The New Zealand born, Australia based visionary known as Opiuo has been a trailblazer since launching his musical career. From his self-built Orchestras, to symphonic choirs, touring his own Opiuo Band, and as an immersive solo audio and visual show, Opiuo’s creativity is limitless.
Having spent more than a decade performing at some of the world’s most renowned festivals and venues, including Lollapalooza, Glastonbury, and Coachella, as well as selling out Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre, he has performed his music in an unimaginably large array of formats.
In this exclusive feature, the celebrated artist shares his top 10 tips for bringing electronic music to life on stage, drawing inspiration from his monumental live album, Opiuo & The Opulent Orchestra. Recorded at the iconic Red Rocks, this groundbreaking project seamlessly merges orchestral brilliance with Opiuo’s signature funk-infused basslines. Join us as Opiuo unveils the secrets behind turning electronic music into a mesmerizing live performance. It offers a unique and invaluable guide for aspiring artists who want to transform their act into something truly special.
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Ask Yourself – What Is The Goal?
A great place to start is asking yourself, what is the goal of the performance? Is it to gather people to show them who you are and what you are about? Is it to push what you see as the limits of current performances? Is it simply to make people dance?
Everything is just as important, but if you can really dive into what the main purpose might be, then a lot of the flow of show preparation can keep reverting to that “goal” and a cohesive, understandable, enjoyable show should follow!
Track Selection Is Everything
Another essential place to start is going over your entire catalog and pulling together the songs that you feel can add the most to the style of show you plan to do. For me, I wanted to gather the more emotive, and familiar, yet open to exploring new angles.
Songs I could layer strings in place of the chords, write whole new sections, and play crowd favorites. Nothing was left out, at the start, and it was overwhelming, but a real feeling of direction came soon after, once I knew more of what my goal might just be.
Choose The Venue Carefully
Taking your dream venue to perform at is one thing, but doing your act in the right setting is key. It does not have to be perfect, but it should only enhance the show, and definitely not subtract from it. Imagine your ideal location, and work towards that!
Have The Right Attitude & Expectations
Going into live performance is all about, while being on stage, projecting what you are about and who you are. The core needs to be the right expectations of yourself, and the attitude to get there is key. It is no good hoping for something unattainable when you could try to focus on what you know you can do, and do it really well. Then build upon that.
Less risk during the show allows you to feel more confident in what you are about to do. But some calculated risk is what keeps you on your toes as well. So make sure there is something that will add excitement as well. Then you can project that upon the masses.
Invest In Your Live Performance
A truly excellent live show you can stand behind will take more time, money, effort, and sacrifice than you thought possible. Do not hold back. Invest in everything you feel comfortable with.
The last thing you want to do is walk off-stage and wish you had gone bigger, or spent more on a specific element. You cannot take that back post-show. So go there from the start, but be wise. Do not over-invest.
There is a limit to the level of capitalization of an experience or the level of enjoyment from a show, depending on many factors, including the location. It is not the easiest thing to get right, but as you progress it will eventually become apparent.
Play The Obvious Stuff Live
If you are going to play a synth line, make it obvious that’s what you are doing! If you are going to play some vocal samples, do it on the biggest instrument possible! Show people and invite them to see how your performance is being performed on the spot.
Allow mistakes to be mistakes, acknowledge them, and do it again but this time correctly, and people will be just that little bit more connected with the show.
Be Original
Explore what others have done for some inspiration, but make sure to do what feels original to you. People will remember those things that separate you from others that they have seen.
Do not be gimmicky, but be true to yourself. What makes you, you? Hone in on that. Spend time imagining how you would want to experience your own show, in the most perfect possible way.
Include Moments Of Crowd Interaction
Including crowd interaction moments is so powerful yet can be very simple at its core. We are all gathered to feel like one entity at the same time, and it is so important that the performance feels genuine and somewhat wholesome.
Screaming out all the time does not always work, but building in moments, which can be on the fly, where you would like to take the time to have a true connection with the audience will not only enhance their memorable experience but your own too.
Do Unexpected Things
Keeping the audience engaged, and being unexpectable of what they are about to see, will add so much value to your show. There are an infinite number of ways to do this, so getting creative on it is the way to go.
Allowing yourself a lot of freedom inside the way you pull apart and perform a song can be so powerful as you can play it differently every single night. Do this, and no two shows will ever be the same. As simple as that is, unexpected variation can be immeasurably satisfying.
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Sound Is #1
A lot of people look at the post-show photos, seeing how it looked can allow you to imagine how it felt being there. But the number one production aspect that needs to be nailed is sound.
Fewer people will notice a bunch of lights being out, but a lot more will notice the bass going out. The balance of what you expect people to hear, and what you have control over on stage is minimal, so hire the best sound person or team you can! Get that tight and the rest is history.
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