Carnival needs to fire the Fascination piano bar guy..

[houstoncruisers2001]

When I first read the headline about the suggested firing of the piano player....I thought maybe he had molested a passenger or something. Seems his only crime was that he "wasn't very much fun". What gall, to be unfun on a "fun ship".

 

Geez...if one person on one piano in one bar on a cruise ship filled with various forms of entertainment makes or breaks your cruise to the point of wanting to get the guy fired, I can only imagine what you'd want to do to the room steward who forgets to fill your ice bucket.

[c&d]

Are you the Piano Player from the Fascination or another Carnival Ship????

 

 

We were on the Fascination 2 weeks ago. DH walked past Piano Bar a few times and was not impressed. My sis and I walked past and listened for a few minutes music and atmosphere was not what we were looking for. We never noticed it being a hopping place any night of our cruise.

 

We have been on Carnival ships before where the Piano Bar was so packed you could not get near the bar area. Also been a few where we have walked out after a few minutes.

 

We have also found a few that have not been smokey. Other that have been so smokey we had to leave.

 

We have seen some Good Piano Players and some horrible piano players.

Someone made a comment about tip jar not having much in it. That made me think. (scarry thought me thinking) LOL Anyhow if the tip aren't decent that means people are not pleased and are not enjoying the piano bar. Just a quick look at the jar gives you a idea how good he/she is.

 

We cruised with Laurie Anne a year ago and the bar was always packed. One person dropped a $50 tip in her jar. It was nothing to see several $20's in her jar. She was a entertainier and piano player. She like a few others we have met remembered your names.

One girl who was on ship with us a year ago. Had the pleasure of cruising with Laurie Anne again a few weeks ago they had a great time. She told me the Piano bar was a hoping place the week she was on the ship with Laurie Anne.

 

Not to rag on Piano Players only.

 

On the Fascination we had a guitar player who we were not impressed with either. He played mostly in the lobby bar and we saw him one night at casino bar. He could not sing for beans. He made comments like he was talking to himself, We had walked past casino bar on previous nights and it was crowded, we decided to go up to Casino bar and listen to guy who we heard singing past couple nights. Well we got a surprise he was not there the guy from lobby bar who could not carry a tune was up there. We wondered why it was so empty when we got up there around 10:30 since previous nights it had been packed. Well we found out real quick different guitar player. Only person who seemed to enjoy this guys music and banter was a guy sitting at bar who was obviously drunk. He was heckling the guy and that just made the guitar player sing and banter more after we finished our drink we could not take it anymore and left.

 

Yes I am one of those who sends a letter to Carnival after my cruise to comment on OUTSTANDING services, entertainers or crew members we encounter. I feel it is important to let Carnival know when someone goes above and beyond what their contract obligates them to do. Most people will only send a letter to Carnival when they feel service or entertainment was not up to their standards.

[mistyinca]

The piano player on the Valor was awesome! Everyone wanted to be there until they were kicked out at the end of the night. The Elation, however, was totally different. The guy just played some songs and sang in a quiet and unimpressive way. He didn't seem to want audience participation either. We left after a short stay.

 

I never visited the piano bar when I was on the Elation, but I was in the Cigar bar, one night while Karaoke was going on in the lounge next door. The person on stage was singing "Creep" (radiohead), and the pianist in the cigar bar started playing along with it. We got a major kick out of that, and my little crowd (a touch on the inebriated side, shall we say) started singing along with him!

[pmang]

When I first read the headline about the suggested firing of the piano player....I thought maybe he had molested a passenger or something. Seems his only crime was that he "wasn't very much fun". What gall, to be unfun on a "fun ship".

 

Geez...if one person on one piano in one bar on a cruise ship filled with various forms of entertainment makes or breaks your cruise to the point of wanting to get the guy fired, I can only imagine what you'd want to do to the room steward who forgets to fill your ice bucket.

 

Thank you Tom for being the first person here to agree with me that this thread was unfair.

 

My only point is some guy is doing his job... a job he auditioned and was hired for.... and people here want him fired because he wasn't their type of "fun". Just seems a little harsh to me...

[pmang]

Are you the Piano Player from the Fascination or another Carnival Ship????

 

 

We were on the Fascination 2 weeks ago. DH walked past Piano Bar a few times and was not impressed. My sis and I walked past and listened for a few minutes music and atmosphere was not what we were looking for. We never noticed it being a hopping place any night of our cruise.

