I dont know who said it to me now but I am forever in their debt.

This is a real pet peeve of mine. Just picture this...........

I'm sitting there listening to a song and then the performer says at the end of it something like "sorry I stuffed that up" (or words to that effect). In that moment (s)he has just ruined the experience for me. Unfortunately this happens a lot and it's even with more experienced performers that should know better.

"Why is that?" You maybe asking.

I dont know why I feel that way when it happens but I do know that it is an unnecessary and unprofessional thing to be doing.

I know that we have all heard the phrase "you only get one chance at a first impression" before but (especially as a performer) it is so true. The last thing you want to be doing is putting off your audience by showing to them that you have no confidence in what you are doing.

Here are three reasons why you should refrain from using the word 'sorry' on stage.

1. It's not the mistake but how you get out of it - I have made some clangers in my time (and I have seen some clangers too). A great test of how human a performer is is the way that they get themselves out of a mistake. Audiences love it when a performer takes something like a mistake and turns it into a joke.

I have seen one performer say 'sorry' on stage and get away with it. He was using the word as a lead in to a joke, there was no seriousness in it at all.

2. The audience (generally) wouldnt notice the mistake anyway - You are playing your own music meaning that the audience has no point of reference as to how your song sounds. Any mistake that you make could sound like part of the song to someone who hasnt heard it before.

Unless you are playing to an audience of finnecky musicians (especially guitarists, hehehe) you dont have anything to worry about. By saying sorry you have bought the un-noticable mistake to their attention, how silly is that?

3. It doesnt promote a healthy attitude to mistakes anyway - We are human and therefore we will make mistakes. A lot of great ideas come from making mistakes and little glitches here and there.

Embrace your mistakes, learn from them and laugh it off (or at least smile). Your audience will laugh with you.