Busking! who's gone and done it?

[JeffD]

Way to go!!!

[JeffD]

There is so much more to busking than just being a good musician. Interaction with the crowd and catch an eye, choosing a good location and time, knowing what to play when. Lots of skills involved in being successful street musician. What to wear so as not to appear snobbish and yet not appear to be a bum.

This is where the Joshua Bell article misses the boat entirely. Lesser musicians can and often do make much more money that a musical prodigy. For one, you don't busk where people don't have time to stand and listen being desperate to meet a train and get to work. Find a place where they have to wait on line or naturally bunch up, and are not in a hurry.

[Mark Gunter]

Awesome story, BK DataNick, thanks for sharing it. You done good!

[DataNick]

...you don't busk where people don't have time to stand and listen being desperate to meet a train and get to work. Find a place where they have to wait on line or naturally bunch up, and are not in a hurry.

And in my situation today, when the Salvation Army guy showed up around 10:45 or so and started bell ringing about 15 feet from me, I figured I would pack it in soon...LOL!

[Jill McAuley]

Nice one DataNick! Sounds like you got nice weather for it - I'm tempted to go out here in SF before Christmas but we've been having some damp and chilly weather which is putting me off!

[DataNick]

Nice one DataNick! Sounds like you got nice weather for it - I'm tempted to go out here in SF before Christmas but we've been having some damp and chilly weather which is putting me off!

Thanks Jill!

Yeah, SoCal is in the 70s and sunny...I've spent some time in the Bay Area, so I know what you're dealing with...maybe an indoor spot would work for you like the BART stations (if not dangerous...LOL!)

[Smyrna5]

About the closest I have ever come to busking was several years ago. For about 2-3 years, a friend and I used to jam on our ukuleles once a week behind a coffee shop in the old town square. Occasionally a guitarist or bassist would sit in. We would sing and play popular songs for a few hours off chord sheets, and often drew a small crowd. We had 4-5 regular listeners who would often sing along. We never put out a hat, or left our cases open, so we never got any money. The closest we came to earning anything is when the coffee shop would give us free pastries and coffee and invite inside to play. We had a great time. I am still amazed that I run into strangers who remember us.

[Traveling Tracks]

Nice work DataNick! Didn't read through this whole thread but I think it's safe to say I'd be surprised if anyone beat your "hourly rate" : ) I actually have done quite a bit of busking for years....usually when I'm "on the road" for recording concerts....I have downtime and set-up and play on the streets.....have done alright in Philly but my best hour was $60 on Nassau Street in Princeton playing Bach.
I've found the biggest challenge is the volume issue of the instrument...not my specific instrument which was an MT2V but just the instrument in general. If you're competing with traffic noise you really have to play hard and it's tiring.

Also, some years back I was studying at The Aspen Music Festival and School and my dorm-mate was busking one night downtime Aspen on the street corner....playing sax......Bill Clinton walks by and throws in a $20. Yep. You can't make this stuff up. My other dorm-mate also nearly burned down the Ritz-Carlton when he locked us out of the suite while he was cooking bacon on the stovetop....but that's a whole other story altogether....

[mrmando]

Doggone. It took me a week, playing about 3 hours a night in downtown Seattle's shopping district, to earn a little over $500 playing Christmas carols on the viola. Of course this was in 1989 and perhaps $500 was worth more than it is now.

I had a temporary job during the Christmas break at college, working for the plant services department. So I'd spend the day doing things like scrubbing tile grout in dormitory showers with a toothbrush, grab the viola when I got off work and ride the bus downtown to busk, which was one of the things that helped me survive a week of scrubbing tile grout with a toothbrush.

These days downtown Seattle is much less friendly to buskers, unless one of the department stores hires you to play out on the sidewalk.

I see I already posted on this thread, but that was 11 years ago.

[Smyrna5]

Wow Mrmando - 11 years ago.. thats what i call a real zombie rhread lol.

Makes me want to start playing behind the coffee house once a week again. I think most towns now have made taking money against the law without a permit, so it would probably be a lot easier to do it for free again, though.