 

We have been on Carnival ships before where the Piano Bar was so packed you could not get near the bar area. Also been a few where we have walked out after a few minutes.

 

We have also found a few that have not been smokey. Other that have been so smokey we had to leave.

 

We have seen some Good Piano Players and some horrible piano players.

Someone made a comment about tip jar not having much in it. That made me think. (scarry thought me thinking) LOL Anyhow if the tip aren't decent that means people are not pleased and are not enjoying the piano bar. Just a quick look at the jar gives you a idea how good he/she is.

 

We cruised with Laurie Anne a year ago and the bar was always packed. One person dropped a $50 tip in her jar. It was nothing to see several $20's in her jar. She was a entertainier and piano player. She like a few others we have met remembered your names.

One girl who was on ship with us a year ago. Had the pleasure of cruising with Laurie Anne again a few weeks ago they had a great time. She told me the Piano bar was a hoping place the week she was on the ship with Laurie Anne.

 

Not to rag on Piano Players only.

 

On the Fascination we had a guitar player who we were not impressed with either. He played mostly in the lobby bar and we saw him one night at casino bar. He could not sing for beans. He made comments like he was talking to himself, We had walked past casino bar on previous nights and it was crowded, we decided to go up to Casino bar and listen to guy who we heard singing past couple nights. Well we got a surprise he was not there the guy from lobby bar who could not carry a tune was up there. We wondered why it was so empty when we got up there around 10:30 since previous nights it had been packed. Well we found out real quick different guitar player. Only person who seemed to enjoy this guys music and banter was a guy sitting at bar who was obviously drunk. He was heckling the guy and that just made the guitar player sing and banter more after we finished our drink we could not take it anymore and left.

 

Yes I am one of those who sends a letter to Carnival after my cruise to comment on OUTSTANDING services, entertainers or crew members we encounter. I feel it is important to let Carnival know when someone goes above and beyond what their contract obligates them to do. Most people will only send a letter to Carnival when they feel service or entertainment was not up to their standards.

 

No, I am not the piano player from the Fascination or any current Carnival ship.

 

I was a piano bar entertainer for Carnival in the past (5 years of duty). I'm sure some of you here have sailed with me.....

 

I won't list my resume but I was one of the players that consistantly had a full room....That being said, there were times when I had quiet nights. I would hate to think that because of a slow cruise (you guests do play a roll in the amount of fun a performer can deliver) someone would attack my reputation and start a thread asking for me to be fired.....

 

I just feel that this entire thread (especially its title) is uncalled for... Post your review, say you didn't like it... fair game.... A entire thread in a highly regarded cruise site attacking someone's job because he wasn't your type of "fun" isn't.....

[RVman]

I’m not sure of his name but the piano player on the Legends last month seemed to have a drinking problem and was more interested in picking up chicks out of his audience than anything. He could play pretty well but he had a filthy mouth and he too never finished a song.

[houstoncruisers2001]

Thank you Tom for being the first person here to agree with me that this thread was unfair.

 

No problem. It seemed like Custer at the Little Big Horn out here. Or since I live in Texas, Davy Crockett at the Alamo.

 

We don't go to the piano bar on a ship, but we do go to the disco. Some nights it's lively, some nights it's dead and some nights the style of music isn't to our liking. Whatever the case we don't throw a hissy fit and write a letter to CEO Micky Arison demanding the DJ's head on a platter. We just go and find something else to do in another of the ship's many venues. Gee, what a novel idea.

[MistyRo76]

No problem. It seemed like Custer at the Little Big Horn out here. Or since I live in Texas, Davy Crockett at the Alamo.

 

We don't go to the piano bar on a ship, but we do go to the disco. Some nights it's lively, some nights it's dead and some nights the style of music isn't to our liking. Whatever the case we don't throw a hissy fit and write a letter to CEO Micky Arison demanding the DJ's head on a platter. We just go and find something else to do in another of the ship's many venues. Gee, what a novel idea.

 

We also usually like to frequent the disco on our cruises. We are a group that just likes to dance and have fun. DJ's also play a big part of this. A good DJ can make a nightclub really lively and entertaining. It's important for DJ's to know what kind of music gets the crowd into things and out on the dance floor. One DJ we had on the Glory a few years back (DJ Collin), was great. Every night he DJ'd, he would keep the dance floor packed. He also mixed up the music (a little R&B, a little 80's, a little current music, even some good country dance songs and 50's tunes). A little something for everyone. Other nights when the other DJ was playing, it would be 2 hours of solid rap music. He begrudgingly took requests, but always made you feel like you were bothering him. It was a totally different atmosphere from night to night depending on who DJ'd.

