Preparation is undoubtably one of, if not the most important part of a live event, whether it’s choosing the right venue and managing costs for the event night, or simply organising rehearsals with the rest of the team. Lack of preparation will inevitably lead to a failure of the show but ample planning and foresight can be the key to an incredibly successful event. One important part of preparing for the show is choosing the right songs. Variety is important as it keeps the crowd interested, but we also have to think about the kinds of people in the crowd in order to cater towards their tastes in music and keep them hooked. Another crucially important part of a show is rehearsing everything to ensure that everything runs smoothly. This includes sound checking which takes place just before the show starts. Good lighting and sound quality also play a huge role in ensuring a great live event and help to create a great experience for the audience. It helps to set the mood and atmosphere at the venue. Finally, good marketing and advertising are essential to a successful show. Advertisement is where the crowd comes from, which makes it very important part of a live event. Advertisement can range from putting posters up around a city to making posts on social media but is important nonetheless. Insufficient advertising can lead to not many people knowing about the event and decreasing the size of the crowd. This is not good for the hosts of the event from a financial perspective.
Throughout the duration of the show, there are also many things to take into consideration in order to make a great live event. The sound system (PA) and the sound engineers are greatly important for a show. The PA helps to pickup the sound of all the band members and blend them together before amplifying them through the on-stage speakers. The blend helps everything to sound nicer for the audience. However, it is not only important for the audience to hear good quality sound from the band members. At shows they often have speakers at the front of the stage facing towards the band which are used by the performers to be able to hear their own playing/singing and monitor it themselves. During the show, communication is key, whether that’s communication between band members or between the band and audience. Subtle but effective communication between band members throughout and between songs enables the event to run smoothly. Communication between the band and audience helps to keep them active and involved with the show, making it very important. This can range from giving out merch into the audience to simply giving a few lines of comedy to keep the crowd entertained. Segues can also be an effective way to put on a smooth show. A segue is when you play one piece and transition into another song seamlessly, without interruption.
After the event, merch sales are a popular way to make additional money and a way for the members of the crowd to take a part of the experience back home with them.