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Live performance strategies

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Lizards_Case
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Joined: Fri Feb 11, 2022 3:42 pm

Live performance strategies

Post by Lizards_Case »

Dear folks,

I am preparing for a live show in some 8 weeks but I am a musician and this will be first time presenting visuals live. I have a bunch of questions for you experienced guys out there.

Do I need two monitors on stage or is one monitor fine ?
I hear that some artists use some kind of video hub. Do you use one live and why ?
Do you work in 60 fps live ?
Do you use midi control for the audioreactive things? I have that option but so far reacting by audio seems more hands on to me.

Any advice is vere welcome and thanx !!!

LC
Magic
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Re: Live performance strategies

Post by Magic »

All of those things are very subjective and will depend on your preferences. Don't worry about what other people do, just see what works for you. But definitely practice beforehand and make sure everything functions properly.
Terry Payman
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Re: Live performance strategies

Post by Terry Payman »

I absolutely agree with Eric's guiding principles.

Furthermore, no-one will be able to give specific suggestions (eg about monitor numbers) without specific details of exactly what you wish to do and the performance area/facilities at the venue. In my experience this will evolve as you practice-practice-practice at the venue.

My setup is usually adapted for each event at each venue, and frequently I learn from each situation - and in the past have often expanded my collection of cables/adapters/converters etc to suit. I now arrive with many crates full of kit!

There are some things that may not be apparent during a practice session. What if your Magic hardware (laptop etc) works just fine at the practices but fails during the live performance? It's considerations such as this that can influence equipment configuration.

As a starting point to finding out what works for you, here are some details of my typical setup.

Extra monitor I usually find it sufficient to use the Magic window on my laptop screen along with the playlist etc. I occasionally look at the projected output. Occasionally I am "live coding" the Magic scenes, and then want unobstructed editor space. A second adjacent monitor is then useful to display all other windows. Sometimes a performer needs to see a display in order to practice interactions, but it's generally a distraction during a live performance - diverting their gaze away from the audience. A projection on a rear wall can be OK if smoke/haze in the room doesn't obscure it.

Video hub/switch/mixer: YES, always. If there are any problems with your intended video source it's great to be able to quickly switch to an independent backup source, which can be a cheap media player with (ideally) an animated looping background that lasts longer than your anticipated performance set (most players glitch during loopback). A static band logo is an alternative. There can be glitches and temporary blackouts (or blueouts) when a projector feed is switched, but that's better than a dead screen behind the performance. A simple and cheap HDMI switch is sufficient, although I recommend one with EDID memory to speed up switching (else your sources will take time to adjust to the sudden connection of the projector).

I now use a video mixer/scaler but these are usually expensive. Furthermore they necessarily add a small delay to the video output, which will slightly increase the lag between the live audio and any visual response. The advantages are that switching is glitchless, and I can fade between or superimpose/chromakey video sources.

60Hz YES, always. Lower frame rates give increased lag between live audio and the visuals. Likewise for video camera feeds into the system. It doesn't matter that a complex Magic scene might run at a lower frame rate - the computer's output frame rate will remain at the optimum 60Hz.

MIDI Sometimes I use a MIDI interface, but mainly to precisely adjust visual elements - eg to adjust the shape of a vignette and a live video size/position within it. Example of the end result: https://vimeo.com/660787141
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