like you think you shouldn't turn it up because people will find out you can't play?

 

I do, It happens all the time, I'm terrified someone is going to slam me for trying something out, and I know I shouldn't be, but I can't help it. Although, one time a while ago, I was at Long and McQuade in Bedford, and the manager walked by while I was trying out an amp, and he said told me that I had a good sound and that it was nice to hear. Now I don't know if it was mostly because he was tired of younger people coming in, cranking the volume and distortion and just playing power chords, but it still felt good.

 

Though I still have trouble turning it up at a Music store.

 

Anyone else? Or am I just being a bit of a wuss?

[46 and 2]

I guess maybe if there is someone in there totally cutting heads I might be a little intimated. Truth is I rarely play in a store unless I am say comparing one pedal/amp/guitar or whatever to another then in that case I am just trying to make the best purchase for my dollar so I could care less if it costs me a little embarrassment. I am just not the type to sit around noodling aimlessly in a guitar store. Being a giging musician I think does give you a certain confidence. I have played and made mistakes in front of some of the best guitarists in my area but so what, that’s just how it goes. At the end of the day I know I am the only guitarist who sounds like “me” and I am the only person who can play the songs I write the way I play them.

 

Now NO STAIRWAY!! Haha first to say it!!

[swleary]

I don't like to play too loud in a store. I go to the Long and McQuade in Waterloo, Ontario or the one in Stratford, Ontario. The one in Waterloo has a sound proof amp room so if no one is in there , I crank it. If I'm at the other store, I tend to keep it low.

[Versatile]

I am crippled with 'store fright' whenever trying out a guitar...until I am well into my 'test' piece...Flight of the Bumble Bee....just joking !!

[Artie Owl]

I am crippled with 'store fright' whenever trying out a guitar...until I am well into my 'test' piece...Flight of the Bumble Bee....just joking !!

So, do you actually have store fright or no? :P I can't tell.

[Silenced Fred]

People don't bug me. In shops, nah, I'll play til I find the sweet spot. I tried out a ZVEX Mastotron fuzz through a Fender Champ and I turned it up. The manager came by thinking I was another kid, I had bought a lot of stuff from them, showed him my debit card and told him I was interested. He walked away. It sounded good, I might pick one up

[LarryUK]

I'd always prefered playing in front of a crowd than just one of two. I once played the Marquee in London with 'famous' people in the crowd. I didn't bother me at all. But when you're in a shop with other players eyes on you. Arghh.

[Notes_Norton]

I've never had stage fright, on stage, in state contest, in a music store, or anywhere else (brain damage I suppose <grin>).

 

I do not "perform" in a music store, and do not appreciate other people who do. There are other people in the store to test and evaluate musical instruments, not to hear some guitar god wanna-be. It's rude and inconsiderate to monopolize the sound in a music store any more than is necessary to test the instrument you are interested in.

 

I try the instrument out, as quietly as possible. Only turning the amp up when everything else checks out, and for the shortest amount of time necessary. I mostly play chords and scales and not interested in showing anybody how well I can play any song at all. That's not why I'm there.

 

If you want to hear me play real music, you will have to come to a place where I am performing, the music store is neither the place nor the atmosphere for that.

 

Please fellow musicians, do not play any more than is necessary to evaluate the instrument. And do not play over 85db as you will be causing permanent ear damage to your fellow musicians.

 

OK, I'm off the soap box now.

 

Insights and incites by Notes ♫

[Big Bill]

I do have trouble playing in the stores. I feel there are some egos in the store that are quietly judging me. So I just play enough to find out what I need to know.

[ShredAstaire]

Me too! I've never been a confident player so I play a few riffs that I can play well to hear the sound and then I get outta there. I keep the volume low too...i'm weird.

[Jantha]

Yea, I'm a little self-conscious when trying out equipment at the shop.

 

It's half not wanting to be laughed at for what I'm playing, and half not wanting to further irritate the staff.

[dbreslauer]

in stores, i will play just loudly enough and as briefly as possible to determine if the gear is what i want. With guitar, i can usually tell without being plugged though. for me its trying to not annoy others, not so much fear of playing.

 

My stepfather had a saying about playing out that's always stuck with me: he'd say "who's working right now, and who isn't?" :)

 

made me laugh.

[milod]

I guess in a sense you could say I do get "store fright" to an extent - 'cuz you're trying to do three things at once. You're looking at the externals of the guitar, you're trying to figure how it plays with your technique and especially on an electric, you're trying to figure the sound that's coming out.

 

So... I know I'm not sounding like "me." That doesn't necessarily bother me about what I sound like, but it does bother me a bit that I've got too many thoughts going through my head simultaneously to do well at any of 'em. @#$%@#$%@

 

It's almost worse than the experience of buying a car, IMHO.

 

m

[Artie Owl]

I figured it wasn't just me, but it's nice to hear that I'm not alone. In an earlier thread I mentioned that I want to test out a Compressor/sustain pedal, maybe I can do that with a bit more confidence now that I've read this. And I picked up a few good tips on how to do it here, like notes said, play what you need to you're not there to impress anyone.

[chase1410]

I have that problem alot...I havent been playing all that long, even though i practice hours a day. My hands get real shaky and sweaty, and really dont want other people to listen. But hey thats how you get better.

[Witmer]

Only because my local music store is small-town and the size of my living room and kitchen put together. You can't test a semi-hollow electric unplugged without everyone in the store hearing it. And there's usually only one other person there. If I play more than two chords and a little finger picking to hear resonance, I start to get self-conscious. -- Not that it necessarily stops me.

