When Leilani and I met, we were playing in different bands. We were each others groupies for a while.

After my band broke up, Leilani and I joined a keyboardist putting together a 5 piece band. It worked well for a while, but the money kept diminishing as new, large 'per drink' taxes made the lounge scene less profitable for the owners.

We lost our drummer and did auditions for a new drummer. This took a couple of not-for-profit weeks. We finally settled on a girl who had a small set, kept great time, put in tasty fills, didn't overplay and could sing a little. We spent two more weeks teaching her our material.

Then we went to play our first gig. It was in a country club, and the audience was so large, they folded up the removable wall between the dining room and the lounge -- and they put us in the lounge.

The new drummer was a member of some very restrictive Christian sect, and said that God wouldn't forgive her if she played in a bar. I asked her where did she think we were going to play? I also told her that God would have to forgive me for homicide if she didn't play tonight.

The next day I bought a primitive keyboard workstation and started making backing tracks for Leilani and I. Sure, the performance isn't as spontaneous as playing in a live band, but the money is better and we don't have to worry about personnel problems. Leilani and I have the same work ethics, we enjoy each others company, and we enjoy playing music together.

As the technology improved, we ditched the workstation, bought a computer, sequencing program, eventually BiaB, and many sound modules. As my skills got better, the backing tracks got better. And although they are excellent now, I'm still learning how to make them even better. After all, if we sound better and if we run our stage act better than the next duo, we will get more work and be able to charge more per gig. There is more to learn about music than a lifetime has time for. It's one of the things I like about music, each bit that you learn opens the door to something new to learn, and that keeps it fresh and interesting.

We've done cruise ships, 5 star hotels, country clubs, yacht clubs, restaurants, lounges, private parties, condominiums, and so on.

Although I use BiaB to make some of my tracks, I don't use BiaB live on stage. (1) When we have a dancing crowd, I like to go from song to song with absolutely no delay (2) I like to have real intros and endings instead of what BiaB provides (3) I like to add song specific licks to the songs (4) I like to tweak the good BiaB output and make it a top-notch sequence (5) I often like to manipulate the instruments (6) I like to mix and match instruments from a half dozen synth modules and 2 samplers to get the absolute best sound on each instrument for the particular song I may be working on.

Complete details on how I make my backing tracks and how I use them on stage can be read here: http://www.nortonmusic.com/backing_tracks.html

Feel free to link to that page if you want.

Insights and incites by Notes ♫

Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
https://www.nortonmusic.com

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