JakeBrownBass Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 Just wondered if any of the guys here have read this gig. Got it coming up soon and just looking for any heads up about any tricky sections etc.. I've got a piano chart for it & will be listening to the record before hand but if anyone has a proper scored bass part i'd be grateful. Cheers guys, Jake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 Its a pretty easy read, actually. Lots of rock n roll type lines if I recall (did it 15 years ago!!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JakeBrownBass Posted March 11, 2011 Author Share Posted March 11, 2011 Cheers Bilbo, that sounds promising. I've never heard the show, best give it a good listen when i get home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonbass Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 My favourite musical to play in; it's huge amounts of fun with plenty of opportunity for (easy) slap parts and bass heavy rock and roll. Is far as I recall the only time you get above the twelfth fret is a tune called Suppertime, and the part's easy to learn if you listen to the film soundtrack. Have fun; I'm actually jealous! Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 Mate, that sounds like so much fun! Should be a breeze too. I envy you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doddy Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 That was the first pro show I did,depping for my teacher. It's a good show-not the hardest read if you've done other stuff before,but I wouldn't call it a breeze either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JakeBrownBass Posted March 11, 2011 Author Share Posted March 11, 2011 [quote name='Doddy' post='1158593' date='Mar 11 2011, 08:27 PM']That was the first pro show I did,depping for my teacher. It's a good show-not the hardest read if you've done other stuff before,but I wouldn't call it a breeze either.[/quote] Well it's my first professional show. I've done a couple of amateur stuff but they've always had lots of rehearsals or had the charts a couple of weeks in advance. My readings fine after a quick flick through the charts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 Depends on your definition of a breeze I guess I'd have to learn it beforehand, THEN it'd be a breeze. I'm not much of a reader Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doddy Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 [quote name='chrismuzz' post='1158616' date='Mar 11 2011, 08:39 PM']Depends on your definition of a breeze I guess I'd have to learn it beforehand, THEN it'd be a breeze. I'm not much of a reader [/quote] No you wouldn't,because for most shows you won't get charts until the first rehearsal,and you can't just learn the soundtrack album,because there will be a lot of differences and cuts and things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major-Minor Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 [quote name='Doddy' post='1158657' date='Mar 11 2011, 09:04 PM']No you wouldn't,because for most shows you won't get charts until the first rehearsal,and you can't just learn the soundtrack album,because there will be a lot of differences and cuts and things.[/quote] As usual, Doddy and I agree. In the pro world (even the semi pro world), time is money. You've pretty much got to nail it first time (or at least the second time through) or you will be holding up the whole rehearsal or session, and that will not go down well with the conductor / MD / producer / fixer or whoever is paying for the work. It's vital to gain a reputation for being a good reliable and accurate sight reader if you intend working in shows, concerts, sessions etc Equally, you need to be able to understand the style of the music and respond accordingly. I've just been touring with a 25 piece band (plus some celebrity dancers and singers from a well known TV show) and the written bass parts were very simple to read but required a certain amount of interpretation and "styling". First time through, I played it as written. Thereafter I made it my own. The Major Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lee650 Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Where you doing the show? i might pop along! ive been asked to play for this three times now and ive always been booked on somthing else a shame i'd love to play it, some really nice lines, mostly rock and roll and a lot of fun!! im jealous!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GonzoBass Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 Did this show about four years ago as bassist/MD. "Mushnick and Son" was the one I spent the most time on but the bit of funk and the upper register part for "Suppertime" was fun. Don't rely on the CD. Tunes were changed/added for the movie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Dixon Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Did it in 1992 and 2002... It's a lot of fun and not especially hard to read. I'm not a monster reader and I managed it ok Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GonzoBass Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Found out recently that I'll be doing this show again in October. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Hughes Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Tis a good show indeed. I did it a few years ago. Who doesn't smile at 'Feed me, Seymour!!!!'? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lee650 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 HA HA looks like im doing it in november, fourth time lucky ive never been available, cracking show! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GonzoBass Posted August 13, 2011 Share Posted August 13, 2011 Doing the "Revised Broadway" version this time. A few key changes from the original score, plus embellished bass parts, all rewritten for an extended range instrument. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lobematt Posted August 17, 2011 Share Posted August 17, 2011 I'd love to get into this line of work, admittedly my reading probably isn't up to it (but I am working on that part!!) How did you guys get your first show? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doddy Posted August 17, 2011 Share Posted August 17, 2011 [quote name='lobematt' post='1343053' date='Aug 17 2011, 01:10 PM']I'd love to get into this line of work, admittedly my reading probably isn't up to it (but I am working on that part!!) How did you guys get your first show?