[MojoRedFoot]

I keep to myself unless I hear some kid attempting to play Metallica. If they play poorly, then I'll show them how it's done. I keep the volume low enough so I can hear it. I don't wanna hear someone across the store so I try to show the same courtesy to everyone else. But I do not have and "fright." I have been approached many times before and get people asking if I'm in a band and sometimes asking me to audition for their band.

[RichCI]

I do not "perform" in a music store, and do not appreciate other people who do. There are other people in the store to test and evaluate musical instruments, not to hear some guitar god wanna-be. It's rude and inconsiderate to monopolize the sound in a music store any more than is necessary to test the instrument you are interested in.

 

I try the instrument out, as quietly as possible. Only turning the amp up when everything else checks out, and for the shortest amount of time necessary. I mostly play chords and scales and not interested in showing anybody how well I can play any song at all. That's not why I'm there.

 

+ 1,000.

 

I test out how well a guitar, amp, effect or whatever I'm demoing performs and reacts and I don't need to jam out to do that, just hit a few chords and single note lines. With a guitar, I can tell within a few seconds whether I'm going to like it or not; with amps and other electronic stuff, I spend more time twiddling knobs than actually playing.

 

After you hit some point, you know what you like and what you want and it doesn't take much to find out if a piece of gear is a winner or not.

[Golem]

... ..... ..... ....... the music store is neither the place nor

the atmosphere for that [performing, wanking].

 

Please fellow musicians, do not play any more than is

necessary to evaluate the instrument. And do not play

over 85db as you will be causing permanent ear

damage to your fellow musicians.

..... ....

Altho too often it seems I'm too late to possibly be the cause of

that ! I wear earplugs in Guitar Center. I put them in before I even

walk in the door, same as if I were walking into a local open jam

wankfest. Other music shops are not the same problem.

 

Since I'm usually trying out a fretless ax I often go into a shop's

acoustic room, reasonably protected from the main geetard area,

and plug into one of the acoustic amps. I can hear ! In particular,

the acoustic amps tell me more of what I need to know. Players

in the "Acoustic Retreat" will give me dirty looks when I bring in

a 4 foot long electric bass ... whereas if I took an acoustic bass

off the wall in the Retreat, maybe they's not do that ? Sheeedt !

 

Once it's plugged in it makes no nevermind. I never haul a bass

amp into The Retreat, so fuggem if they can't take a joke, I say.

 

 

 

`

[Rocky4]

If the guitar is set up differently than what I'm use to, which is usually the case, I lock up. I tune down at least a half step and use 9s with real low action. If I can't bend easily, I feel off and am very self conscious. When I bought my LP Special SL, it was a floor model that was set up horribly. (Guitar Center) The strings were touching the pickup. I asked a salesman for a screwdriver to make some adjustments. By the time I was done, I had it just where I wanted it so I felt real comfortable.

[ocdman]

I don't play loud at the music store either. I usually play enough to figure out if I like it or not. Every time I go into GC someone has it cranked up wailing away ,usually pretty badly.I guess I am just to self-conscious.

[WahKeen]

I play softly at the store just for myself to hear, not someone else. I try stuff I'm comfortable with like familiar riffs or scales. Now, if there's a "rock star" down the isle who's playing loud for a LONG time and I can't hear myself, I'll turn it up very loud. I know that's passive aggressive, but it usually works. The times it doesn't, I look at them and they get the point. Other times, I just play as loud as I can hear myself until they finally stop being rude. And sometimes I go by the store just to play with guitars I don't have, just for fun.

[FirstMeasure]

The only "Fear" I still get is "Recording Jitters". Whenever I hit that Rec. button I just stiffen up. Usually takes about 10-15 minutes of just jamming to calm down and loosen up.

 

In the music store I like to play along with the guys that are playing too loud. If someones jamming leads I try to find the key and lay some chords down, if their doing a rhythm thing I'll put a lead over it. I love the look on customers faces when they realize all the guitar shop noise is coming together into a jam. That usually only last for a minute or two, I'm still waiting for a really B!tchen jam on the store floor.

[cabba2203]

I don't play in stores.

If it's a guitar, I check the feel of the neck and balance.

By now I pretty much know what the guitar will sound like given it's hardware/electronics setup and wood materials thru my gear.

All I do now is I put my ear up to the body and strum chords, if the wood sings, it'll sound good.

 

Amps & cabs, I ask the store guy to play a guitar I've pulled down that is similar to my setup.

I have him chunk E and play chords alternatly while I fiddle with the amp controls and then when I have it dialed in I step back about 30 feet and listen.

Then if I need, I adjust setting and step back and listen again.

 

FX, I demo those at home with my rig. If I don't like, I return them.

 

I want to be in and out as quickly as I can before my head explodes from the cacophony of noise.

 

This system has been honed over time and it works perfect for me.

[Mr. Natural]

Although my guitar skill is rather rudimentary, I do have my "music shop/guitar show riffs" that I try to keep presentable so as to not embarrass myself too bad. Suprisingly, at least to me, I'm much more self-conscious playing in a music store than at a big city guitar show in a big room with hundreds of people present. At the guitar show the only people paying attention to me is my friend who makes the trip with me (and he already knows how sorry I am) and the dealer in the booth showing me the guitar (and he doesn't know me from Adam and won't remember how sorry I was the next time he sees me a year later).