1 March 2013

Form a band or Hire a band

What does it take to create an atmosphere of party and enjoyment is the real question hovering in the minds of many event planners and band managers. The question of enjoyment feels incomplete without music and that too a live one will be something like the icing on the cake. Recent industrialization has led to the development of the music industry in a very different way. People opted for eccentric careers and are doing well at it. The musicians have also taken a change in their usual course and have opted for convivial tie-ups in between the acquaintances and start a small troupe or a band. The band consists of four or more members and they play percussion and stringed instruments with one or more vocalists. The singer wanted himself or herself to be established in an eccentric way so they resort to personal business development rather than joining a big records company for their career growth.

The real thing to think about hiring or forming a band is ‘is it worth the price and the pain’. Again the same thing daunts the minds that even though we hire a big band to perform at a gala, will they prove to be beneficial for the price they charge and with their ongoing demand will their availability be a matter of concern. Well in such a pivotal shift of the market, the band managers come to the rescue of the event mangers. The designations, which did not exist few years back but are the most indispensible part of the jamboree. The part which is most sought is that how do these bands begin and how do they evolve in the industry to establish themselves.

The band forms as a small group of friends or people who are a part of a group or organizations and have common interest of music. They decide to start a small group, which can sing songs together and later on can also be commercialized eventually. The biggest challenge that these small bands face is the fiscal deficit. The music they produce initially is not reaching the right audience, as there is a lack of awareness of music as a whole amongst people who are ready to give money to such bands for performing at small family functions etc. The struggle phase at times is so bad for the band that it ends up shaking and finally breaks off culminating the sole cause of making music together. Friendships are broken and bonds are mutilated in the journey of establishing themselves as a commercial group, which should at least earn money enough for their survival. The singer wanted for his singing might get an opportunity with a recording group and might leave the band in this low phase further deteriorating the conditions

After the band has fought the battle of establishing themselves there are bigger challenges waiting for them such as the monopoly of their pre-established contemporaries. But here the digitization of music comes in as a rescuer. Bands establishing themselves first of all launch themselves through Youtube, soundcloud and other similar social networking portals. The band if gets acclaimed by people gets an entry into the real world where they are allowed to perform their own gigs but with minimal funding from the sponsors and once that happens then there is no looking back as one successful gig leads to another and in no time the band performs live and people have difficulty in getting their availability.

The organizers have the biggest challenge of making the function a successful one so they won’t take chances and would I suppose hire a successful band to perform at the party. The established bands have many advantages and therefore they are any day more desirable than a new one. A famous band albeit being costly and unavailable, will be more prone to jazz up the function’s environment. The band will play songs, which people have listened and liked. It can play versions of it’s own songs to attract the audience. Moreover their experience to handle the crowd makes them an ideal choice.

On the other hand a new band if there is potential in its performers have pros too and they are, they will always be available, will perform at a lower cost and will play the songs that are chosen by the audience. If they get established the organizers get a pat on their back bringing in more business for their risk taking and innovation. Ultimately, it is all about people feeling happy about the performances and this can only be achieved if the performers have the grit and conviction of reaching the top and leave no stone unturned in achieving what they have thought that is to rise up to the top with constant improvement and regular practice.
There are few examples in the industry wherein people have actually rose from zero level to the top and sustained every hardship as a group trying to stay together as long as possible. People say that Metallica, the famous English band used to play in the backyards of people and with their vision they are world acclaimed band and organizers face difficulty in even thinking about calling them at parties knowing their present market share and their hefty fees and their unavailability. Establishing a business is hard and that too a music band where their people with consummate talents have created their own mark and space in the market, finding a way for newer bands is a task too demanding.


Well the crux of the whole matter would be that whether we hire a bind or we take the pain of forming one, the conviction of the whole group will guarantee the success of the function or the party. For this the organizer will have to consider many small performances of newer bands to be sure of calling them for a function and assuring them in their first ever performance to instill the confidence in them. The singer wanted some fame and the drummer was too far for people to see are too trivial matters for band which has a vision to take on the world and show them what real team work can do for any kind of work. In a nutshell I would say that newer bands are bound to perform better than their established counterparts if they are on right track as a group rather than those who have their egos surging high due to the fame they had earned in their past performances. It would be totally fair to say for the price a new band demands and the quality they assure to deliver the new band definitely deserve a chance for once.

Mike is a freelance writer who writes on different topics such as travel, auto, technology, business, finance, gadgets. He has published more than 500 articles about various topics, including Music Jobs

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