Busking!

1jazzyalex · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 2:52 pm Post subject: Busking!

Here's a topic where there's no debate as to the presence or not of a tip jar

Who's done it?

I've done it a bit, and made about $4 an hour when I was starting out (trust me I was not worth that) and when I dropped off of the scene was making about $12 or $13 an hour (and was still not worth it; I had a lady drop a few bucks for the poignance of the chromatic scale I was running up and down to warm up lol).

lakejw · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 3:15 pm Post subject:

I've done it. I don't do it anymore. Most I made was ~$50 for a couple hours, in Central Park on a beautiful summer day.

Did get one wedding gig out of it, which paid well.

My new rules: skeptical of outside gigs in general (with exceptions), DEFINITELY no marching, and no costumes (unless the bread is REALLY good).
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Mike Sailors · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 4:09 pm Post subject:

I do it pretty regularly on trombone in Washington Square Park in NYC. We generally make around 60-80 bucks per man for an hour and a half, which we promptly spend at the closest bar.
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Ed Kennedy · Heavyweight Member Joined: 15 Jan 2005 Posts: 3187

Chicago, Michigan Ave. bridge at lunch time in the summer, 40years ago, with a lousy pocket trumpet. I made $30 to $50 a session. Pretty good money back then.

1jazzyalex · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 4:51 pm Post subject:

NYC-player · Heavyweight Member Joined: 03 Jun 2016 Posts: 627

Playing Christamas tunes Salvation Army style in Times Square...silly Santa hats...buku tourists....$100s of dollars per man per night.

Lots of $20s and $50s in the tip box...even seen C-notes

Just have to keep moving when the police hassle you.

Turkle · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 6:54 pm Post subject:

When I was super broke, just after I moved to NYC, I used to busk quite a bit. It's all about the location! I had a couple good spots I frequented in the subways and Central Park.

Nowadays during the holiday season I sing bass in a 4-person SATB holiday quartet, and we busk quite a bit. We are quite good so we make some great bank. And when we go bar to bar we can barely drink all the shots people buy us. Good times!
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1jazzyalex · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 7:13 pm Post subject:

Turkle that sounds like great fun!

I dunno what I'd do with shots, myself, having sworn off of the sauce, maybe pass 'em onto someone else? Wear a "Friend Of Bill W" button? I already manage to squirm out of offerings of cigarettes, both the branded and "non-branded" type

by saying that being a trumpet player, I can't smoke hehe.

NYC-player · Heavyweight Member Joined: 03 Jun 2016 Posts: 627

1jazzyalex · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 7:57 pm Post subject:

Thanks. Back to busking and money, that $30 a day is life-changing money for most people these days, which is why I'm pro-busking. Most jobs effectively cost a lot, as strange as that sounds. You have to have a car, the right clothes, eat lunch at the right places, etc., as conditions to have a "regular" job that's not Labor Ready.

Not knocking Labor Ready, you can (theoretically) get work that day and when done for the day have $50 in your pocket. But it's generally work that's pretty hard on the body, and it takes up the whole day.

For some people being the local fixit person, the local babysitter, etc can work out but if you have music skills, I think busking can be a fine way to make that life-changing $30 a day (if you're good).

Grits Burgh · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 4:04 am Post subject:

I've done it with a barbershop quartet. The money we raised went to charity, a local children's home. For me, it's useful to think of busking from two perspectives. The first side is the performer's side. What's in it for the performer? Money, obviously. Maybe the desire for attention. For me it is about sharing music. I enjoy sharing things that I like, music, food, hobbies. The other side of the coin is what's in it for the listeners? Hopefully they enjoy the music. In my opinion, good music enhances a community (but bad music is a terrible annoyance). I'm not money driven and my approach isn't intended to maximize income. Thinking about busking in those terms drives my personal rules about busking: 1) Set high performance standards and if you don't meet them, practice until you do. 2) Pick a venue that is suitable, one where people have the option of listening or moving on. Don't busk in an area where people are "trapped". 3) Have a good sense of humor and be willing to forgive rudeness, because you are bound to meet up with it. 4) If you aren't having fun or you are not connecting with your audience, do everybody a favor and either find a new audience or quit altogether.
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Turkle · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 5:49 am Post subject:

1jazzyalex · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 1:34 pm Post subject:

Grits that's a great post with great ideas. That's pretty much my set of rules.

"Trapped" people do not need to be subjected to music they didn't bargain for!

What I love is when the little kids are dancing, and more than once I've had them run circles around me while playing, it's hilarious. The person who drops a tip and says something on the line of: "thanks for that song" because that song means something to them, is tops.

Even as mediocre as I am (and that's mediocre indeed) I've had people ask for lessons, and offers to come play at modest affairs. So far I've told them the names of better players and told them their time/money is much better spent with them lol.

On the person-to-person level, it's very rewarding.

Hugh Anderson · Veteran Member Joined: 22 Sep 2011 Posts: 398

Why would cops move you along? It's free speech, isn't it?

1jazzyalex · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 4:30 pm Post subject:

Crazy Finn · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 4:36 pm Post subject:

Turkle · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 7:42 pm Post subject:

1jazzyalex · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 9:12 pm Post subject:

In most enlightened areas, the cops know that a good busker generally displaces several cussing beggars, obnoxious "crusty kids", etc and also, the presence of people on the street - and enough to attract street musicians - means actually less crime.

So most places love a nice-sounding busker. And political speech, etc are fine. But if you're going to cuss, threaten people, etc then it's not free speech, and you will get told to move on.

One thing to consider if you're busking is, unless people are really OK with it, to move every hour or so because people in the businesses around you generally don't want to hear you *all day*. Two popular busking spots in my town have plenty of people but employees of businesses nearby are inside for the most part, and insulated from the sounds of the street, and buskers will park themselves in those locations for hours. But most places, if there are flower-shop owners, waiters/waitresses, etc who are exposed to your music, it's best to move around so they don't get sick of you.

NYC-player · Heavyweight Member Joined: 03 Jun 2016 Posts: 627

It's very trendy now for everybody to think they are constitutional experts. And even more trendy to hate on cops when ever possible.

However:

There are local laws for noise pollution, laws for private, and local properties on loitering, begging/panhandling, and protesting, public speach forums, etc

Often you need to get permits. These are laws our elected public officials wrote. Don't like them? Call your congressman. Want to challenge them? Face the consequences.

I've never known any buskers to spend the night in jail. Unless the fight with cops, resist, or don't follow directions to "move along".

Again, you aren't being hired to busk. It isn't a job. You're just showing up invading others space. Sometimes it appreciated, sometimes not. You are not entitled to do what you want all the time. There are limits to everything

Geodude · Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2016 4:16 am Post subject:

Alex makes a good point about periodic re-location. I used to work beside an entrance to Union Station in Chicago. The folks hustling to make their trains didn't know it, but the sax player who was busking outside the door only knew "Take Me Out to the Ballgame", and the theme songs for Sanford and Son and the Flintstones. A couple hours of that outside your office window every day definitely gets old.