Not my expreience, but......
My sister is a violinist who lived in London for many years, getting work as a backing violinist in some quartet or another for big-time musicians such as Vanessa Mae, Robbie Williams, and Oasis. (She's the violinst in the Oasis video 'Don't Go Away', who appears right at the beginning and right at the end...and in a few bits in between).

Sounds great? Maybe. But a lot of musicians who get these jobs know better.
A friend of her's who was a keyboardist or something (i forget) was supposed to be accompanying 'the artist formerly known as prince' on tour in Britain and Europe. She had a disabled child who she would need to bring with her, and because she knew that children were allowed on the tour in cases of single parents, she didn't think there would be any problem.

When 'the artist' was informed, however, that one of the musicians needed to bring her disabled kid with her for the tour, he apparently said, "We don't want it!"....and that was her struck off from the tour.

As for my sister's experience...i went along to see her play at a Vanessa Mae concert in Glasgow. My sister took me backstage to the green room where I met Ms. Mae, who was a total airhead, giggling her arse off and making vapid, unfunny 'jokes' about the appearance of the various backing musicians. There were other people that she totally ignored 100% of the time.

My sister also told me that she mimed her way through 50% of every concert. (How you mime on a violin, i don't know, but she managed it).

At the end of the concert, she had to ask the electric guitarist the names of the people in the string section so that she could get a round of applause for them. She'd been touring with them for months, and didn't have a clue what their names were. How big of her.

On the plus side, my sister stuck a whoopie cushion under Vanessa's arse during a soundcheck, which promted everyone except Vanessa to piss themselves laughing. She herself was not amused at all.

Must've been the only highlight for the rest of the entourage on that whole tour.
(you_always_felt_like_suede, Fri 26 May 2006, 15:48, Reply)