Klarinet Archive - Posting 000167.txt from 1996/01

From: Anne Bullwinkel <bullwinkel@-----.EDU>
Subj: Pre-performance relaxation
Date: Mon, 8 Jan 1996 22:10:06 -0500

Dick,
You probably won't believe me, but I've been told by numerous students
here that eating bananas before a recital will help to calm nerves. They said
something about the potassium or something being soothing. Haven't had the
opportunity to try it myself yet, but I'm tempted to bring a bunch to the MTNA
competition this week. :)
One thing I do before a difficult passage in performance is briefly
think about what I want it to sound like, tell myself to *relax*, and let the
music flow. I believe that if you've done the practicing, the most difficult
thing to do is convince yourself that you can and will play correctly. If the
passage doesn't sound right, I don't worry about it until *after* the
performance. Once the passage is past, that's all I can do for it until the
next session in the practice room.
Hope some of this helps!

Anne Bullwinkel
Marywood College
Bullwinkel@-----.edu