[yankees1]

I could probably make more money than you as the listeners would pay me more to just stop playing !

[Doc Ivory]

Been thinking about doing it in Key West

[BoxCarJoe]

During the last recession I played cello in NYC Central Park.

Every day it was something different.

Some days the money was modest ($25 or so) other days almost nothing at all.
Some people were very kind and supportive while others were oddly hostile and insulting. As if I was offending them (I played OK).

Engaging an audience that changes every 3 mins. was a great challenge and I loved that.
But I only lasted two months at it. It was exhausting.

[sbhikes]

I've done it as part of a little string band and made about $10 an hour. Mostly played on the main street or at the farmer's market in the city where I live. I busked once by myself but that was not a successful experience. I don't feel that by myself I can draw as much interest as if I at least have a guitar to play with. Add a fiddle and people are amazed, even amazed at me. I'm surprised how many people have no idea what a mandolin is. They'll stare and stare and you might see them trying to figure out what it is with a friend, and then they'll finally come and ask me what it is.

[Carl23]

Did it about 20 years ago, various "venues".

Best was the beach in the summer. Good weather, cool people.

Not sure it would be defined as "busking" as we never put out a "hat".

Mostly an excuse to try out new material / incomplete tunes. Watch for "audience reaction" and all that.

Even without the hat, we would occationally have people hand us cash.

Turned into a couple of gigs over the years as well.

C

[doc holiday]

Great job DataNick! JeffD, I differ with you on the Joshua Bell piece "missing the boat entirely." I think they were making a different point: That indeed we're too stressed & too busy & that we wouldn't know a prodigy with a Stradivarius, (or a Lloyd Loar) if it bit us in the... a sad note on 21 century society, I think.

[Rush Burkhardt]

Busking...
1. Pretty much what we did playing BG in the 60's! Even when we had a job, in a bar, the hat attached to the mike stand collected more than the bar paid!
2. Most money I ever made busking was last week! My wife paid me $100 to go play in the street!
Merry Christmas, all!
Rush

[Josh Levine]

Nice work Nick! Last Spring my bandmates and I decided to go busk because it was beautiful out. We made about $30 and managed to score a weekly residency at a local hotel by a passerby that enjoyed our playing. So that paid off.

[Jeff Mando]

Congrats to DataNick and also to mrmando -- sounds like good money to a country boy like me! We live in a small village, pop 1200, downtown has a post office, gas station, four restaurants and an antique store. A drummer friend and his girlfriend rent a storefront where he teaches drums and she does crafts. Last spring we set up in front of his store, me on electric guitar and he on drums, and played for a couple hours at moderate volume basically doing every song we knew -- folk, rock, blues, Elvis, bluegrass, etc. -- to the passersby and our wifes/girlfriends and dogs. We only "made" $15 in tips, but had a good time.

[Jeff Mando]

Made $500 in a week the first time I tried it, playing Christmas tunes on the viola in downtown Seattle during the 1989 holiday shopping season, mostly in front of the old Frederick & Nelson department store.

I'm glad I never had that kind of luck. If I had, I'd have spent the last 29 years busking for a living -- or trying to!

[Tomando]

I was practicing in the local park, as I often do, under some trees. Two small children broke away from their playgroup, and ran towards me. They wanted to climb the trees, which were very kid friendly, easy to climb. I just continued playing, enjoying watching them, remembering how much I loved to climb trees at their age. After awhile, their nanny showed up, stood and watched them for a bit, then said it was time to go. They didn’t mind her, and kept playing in the trees. I just kept playing the mando. Finally, she became adament that it was time to go. The one little guys says; “Aw, but the music is so nice…” Then they all left together. So, some inadvertant, payless busking, I guess, but what a warm feeling… priceless.

[DHopkins]

I don't make enough doing a paid gig where people are required to pay. I find it hard to believe I would do any better if the listeners volunteered their money.

That said, it might still be fun.

[Charlie Bernstein]

A few times. Hoping to do a lot more this summer. People listen if you throw yourself into it.