[/quote] I got into it by depping for my then teacher ('Little Shop...' being the first). No rehearsal or anything,literally walking in a couple of nights into the run and reading it cold. From there I got friendly with the MD who subsequently started calling me for other shows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassybill Posted August 17, 2011 Share Posted August 17, 2011 I've done this show a couple of times, great fun. Definitely my favourite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Hughes Posted August 18, 2011 Share Posted August 18, 2011 I got into theatre work by hearing that one of the top guys here needed a dep for a show he was doing. Through a mutual acquaintance I got his number, called him up - thankfully getting his voicemail - and said I'd heard he needed a dep and I was up for doing it. He called me back that day, I met him a few days later, read over the parts with him and the MD and that was that. That was in 1998 and it's been a pleasure to know him and to share work for the past 13 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GonzoBass Posted August 18, 2011 Share Posted August 18, 2011 [quote name='lobematt' post='1343053' date='Aug 17 2011, 02:10 AM']How did you guys get your first show?[/quote] My first musical was "Hedwig and the Angry Inch". The director knew me from several bands around town and explained that he was looking for someone to play the roll of "an 80s rock bass player". I remember thinking, "Wow...quite a stretch". This play is unique in that the musos are on stage and in character and the stage was the stereotype (almost a caricature) of a full blow rock production; Risers, light riggings, smoke, strobes... Everything a rock band could ask for! Needless to say, I had a lot of fun but was most taken by the small army of tech people who make these things happen and their spirit of working together to do so. It was quite a change from the nightclub/bar scene I was use to working in where the band is usually lowest on the totem. ...and we all know what rolls downhill. Next up was "Godspell" for the same theater troupe, "Jesus Christ Superstar" was a referal by the drummer for "Godspell" (which lead to a few orchestra Christmas gigs with the same organization), MD/Bassist for "Little Shop of Horrors", "On the Town" (which was a real [u]b!tch[/u] of a read!), MD/Conductor for "Cabaret", MD/Conductor/Bassist for "Bat Boy, the Musical" and now "Little Shop of Horrors" is back again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 (edited) [quote name='GonzoBass' post='1344779' date='Aug 18 2011, 08:01 PM']MD/Conductor/Bassist for "Bat Boy, the Musical"[/quote] Hey - I Did "Bat Boy" in the West End London run about six years ago, also the Cast CD... That show is a read and half, and a great score. You must have had your hands full Gonzo - MD'ing and Bass playing, good one! Little Shop is not a hard read, but if you are new to shows its a good way to ease in and get used to the feel of Musical Theatre [If thats what you want to do] Garry Edited August 19, 2011 by lowdown Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GonzoBass Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 [quote name='lowdown' post='1345146' date='Aug 18 2011, 10:51 PM']Hey - I Did "Bat Boy" in the West End London run about six years ago, also the Cast CD... That show is a read and half, and a great score. You must have had your hands full Gonzo - MD'ing and Bass playing, good one![/quote] Ahh yes, "Bat Boy, the Musical"... Murder, rape, incest, more murder, bestiality rape, another murder, a bestiality orgy, 23 dead cows (including a life size bleeding cow head), dead rats, rabbits and geese, stabbings, one guys slits his own throat, one guys burns to death in a slaughterhouse fire (set by his own mother), euthanasia (by the jealous drunkard doctor), lots of bats (of course), open drug use, rednecks, gallons of blood, faith healing, spelunking and even a guest apperance by the horned Greek god Pan, which is all wrapped around a nice moral message about tolerance and acceptance. ...and it's all set to music! I was lucky in that I was able to hand pick the band so I chose guys I had worked with in the past and had complete faith in. This gave me the luxury of "making the score our own" in a few places which made my MD role a lot easier. My directive to them was something like, "I don't need this score note-for-fugging-note." My logic being that; If there is a section/phrase/lick that is problematic, just give me something you can play confidently as long as it's true to the song. I tried this when conducting "Cabaret" with a bunch of "right brained" readers, "Let's just feel this part and get through it..." and they all looked at me as if I had three heads... The "Bat Boy Band"- Yours truly, Josh-drums, Glenn- Piano (he missed the "band in black" memo), Brian-keys/midi guitar/laptop, Loren-guitar [i]Conducting[/i] was a whole other challenge! It had to be done from on stage, about 10 feet in the air, with the cast and I having our backs to each other. Here is The Bat Cave or what the band liked to call- "Five musicians, an 88 key piano (including a bench), two additional keyboards, a laptop, a PA head, two guitars, a full drum kit, a bass, four amps, music stands, several effect pedals, Loren's Gawd damn stool, life giving fans (!), oh... and be sure to leave room for a singer/actor once in a while, all in a 10'x6' space." *Note the Fender guitar amp hanging from the rafters. A fun show! A lot of work, but a fun show!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 (edited) [quote name='GonzoBass' post='1347800' date='Aug 22 2011, 10:03 AM']This gave me the luxury of "making the score our own" in a few places which made my MD role a lot easier. A fun show! A lot of work, but a fun show!!![/quote] We had the " Bat Boy" Composer Larry O'Keefe as our Musical Supervisor for a two week rehearsal period, He pretty much wanted it note per note as the Broadway score version, but he was kinda flexible as well. For instance the tune "Mine all Mine", he wrote for the London show which i think is now in the Score, Was pretty much thrown together in the studio [apart from tune/lyrics and chord structure] Larry is a great guy and very talented. Yep a fun show, and a nightmare for deps.. Garry Edited August 22, 2011 by lowdown Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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