 

Now, I wouldn't let a bad DJ ruin my trip. We still managed to have a decent or found something else to do in another lounge or casino. And I am also one of those people who write in to recognize the outstanding service as well as point out the 1 or 2 shortcomings. I am a customer service manager and if one of my employees is not delivering the standard of service that is expected of them, I would want to know.

 

Misty

[pmoniz]

Wow - do I sense the tension on this thread! Anyway...

 

cruisecrazy4u - I understand how you felt. We cruise on the Victory some years back and we had the best time in the piano bar with Ed Rocks (another poster mentioned him as well)! He was great. Then cruised on the Miracle last year and the piano bar was a flop. He was sooo rude and sat there tapping at the keys more than he played songs. I won't get into detail how rude he was but, we did give him a try again during our cruise and same thing - just not fun at all. He was more interested in the girls who sat behind him.

 

Anyway, from this thread it seems like Carnival needs to change up their piano bar entertainers some and see what happens.

 

As for pmang - relax! I think you're taking this a little personal. To me a piano bar entertainer is someone who should be able to get the crowed involved and be fun and exciting, not someone who sits there not knowing what to play or wanting to even play anything.

[KimberleyFL]

At the beginning of this month, DH and I were on the HAL Veendam. The piano bar had "Loree from LA" (pronounced LOR-AY). She was great. She seemed to love crowd participation, took requests, hardly took a break. She sings and plays really good and knows a variety of songs. She passes out books with songs and the words and takes requests.

[DJ Eddy]

we don't throw a hissy fit and write a letter to CEO Micky Arison demanding the DJ's head on a platter

 

You may not, but others do... no love for the DJ :(

[mudpievelour]

Not really, however it might be proportionate to your alcohol consumprion. Just like Karaoke singers.

 

Just had to ask. What is consumprion?

[DJ Eddy]

Carnival needs to change up their piano bar entertainers some and see what happens.

 

Carnival can't keep some of the piano bar entertainers. The recent cutbacks within the entertainment dept mean all musicians, including the piano bar guys have to work more hours... they are required to play 5 sets a day and are not supposed to get a night off (some do on some ships, depending on who the music director is).

Now, compared to room stewards or waiters, 5 sets a day (45 mins to an hour a set) may not seem like long but I wonder how long someone can last singing and playing piano for 5 hours constantly every night for 6 months with out a break... wave goodbye to your voice.

[houstoncruisers2001]

You may not, but others do... no love for the DJ :(

 

Too funny.

[pmoniz]

DJ Eddy - Ya, I'm sure working or singing those kind of hours has to be tough, but it seems here like many ships that have been listed have crappy piano bar entertainers. So I guess they're just getting sick of it and quitting is what you're saying? That's too bad. It's always a fun place to go with the right entertainer! Hopefully things will get better. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for our upcoming cruise.

[DJ Eddy]

DJ Eddy - Ya, I'm sure working or singing those kind of hours has to be tough, but it seems here like many ships that have been listed have crappy piano bar entertainers. So I guess they're just getting sick of it and quitting is what you're saying? That's too bad. It's always a fun place to go with the right entertainer! Hopefully things will get better. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for our upcoming cruise.

 

I'm not necessarily defending anyone... I have worked on several ships and I have only come across 3 piano bar guys who were really good and i've come across a few that I personally don't think are very good and also come across a couple that have improved drastically.

I just think that carnival are struggling to get any people in the piano bars at all, never mind replacing the not so good ones.

[kelz66]

I'm being mean????

 

The OP started a thread to have a guy fired because he didn't like way he performed his show.... even though he played and sang well...

 

Do you think his bosses will read this and laugh?

 

I wish his bosses would read this site...LMAO

 

Now lighten up Francis. :p

 

BTW....some of the piano players I have seen...firing would be too nice...hahahahahaha :eek::rolleyes:

[Socref124]

No, I am not the piano player from the Fascination or any current Carnival ship.

 

I was a piano bar entertainer for Carnival in the past (5 years of duty). I'm sure some of you here have sailed with me.....

 

I just feel that this entire thread (especially its title) is uncalled for... Post your review, say you didn't like it... fair game.... A entire thread in a highly regarded cruise site attacking someone's job because he wasn't your type of "fun" isn't.....

