As I write this post, it is late December 2014, and I have just been asked one of the hardest questions I’ve ever been asked. I am currently playing in a theatre show. After one of the shows, I was on my way into town for some food, when a young boy, aged maybe eleven or twelve, approached me and said: “you were the bass player in the show just now, right?” I told him that I was. He told me that he’s just started playing bass in his school band. “I really enjoy it”, he said, “but I get quite nervous before we do concerts. How long will it be before I stop getting nervous?”. This question stopped me in my tracks completely. I understood where he was coming from. We’ve all had nerves at one point or another, so I was able to give a stock, but true, answer along the lines of “just keep practicing and try not to think about it. The more you play and get experience the better you’ll be able to handle your nerves”. But I was genuinely struck by how big a question this was. I don’t really get nervous now when I perform. I thought “well I’m quite experienced now” but I stopped myself and began to realise that I don’t always have prior experience of some of the gigs I do. Surely I should be nervous then. Also, how could I class myself as experienced when I haven’t done some of those gigs before? But most curiously of all, why am I able to reap the benefits of experience (not suffering from nerves to name one) when I haven’t done a particular gig before? This, all of a sudden, felt bizarre. What do people actually gain from experience?
Whilst I was waiting for my food, I began to think about it. Surely I should start by analysing the experiences that have taught me the most. After quite a bit of thinking one came to mind: the first time I went to a jam night in London. For those who are unfamiliar with the term, these are nights hosted by a small group of musicians (the house band) and are open to other musicians to come and play songs with the house band or other people who attend. Jam nights can be very strange places at times. If you know the people who are regulars, then they can become some of the most friendly places you’ll ever go to, but if you don’t know anyone (I knew no one at this point) then they can also be some of the most daunting.
A friend had told me about a night that was on near Liverpool Street station every second…
