 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Megan
Date: 2000-05-04 01:42
I have been playing clarinet for about 6 years now, and I have one major problem; I get EXTREMELY nervous before auditions and performances. Is there any way to combat this? I had an audition yesterday for a concerto competition at my school, I played "Rahoon" by Alfred Reed(it's very unheard of) I knew it very well and I knew I was prepared, but when I started playing I was I couldn't take deep enough breaths and none of the dynamics came out right. Any help?
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2000-05-04 02:14
Megan,
You might want to search the BBoard for "anxiety". We've had many discussions about this in the past.
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Author: joevacc
Date: 2000-05-04 04:40
Megan,
I know exactly what you mean. I have walked into my lesson having played pieces perfectly many times at home and have not been able to blow the dynamics with any grace in front of my teacher.
Professionally I am a sound engineer who does a lot of live theater, recording and some broadcast work that is usually live or at least live to tape. After ten years of doing this I know, every time I am still going to be VERY nervous when that first queue is called! One thing that has helped me, is for a short time before the performance I try very hard to tune out everything around me and focus in on all the nervousness! Breath deeply while you are trying to focus! You can take all this energy and put it to good use! If you think of the energy (now this might sound corny) as potential perfection it might help - not hurt you. This is not something that will happen right away it takes practice to identify it and contain all this energy. The secret is to take the time before it all happens for yourself... To breath in and then out into the performance.
Hope this is some help... jv
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Author: Rene
Date: 2000-05-04 09:09
All I can say about this is that practice helps. In my job, I have to give talks on conferences, teach and speek in meetings. Privately, I do perfrom with music. I used to be, and am still nervous at all this occasions - but who isn't?
However, at some occiasions I am very relaxed, because I did it so many times. I just know, I can make it. E.g. teaching is no problem at all any more.
My conclusion is that you might join other students to make music together, and play solo parts in front of them. It will give you confidence and routine. Only if routine does not help, I would consider nervousness a problem.
Rene
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Author: Ginny
Date: 2000-05-04 16:32
I have suffered stage fright, and was a part of a Stanford study for it. It's stunningly common, among pros even. Your doctor may be able to direct to medications and other professional interventions that can help-provided you are not offended by such un-natural means and (in my opinion) are not a teen (don't want to mess with that growing brain.) Now I await the anti-drug folks...
I've read that 1 in 8 people are shy. So... 1 in 8 may not enjoy the limelight, perhaps you are one.
I also think that teachers get students to play pieces that are at the margin of their ability on the first recitals. This is tension provoking, knowing your best is flawed. I very much believe children should only perform pieces that are years easier than the current playing level. They would be less likely to learn this fear response.
The good news is, with help the fear response can be unlearned in large part, and one can even enjoy performance.
Ginny
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Author: Meri
Date: 2000-05-04 22:14
I too used to suffer a lot from performance anxiety. Until I found out for myself what conditions and habits were contributing to the anxiety--things like eating too much before a concerts, last-minute practicing, arriving too early, etc.
I also adapted some of the warmup exercises which I learned in the all-city band I played in (one of our conductors was a firm believer in pre-playing wamups--in the form of yogic breathing exercises). My nervousness and tension were greatly reduced, since you can't be tense and focus on breathing efficently at the same time.
Another 'trick', to use during performance, is to notice tension and to relase it at the end of the phrase and/or the next rest.
Such techniques work for me; they may or may not work for you. But then, my high school music teacher used to say: "If you're not nervous, you're in trouble--it means you don't care about the music."
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Author: Shane Livingston
Date: 2000-05-04 23:24
I have had many problems with performance anxiety. People can say all they want about "just practice". When you are practicing, are you relaxed? Even if you are the least bit tense, then you are going to practice in that tension. You need to try to practice totally RELAXED!!
If you are really hard on yourself about your playing, that can have a very detrimental effect. For every negative thing you say about your playing, it takes two positives to even it out. Next time you are pracicing, try to think of 3 things you like about the way you just played, if you can't do it then play the same thing over until you can think of 3 things. (This sounds cheesy, but it really helps!!!)
I also found the book "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff...and its ALL Small Stuff" to be VERY, VERY helpful!
Hope this helps!!
Shane
PS- I have a friend that was in The Navy Band, and when she sees me tense, she says, "DUDE, YOU NEED TO CALM DOWN!!" It always seems to help.
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Author: Rene
Date: 2000-05-06 15:14
Oh, maybe I was misunderstood. English is not my native language.
I did not mean practise PLAYING, but practise PERFORMING. If you have the chance to do it often enough (maybe on places where an error does not count too much, and where you feel well), anxiety will become less a problem by and by.
Rene
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Author: HTW
Date: 2000-05-06 23:46
I used to be very nervous, but through many experiences I've learned to be a very stable performer.
tool #1-Bananas. That quick fix, works in 15 minutes, eat two preferably. The work beautifully. They used to help me lots when I was inexperienced and very nervous. Now I can't use them because I'm not nervous enough
tool #2- Barry Green's book "The inner game of music" I went to a workshop by Barry Green and it worked wonders for me. Book works just as well.
tool #3- busking. merging of practicing and performing.
tool #4- plain old experience
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Author: Jerry K.
Date: 2000-05-07 14:15
HTW wrote:
tool #3- busking. merging of practicing and performing.
----
Say what?? HTW, could you elaborate a little, please, on what "busking" is?
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Author: steve
Date: 2000-05-08 22:15
when I was a grad student at Illinois, chemistry got to be too much some days, so I blew off an afternoon and busked on the quad. I didn't play my clarinet. I played my metal bodied National guitar with a bottleneck, and sang Mississippi Delta blues. I kept my case open in front of me, and on a good afternoon, could make about $50-75 dollars in 4-6 hours.
It was combining practice with performing....the audience only hung around for two songs, and then either through a dollar in my case or didn't. Then a new audience took its place.
This was great experience for all my future performing, public speaking, persuasion, you name it...I had to make direct, immediate contact with the audience, project a powerful image of fun and relaxation and non-self consciousness (if I miss a note, so what...keep playing and smiling!!!)and make my needs known (for cash) in a humorous way....I had to give something unique to the audience, much bigger than me making a mistake on a piece of music...I had to entertain them by showing them that I was having fun!!!
The more I did this, the flashier and more note-perfect my slide guitar playing became, but more importantly, I became confident of myself to project my musical personna to groups of one to one hundred members....later in life, I just substituted professional for musical personna, and made many things easier for me...
_word of warning_....be careful where you busk, and develop street smarts. If you can't do this, busking is _dangerous_, and I'd advise not to do it....but if it's for you, and a safe venue presents itself, it will make stage fright seem like an odd memory....
s.
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Author: Geoff
Date: 2000-05-09 15:09
Two books helped me greatly, actually changed my mind set and attitude about performing:
The Inner Game of Music, by Barry Green.
Effortless Mastery, by Kenny Werner (available though Jamey Aebersold jazz catalog--I think it's jajazz.com).
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