How did this happen? - Bill Wurtz

No, seriously. Rehearsing for 10 hours (with breaks in between) was not on my musician bingo card for 2025. Why would anyone wanna do this? Most people wouldn’t last 2 hours.

The first time was during April 14th- my buddies and I were preparing for my first festival in London and Brighton called SoulFest. How I got that offer is another story, but the reason why we went through all this trouble was because we wanted to rehearse with several artists on the same day. We had to travel to different locations and organise getting different people in the same room. It was tough, but we got a lot done! Much bonding time too.

The second time was quite recent- 28th October! This was for an EP launch with the same musician crew. We were rehearsing at one venue that was near my place, and they gave a ridiculously good offer for if you want to book out the entire day. Given that we have not rehearsed together in a while, and the EP is on the 2nd November, the rationale was this:

One last rehearsal. To end it all.

So we did it- rehearsing also with musicians who haven’t practiced with us before. They performed really well! And thanks to that long timing, we didn’t have to run getting things done, so it was quite relaxed.

Mistakes were made….

One thing I’ve learned about myself recently- I don’t like being in the same space for too long, even in my own house, although I can stay there much longer.

What made it easier the first time I did the 10 hours rehearsal was we had to change locations, which means we got to see the sights and explore London a little. However, the more recent one, I put myself in the rehearsal venue for so long, only going out to get food. It made it so much more stuffy for me.

Another mistake I made was not resting enough. If the guys says “Take a break”, I have to take a break. I was still doing a bit of side work, and just admin tasks. So by the time we got to the end of the day, I was looking like this:

These tips are to ensure that if you must have a long rehearsal for whatever reason, you’ll not make it out alive, but you’ll have more than enough energy to get home!

Tip 1: Have a break. Literally!

The break will come when you need it, so when it comes, you gotta make the most of it.

Use your phone? Nope. That pesky work you gotta do? It can wait (unless it legitimately can’t).

Go socialise. Talk with the musicians. Make friends. Drink water. Use the toilet, sleep or whatever you need to do. But please don’t do any work. It’s a time to rest and chill because you’re going to need it to power through the rest of the day.

Tip 2: Touch grass

Like a gamer who never leaves his room, so is a musician who stays inside the venue during break time (unless he needs to sleep, then let the man sleep!). Not all rehearsal spaces are well decorated, clean, well maintained like the Malaysian facilities I’ve used so far. Some of the places here in London I’ve seen so far still has a lot of trash in some places, clogged toilets, or the smell of burning weed. So if you need to get out, get out of there.

For example, during lunch time, go to a restaurant that is somewhat near your venue and get some food. Explore the sights. Relax as you’re walking to the place (Learned that from the boys in the afternoon), and take the air in. Or it can be simple as standing outside for some fresh air.

Tip 3: Bring a lot of water.

Ok, maybe not this much. But 2L should be enough. If the venue provides a fountain, that’s even better.

During rehearsals, you will be engaging in a lot of conversation, communicating with the band leader, the artist, the musicians in the room or whoever you could think of. Or in my case, trying not to fall asleep playing. It’s not because the song is boring; it’s because of the constant routine. Or it could be the opposite where the song is incredibly difficult and the number of brain cells you have are shrinking.

Water is like the brain refresher. You drink one gulp and it’s enough to keep you going for a little longer. I found that it has saved me multiple times whenever I’ve had to rehearse with people and I was starting to lose my focus and make mistakes when I play. This doesn’t mean that I drink water every time I make a mistake (that would be really funny), but if I start to feel like I’m not really present in the rehearsal, I drink and it gives me enough juice to keep going.

In conclusion….

Long rehearsals aren’t easy, but doable. It takes a lot of learning from mistakes, as every person does, to strive and develop resilience for accomplishing your task.

I am blessed to be in a situation where I can spend an entire day playing with musicians I gel well with. Last time I spent this long rehearsing, it was during the Child Aid concerts. Such opportunities are rare, so I cherish them despite the exhaustion.

Here’s some footage of what we’ve accomplished after our 10 hours. Thanks to the bassist Nezron for recording the video and the sound. Hope you all enjoy!