How to play while you are totally tired and exhausted

Kurz

Junior Member
I had a hard day in my work, after work a went to venue.
It about 11 pm.
We are in a middle of long set.
I'm tired, I can't focus and concentrate. I can't remember song groove and BPM.
If I have a music sheet - sight read ... it is more like guessing.
The bass player shouts 'don't slow down'
My mind is out. My brain seems not work. My time is not solid.

Ok ... if it happens once in a lifetime ... you can handle its.
But for me it's always about that deadline (11 pm).
We can't arrange a gig or finished it before.
I don't want to say to my bands mates .. sorry at 11 pm I must go to sleep :)
I'm not used to drink coffee, coca-cola. I'm not beer drinker guy, I'm not smoking etc.
Just drink pure water. Last meal (dinner) eat on 8 pm.
Remember when I was in high school .. I have the same problem while learning
I had a solution - woke up early ( 5 am ... and then learn)
As a musician you must be at your best exactly about 9 - 10 pm.
Do you have the same .. how you handle.
 
I understand. If I'm not at a gig, then my body clock begs me to go to sleep around 10.30 - 11pm. If I get past that, I wake up again and I'm fine until 1 or 2am. When I'm actually playing I'm too busy and involved to notice. But sometimes if we're having a break at 10.45 its hard to get motivated to get back on stage at 11.

Perhaps blood sugar? Some coffee and cake at 9pm? Or one glass of regular coke? Or try and have a 'power nap' earlier in the evening, a 15 minute snooze, maybe in your car or a back room, with your phone alarm set to wake you up at the right time. I've done this once or twice and it's helped. The 'calm before the storm' rest time helps me rebuild my energy and concentration.
 
If you can find a way to take a one hour nap after work it will solve this problem.

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Learn to "Play by ear" & practice with the band a lot. It will soon become second nature irrespective of your physical state ;)
 
LOL. This guy is complaining about 11pm. Around here, you're lucky if they let the first act go on at 10. Headline is usually at midnight or 1ish.
 
I don't have a solution, other than napping. But I feel your pain. It's one of the reasons I gig much less now that I'm older, and often have to be up really early for work. Heck, I can't even sleep in these days when I try. I get home from a gig at 3 and still wake up at 6.

My playing doesn't seem to suffer as much as yours, but my body does. I get so tired, even the next day or two, that it physically hurts and makes it mentally/emotionally difficult to function.

Good luck! I hope you are able to nap to catch up. :)
 
I had a solution - woke up early ( 5 am ... and then learn)
As a musician you must be at your best exactly about 9 - 10 pm.
Do you have the same .. how you handle.

I don't think you're going to find many 5 AM gigs outside of New York, and those gigs are usually people ending their night, not beginning their day!

Musicians are mostly nocturnal, I'd say most gigs that I do start around 9 or 10 at night and go until 1 or 2 in the morning. In NYC, it's not that uncommon to play a 2AM to 4AM set! I do have the odd 6-9, but that's maybe once or twice a month, and usually I'll stack another gig afterward in the same city. In the summer sometimes you run into concerts at noon, or 1:00, and those are a struggle as most musicians don't have their chops that early. I'd say all in all, musicians are typically at their peak from 9PM - 2AM

Like some of the other posters mentioned, maybe try taking a nap, or having some coffee/food before you go on... Unfortunately part of our vocation is that we have opposite schedules from the average person. We mostly work nights, weekends, and holidays. I know many people on here work other jobs during the day, so it's tough, but you have to push through it if you want to work
 
my advice is a quick nap after work, as well as a little cardio exercise around 8-9pm for 10-15 minutes. Just wear yourself out a bit. You will probably have more energy by 11-12pm.
 
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