 

I couldn't agree with you more. I don't care for Karaoke, but I don't ask to get them fired. Our last four cruises we had fabulous piano players. I can't remember their names, but they were fantastic, IMHO. Someone else might not think so. The guy on the Destiny last week could play and was funny, but his singing wasn't the best. So what, we all had fun and the piano bar was packed most nights. Hope we had the pleasure of having you as our piano player on one of our past cruises!

[CruiseCrazy4U]

I couldn't agree with you more. I don't care for Karaoke, but I don't ask to get them fired. Our last four cruises we had fabulous piano players. I can't remember their names, but they were fantastic, IMHO. Someone else might not think so. The guy on the Destiny last week could play and was funny, but his singing wasn't the best. So what, we all had fun and the piano bar was packed most nights. Hope we had the pleasure of having you as our piano player on one of our past cruises!

Geez people...I obviously don't want the guy fired, nor am I attempting to get a credit for another cruise...and obviously I had a good time regardless of the sucky piano bar(hehe)...I did not know this was going to cause such a stink....SO PLEASE FORGIVE!!!! Can't we all just get along..

[Canuck455]

We were on the Fascination last week..and Mickail (?) was not the best piano player/entertainer, which was evident by the size of the crowd in the piano bar. On the whole, I would rate the entertainment as a C+. This was my first time cruising with Carnival, and enjoyed the cruise very much. If I may digress....we should talk about the SPA staff and the fact that they do not wash their hands after leaving the toilet...which I did comment on (both to the Spa manager and on comment cards) I would not believe it if I did not witness it myself.

[DJ Eddy]

we should talk about the SPA staff and the fact that they do not wash their hands after leaving the toilet...which I did comment on (both to the Spa manager and on comment cards) I would not believe it if I did not witness it myself.

 

that is rather unusual, I have always washed my hands after using the toilet... just for my own hygene reasons, I even leave my hands wet and a bit soapy in case I have to open door handles with germs on. As carnival employees we go through very thorough health & safety awareness training, being in a hospitality industry & also to eliminate possible infection from viruses such as flu or noro.

I'm not saying it didn't happen and you were definitely right to bring it up. Those staffmembers will have been fedback to.

[shark Fan]

I'm being mean????

 

The OP started a thread to have a guy fired because he didn't like way he performed his show.... even though he played and sang well...

 

Do you think his bosses will read this and laugh?

 

I think pmang IS the piano guy.....:eek:

[pmang]

I think pmang IS the piano guy.....:eek:

 

 

No, I am NOT the Fascination piano bar entertainer. I don't even know who he is... My comments in here are not personal. It doesn't have anything to do with me and I have no connection the the player in question.....

 

I only stated an opinion because of the title of this thread (which the OP has since said wasn't meant to be taken seriously).

[ASONGULOVE]

so, i've been following this thread with some interest, as I too, was, not too long ago, a regular Carnival Piano Guy.

 

first, I know PMang personally, and he is not on the Fascination (hows Scandinavia, PMang?)

 

Second, no one piano player is all things to all people. Yes, everyone wants a full bar, and everyone wants a "fun" time, but defining that becomes different for everybody.

 

I'm not about to excuse off-key singing or bad piano playing...these things need to be at a certain minimum standard to be sure.

 

I will agree, that IMHO, Carnival currently has only a few piano bar guys who are REALLY good. But this has been true for years. The simple fact is that the better guys dont want to work on a ship, and Carnival's salary scale is not among the best.

 

The recent budget cuts and demands placed on remaining musicians have also not helped (they were one reason why I decided it was time to return to land fulltime...).

 

I have long hoped that Carnival would boost their standards for piano players. I still dare to dream. We shall see...

[Socref124]

Geez people...I obviously don't want the guy fired, nor am I attempting to get a credit for another cruise...and obviously I had a good time regardless of the sucky piano bar(hehe)...I did not know this was going to cause such a stink....SO PLEASE FORGIVE!!!! Can't we all just get along..

 

Why so sensitive? I wasn't attacking you. I was agreeing with Pmang. If you feel I was attacking you personally, I sincerely apologize. I never said you were trying to get a credit for another cruise either. Nothing to forgive because you are entitled to your opinion, and I respect that. The topic of the thread is "Carnival Needs to fire the Fascination piano guy", and I believe Pmang and I were commenting on the opposite point of view. That's all there is to it. Nothing to get upset with.