Christmas gala nights

December is a month full of events, cocktail parties, gala nights, dinners and similar events, all in order to get ready to say goodbye to this year and welcome the new year. Many companies organize parties for their clients, partners, colleagues to celebrate already established partnerships and successful co-operations, as well as to achieve new ones and start new projects. It's a time of joy and celebration, to express our thankfulness for all the good things that came across our path. In the Western world we associate this time with Christmas, as it's a big part of our tradition and it is a good excuse to express our gratitude and give back to the community. Many charities are formed in this period or the ones that already exist use this time to promote the act of giving to the less fortunate.

Taking all this into consideration, this is also a good opportunity for musicians to get gigs! All these events often include live music, in order to entertain businesspeople and create a comfortable and relaxing environment where they can mingle and talk with their associates and potential business partners, which could lead to a better and more successful year. And they do it listening to the mellow sounds in the background coming from a live band playing at such events. Most musicians are fully booked in December, getting paid good money to play in the background. It's not the most rewarding experience, especially if you are a musician that needs recognition, but it is a well paid "rehearsal" and a good opportunity to find more gigs if you're good enough! If you can't handle not being noticed and getting the applause for your remarkable solos and all the energy that you put into your playing, then this is not for you. However, if you are a professional, you simply have to deal with the fact that this is how the business works and go do your thing! It's always a dilemma. Should you do things like that, even if it doesn't inspire you and give you the boost that you might get at a normal gig where people actually come to listen to you? Should you avoid these kind of events and just do gigs that please you? Sure, why not? However, this means - less money. If you want to survive you need to compromise. Another option is - get a regular job to survive and play when you want to for your own pleasure. It's actually quite simple.

Anyway, this is a time for giving, celebrating, spending time with your loved ones, but it is also a commercial time where the public is being encouraged to give back to the community and spend more money in general for things they might not spend it on in "normal" circumstances. It's a time for musicians to get more gigs than they would normally get and earn more money. Sometimes it's good to compromise.

Think of it as a paid rehearsal, have fun and enjoy the salary. :)