Recently Rachael Forsyth and I played a gig outdoors at the beginning of December. It was freezing cold! Here are some of my top tips for playing in the cold…

1. Warm, winter clothes offer no protection at all – wear a space suit
2. Wearing a balaclava may keep you warm, but it will scare the audience
3. Your hands will freeze to the keys/strings of your instrument thus making you look and sound stupid
4. Leaping around will not keep you warm, you’ll just freeze in mid air
5. If the audience are very still, they’ve probably frozen solid… Check to see if they are breathing, if not dial 999
6. Your bum will freeze to the freezing cold metal chair that you’re sitting on, this makes leaving the stage with any dignity impossible
7. The saxophonist will complain bitterly about tuning before/during/after the gig.  Its freezing and you’re outdoors, there’s nothing you can do about it
8. You will be able to see your breath and your nose will run – attractive!
9. Hot drinks won’t help, the cold will just make you want to wee more
10. The audience do really appreciate what you do, so freezing to death is worth it!