Life in the Pit – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Back in 2021, we chatted with Joe LaRocca while he was playing on the 50th anniversary tour of Jesus Christ Superstar.  Since then he has found the niche of actor/musician and talks about how that has changed his perspective before we get into our main topic: his observations for the current state of hiring practices for pit orchestras and what he thinks needs to change.

Joe's SubStack page can be found here: https://joejoethefluteboy.substack.com/

His previous interview with Life in the Pit can be heard here: https://www.davidlanemusic.com/podcast/episode/45fd912c/61-touring-with-the-jcs-50-joe-larocca-reeds

Follow the podcast on Instagram or Facebook @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

In 2021, John Eldridge and I had a 2-part episode series on keyboard programming in musical theatre, and I felt it was time to check in for a 2025 update.  Software like MainStage and Q-Lab are becoming more and more expected at even a community theatre and high school level.  A mid-end keyboard, even with a ton of sounds, just won't cut it for an average modern musical.  If you're a music director and/or a keyboardist, use this episode to make sure you're up to date.

Previous episodes with John Eldridge Programming Keyboards for Theatre Part 1

Programming Keyboards for Theatre Part 2

After spending hours preparing his keyboard for an upcoming show, John Eldridge got the idea to save and rent his work to save future keyboardists the huge opportunity cost that is spent here.  He created the company Stage Sounds, a company that specializes in over 200 shows of downloadable preprogrammed keyboard files for MainStage software, with more titles each month, and additional services for other instrumentalists.

Follow the podcast on Instagram or Facebook @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

Whether you're in the pit or any kind of musician who has to perform to an expected standard, you may often or even occasionally struggle with stage fright or performance anxiety.  Elisa Di Napoli specializes in ways of treating this to allow you to become a confident performer.  She is the author of "Dare To Be Seen", which you can get for free for at least a limited time at https://elisadinapoli.com/pit and also has a podcast with the same name.  Check out a free masterclass with her at https://elisadinapoli.com/stage-fright-3/ and her online course at https://elisadinapoli.com/how-to-overcome-stage-fright/. Her music can be found at http://www.elyssavulpes.com/

At approximately the 53 minute mark, listeners can here the first ever information about David Lane's new podcast coming in January.

This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling.  Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.

Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

Marci Shegogue is a music director and keyboardist who has been active for decades in the Maryland/DC area. In 2018, she started the Free Theatre in Silver Spring, MD (https://www.instagram.com/thefreetheatre/) and talks about the admin side of running a theatre and how that crosses over with her life as a music director.

This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling.  Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.

Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

Life in the Pit is going to go on a hiatus, hopefully a short one.  For more details, listen to this episode as David Lane talks about what's going on with the podcast and why.  Also, we do a deeper dive into the 3 keys to making it big that was touched on in the previous episode.

This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling.  Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.

Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

Dennis J. Arcano has played for several dozen shows including the national tour of Tick, Tick,...Boom! as drummer and assistant music director.  He is also frequently a sub on drums and percussion for Broadway productions such as Follies, Jagged Little Pill, and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.  We talk about all of that, the high quality work he's doing as the house drummer and contractor for A Contemporary Theatre of Connecticut, and the wealth of fun and helpful videos he's been creating at his YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/dennisjarcano

This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling.  Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.

Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

Episode 71 begins with David Lane reporting on his very fun first-time experience at NAMM 2022 in Anaheim.  Then he brings up a topic that might be uncomfortable but one that is important and widespread: non-union musicians for community theatre are, for the most part, still being paid the same amount they were receiving at the beginning of the century.  David reads comments from musicians all over the nation who have chimed in on this to paint the current picture, and offer some suggestions as to how things might improve.  There's also the debate of whether or not they should improve.  Are community theatre musicians right to quibble over pay when the actors are often volunteers?  Many thoughts are shared.  Please feel free to message us through http://lifeinthepitpod.com to share your thoughts and suggestions.  This is likely a part 1 of a continued future discussion.

This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling.  Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.

Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

This is a follow up to Episode 70 with Angela McCuiston, where we chatted about strength and injury prevention for musicians, but we never actually talked about her pit experience.  This is a funny story of her "big break", and not in the way that phrase is normally used.

Follow Angela and discover her resources at http://musicstrong.com. 

his episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling.  Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.

Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

We might not be discussing performance on Episode 70, but don't skip this week, because a reported 90% of musicians will go through some kind of performance-related injury in their career.  Angela McCuiston is determined to see that number go down because of her services as a personal trainer for musicians through her company, Music Strong.  Angela is not only a trainer, but she plays flute, alto flute, and piccolo and is an experienced pit musician who lives in Nashville.  In this episode, we discuss the common physical problems of various musicians and some of the things that can be done.

Angela's book: The Musician's Essential Exercises: Basic Strength Training for Injury Prevention can be found here.  

She has a ton of helpful videos on her YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/MusicStrongFitnessTraining

Finally, she is the co-host of the podcast: Tuned And Strong.

This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling.  Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.

Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.

If you're a musician in any field, your network is paramount!  If you're a music director who works a local market and are responsible for filling chairs in the pit for your production, are you taking shortcuts and possibly saving time while sacrificing the opportunity to build relationships?  This is a mild rant from host David Lane about a trend he's been noticing.  Do you agree or disagree?  Please message through our website or social media pages.

This episode is sponsored by Fons, an online platform that helps private teachers of all types (music, yoga, martial arts, academic tutoring, coaches, etc) with smooth, automated assistance such as securing timely automatic payments and scheduling.  Click here for more information or to begin your free trial.

Follow the podcast on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @LifeInThePitPod.  Feel free to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Visit www.lifeinthepitpod.com for more info or to send feedback regarding the podcast.  Donations are also gratefully accepted.  Please leave a rating and a review on your podcast app.  Thank you for listening.