Peak Performance for Musicians
Overcome Music Performance Anxiety with Mental Game Strategies
In Are You a Mentally Tough Performer? Pt. 1 we discussed how important it is for performers to be mentally tough and that mental toughness is simply having effective mental skills that allow for fearless, exciting performing. The Level I Skills include Attitude, Motivation, Goal Setting, and Commitment—basic life habits and skills that are developed early in life. Mental Skills Needed … [Read more...]
With an important audition coming up, the following questions are often uppermost in a performer's mind—"Am I going to be ready?" and "What do I need to do to be set or prepared 'enough' for this audition?" In order to sing or play a successful audition, performers have to spend considerable time on the HOW and WHAT of their music and performing. In other words, musicians spend a great deal … [Read more...]
Yesterday is history, tomorrow's a mystery, and today's a GIFT—that's why we call it the PRESENT! You, no doubt, have heard this saying. With the holiday approaching, I thought that this quote was particularly appropriate. It certainly does not have to be a holiday for this saying to have significance for performers. How many times have you caught yourself worrying about performing … [Read more...]
Have you had a problem performing well when you are under pressure at competitions or at auditions? Have you been so anxious before or even during a performance that it adversely affected your performing? Has your critical voice ever overpowered you with doubts and anxious thoughts? Have you ever been so concerned with what others think about your performing that you felt unable to perform … [Read more...]
Have you ever felt stuck after a less than successful performance? Why did this happen? Again! What about that audition that didn't go the way you expected? We often focus on the fact that the performance didn't go well instead of focusing on what we can change to make a difference next time. On the flip side, have you ever found it difficult to get up and going after a successful … [Read more...]
I ran across a quote by Holocaust survivor, Viktor Frankl, that really spoke to me. Frankl was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist who spent three years in a concentration camp. When released, he chronicled his ordeal in his book, Man's Search for Meaning (1959). In this best-selling book, he concluded that even in the most absurd, painful, and dehumanized situation, life has … [Read more...]
Most performers have had a big audition, that important performance, or the competition that they've worked six months to prepare for, raise their anxiety level. This anxiety level can be manifest in one of several ways: in your body (somatically), in your mind (cognitively), and ultimately, in your performances. Somatic or bodily symptoms of music performance anxiety are a result of the … [Read more...]
In the recent post, Focus On What YOU Can Control, we discussed the kind of focus many performers have that makes them fearful, anxious, and distracted by things that are outside of their control. When you focus on what is within your control, you will feel more confident and calm and ready to face performance challenges with a clear and present focus. What kind of focus do you need to … [Read more...]
If you are a performer who struggles with performance anxiety or you can't seem to perform as well as you practice, you may want to take a look at to what and where you are paying attention. Most performers who are anxious or fearful are paying attention to things outside of their control. The ability to concentrate in the present and to focus on the specific task at hand is extremely … [Read more...]
Being back in Joplin, my hometown and site of the deadliest tornado in recent American memory that hit last May 22, 2011, is both heartbreaking and uplifting. When we were in Joplin one year ago, only days after the EF-5 twister hit, it was a scene of devastation that one only sees in movies or in your worst nightmares. When in Joplin helping my family and when reading about the efforts to … [Read more...]