I have been thinking recently on what are the characteristics of a great musical team/band member.In this writeup I won’t be focusing on the leader (that will be another blog post), rather I will focus on the rest of the performers.In playing in various bar, wedding, jazz, high school, college, bluegrass and worship bands as well as interviewing others, I have compiled a list of what I consider common characteristics of a great musical team member.
Characteristics of a great band member:
Respects the leader
Doesn’t challenge every decision the leader makes and at least entertains the leader’s decisions
Even if the team member is correct in their challenge (as in song choice for a worship service), how the challenge is made and the personality of the team member and leader need to be considered
Some (in fact the best I have worked with) leaders appreciate team members’ suggestions, others do not (dictators)
Enjoys being on a team and doesn’t aspire to take over the team
It is ok to aspire to be a leader.However, nobody likes being on a team where a team member tries to usurp the leader.Not everyone is meant to be a leader, not everyone is meant to be a team player, look for complimentary skills.If you are a team member and don’t have experience to be a leader, ask multiple team leaders for their feedback and ask to be mentored before leading.Leading requires skills that the team member may not possess or even be aware of.
Listens to himself AND the rest of the band while playing
Single most important aspect in my opinion
Follows the dynamics of the band
Is respected by the other team members
Note choice and rhythmic sense thoughtful and sensitive
Doesn’t drown out other musicians with their volume
Doesn’t tell other team members what to do, rather makes suggestions at the appropriate time.For example, consider the likely end results of the following scenarios:
During a rehearsal with all other members present, one musician says to the other, “that section sounds harsh, you should play this instead”.
During a break in the rehearsal, one musician pulls another musician to the side and privately says, “you might consider playing that part this way, it could be interesting”
Is prepared for practice and for the gig itself
If all members but one of the team are prepared, the one who isn’t can pull down the level of the overall performance.
Communicates well
Able to articulate at appropriate times their concerns and suggestions
Is on time, in fact, early for practice and the gig
Loves the role they are playing
The bassist doesn’t wish he was playing lead guitar and resent being put in that position
Knows when to play sparsely and when to be busy
Has a good sense of time
Practicing with a metronome can go a long way towards this
Has equipment appropriate for the task at hand
For example, the guitarist doesn’t have a guitar that is buzzing all over the neck if he is playing a part requiring a clean guitar sound
Doesn’t waste the team’s time trying to dial in their sound excessively during practice and/or a performance
A bit of tweaking is to be expected, spending 15 minutes to dial in the tones for a 3 minute song during practice is annoying
Doesn’t treat the soundman as a servant but rather a part of the team
Likes the music they are playing
The audience can usually tell if a performer enjoys what they are doing
Doesn’t gossip about others
Is fun to be around and/or is liked by others
While it is true some amazing musicians are a pain to be on a team with, for the cohesiveness of the team it may be better to have a lesser skilled musician and develop them over time.I have seen teams decimated by a team member nobody enjoyed playing with even though they were fantastic musicians.
Gives positive feedback to other members
Can be publicly or privately done.Goes a long way toward keeping and/or building team morale.
Please share whether you agree, disagree or have suggestions.
