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You will always be happier and more confident when you have a monitor. Even if it's OK without one, it'll be better with one. The speaker sounds best when you're right in front of it... so you'll hear your tone best when you have a speaker pointing right at you.
I mean, the bass player can get away without one (sometimes), due to the omnidirectional nature of bass notes (when the wavelength is longer than the distance between your ears it's hard to tell which direction it's coming from)... but for guitars and vocals, you want the speaker facing you.
As for the tuning issue... there are options.
The Boss TU-3 Chromatic Pedal Tuner (~$100) is popular. It auto-mutes the signal when you turn it on. Both of the guitarists in my band used one of these. Also, it's a Boss pedal, so you know it's quality and can take one hell of a beating.
Similar is the Korg Pitchblack Chromatic Pedal Tuner (~$70). Which I know nothing about, but did a google search to see what was on the market. It also mutes the signal when you turn it on and is a Korg, which is a quality name in touring equipment.
You can find a mute switch (generally used on microphones and sometimes called a cough switch) for ~$50. Which might be useful to you if you already have a nice tuner that you don't want to replace, and might have a use for the mute switch elsewhere.
Of course, a mute switch is just a simple switch, so you could make one yourself with a little patience. The trouble you may find is making one that is silent when you turn it on and off (IDK, guessing). Then again, it's something you can almost definitely make with ~$5 worth of parts and an afternoon of free time if you have a DIY sensibility (again, guessing).
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