Peak Performance for Musicians
Overcome Music Performance Anxiety with Mental Game Strategies
In a recent session I conducted with performers on what they wanted out of their performances, I found that many of the performers in the group were big believers in the Perfectionists' Creed: Perfectionists' Creed: "If I try hard enough and I am very careful and I follow all of the rules, everything will go right and everyone will love me and I will feel good all of the time." In my best Dr. … [Read more...]
As youngsters we are in the habit of being creatively engaged. This is the experience of play. Dr. Stuart Brown, the author of Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul, explains that “when we play, we are open to possibility and the sparks of new insight and thought.” This sounds very much like the definition of mindfulness. Leading expert on … [Read more...]
Musicians and performers, in general, spend hours, months, and years of their lives diligently working on technique and skills that are necessary for success in performance. We spend much more of our time practicing than we ever will performing on stage. Because of this we get really good at practicing—monitoring ourselves for correctness, at self-coaching, and at analyzing cause and … [Read more...]