Overheating

[MoominDave]

Does anyone else have trouble with stamina and accuracy due to playing in hot auditoria whilst wearing thick traditional-style band jackets? I find that after a few numbers my standard drops by an annoying amount when under these conditions; does anybody have any good remedies for this? I've always generated a lot of heat, and this is at the root of the problem - it can't escape! All ideas welcome...

Thanks,
Dave

 

[NAS]

Good topic Dave... I suffer with dizziness when I over heat. I just make sure I have plenty of cold water next to my chair... and a water spray to spray my face with ... very basic but it works for me.

 

[JessopSmythe]

I remember reading an article in the bandsman ages ago by one of the Childs brothers (forgotten which one I'm afraid).
Basically he was looking for a way to practice under concert conditions to ensure that there wouldn't be any drop in the standard of his solos. His solution? Turn the heating all the way up in his house, dress in about 4 layers of winter clothing and run up and down the stairs a few times before practicing. After that, apparantly, the temperature on stage was quite comfortable and he had very few heat related problems when performing. Bit extreme maybe, but it seems to have worked.

 

[tewkeshorn]

Turn the heating all the way up in his house, dress in about 4 layers of winter clothing and run up and down the stairs a few times before practicing.

I'd like to see that attempted at a band practice

 

[drummergurl]

a friend of mine always feinted if she got really hot (like in concert conditions) which was never good, so she buys some things that she sticks on in places that are unseeable to the audience, and they are really cold so it keeps her body temp down. i dont know wot they r called or where she buys them from tho, so im sorry i cant help there!

 

[Accidental]

I remember reading an article in the bandsman ages ago by one of the Childs brothers (forgotten which one I'm afraid)......Turn the heating all the way up in his house, dress in about 4 layers of winter clothing and run up and down the stairs a few times before practicing.

I heard that from Bob Childs, and it worked for me (once I got fit enough that I could actually play staright after all the running :lol: )
My biggest problem in is getting sweaty (beurgh!) so my mouthpiece slides all over the place - there's only so many times you can wipe your mouth!

 

[Dave Euph]

Overheating can cause dehydration, responsible for all sorts of issues like shaking, dry mouth, nervousness, all of which plus more contributing to a dropped standard in performance.

By far the best solution to this (and one I always employ) is too take a bottle of cold water into a performance with you. It cools the body down and hydrates it, eliminating most problems. Nobody will think you look silly and if they do I'd still do it rather than have my audience laughing at me for a bad performance.

 

[davidquinlan]

A similar story (I'm still picturing the Childs brothers running up and down the stairs... however...)

I was told once by someone that when they were at college, prior to an important recital, to recreate the nervous athmosphere of the recital/concert performance, to stand on a three legged stool (preferably a wonky one) while practicing or running thru the recital program. The worry about not falling over takes precedence over the performance so that when it comes to performing on a (hopefully!!) stable stage... all should be ok.

 

[Okiedokie of Oz]

Over here, we accept that heat is part of the gig, unless we know it's air-conditioned. I will admit that the heat can be annoying, but we don't have too many fainters.

The one problem that does occur a lot is the dry lips. Some people uses chap sticks and such, but I hate the feeling of an extra layer on my lips. A mate of mine solved this problem by always keeping a packet of M&M's on his stand to suck on. It keeps the moisture levels up, and sate's the hunger until you can get to Hungry Jack's

 

[Griffis]

A friend of mine truly believes in this method, and it does work quite well (not brilliantly though, but reduces the uncomfortableness :?: ) All he does is wet behind his ears. Could be a mental thing...the fact that you think it helps!
Dunno, try it and see what you think.
Dewi

Beaumaris Band

 

[Okiedokie of Oz]

Maybe he's the cause of the expression wet behind the ears?

I dunno how that would work, except perhaps assisting in keeping your head cool.......

 

[ted]

My only problem with heat is when sweat cause my lips to slip into the mouthpiece instead of sitting on the rim. For all contest performances, I always take a bottle of water with me, not needing to drink from it and then forgetting to take it off the stage. (I only dry up when I don't know my parts!)

Marching under the Australian November midday sun is absolute HELL! (we march with blazers, pants and ties) Playing quality gets thrown out of the window, and the main priority is to survive. We have lost men halfway through marches before.

Also, I find having to do up my collar button is a distraction because for sometimes my throat actually gets pushed right up against the button. So I've decided not to wear any ties for solo competitions. (for band competitons, everyone wears it so i have to wear it.)

Ted

 

[Okiedokie of Oz]

Australia Day marches are worse Ted! Don't forget to whinge about them!!!!!!! Marching behind horses in the heat!!!!!!!! :?