 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Stingerbee5000
Date: 2015-10-26 09:42
Hello!
Here's an introduction: I'm a high school senior in Texas getting ready for the TMEA Region Honor band competition and boy do I have an issue with nerves.
It's awful. I get very tense and rigid which kills my technical abilities and sound. This is doubly bad as I had surgery on my lungs last year and the tensing actually is painful to an extent.
Currently, I find myself getting nervous anytime I perform, whether for a director or sometimes even for my lesson teacher.It's very odd and frustrating as this is a problem I have been working on through my high school performing career and it feels like I'm back at square one again.
Before, I had tried performing whenever I could to help get used to the nerves but with a month left, I'm not sure how much it might help?
Yes, I know I should really just enjoy the music and the instrament etc. I've made the honor band consistently so I know I have a good chance but I just can't help BUT get nervous. I am a very nervous person by nature though honestly, performing has helped so much.
Long story short, I was hoping to learn some tricks to relaxing and unleashing my fill potential. It's about a month away so any long term training would be appreciated as well.
Also, I do know some professionals use drugs like beta blockers and while I have no qualms with others' usage, I would prefer not using such things.
Thank you all
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Author: gwie
Date: 2015-10-26 09:51
My teacher had me set up five chairs in a semi-circle.
In each chair, I would visualize someone that I truly cared about or idolized, and as I played I would stop and try to imagine what each person would say about my playing.
Being nervous is not bad...being nervous shows that you actually care about what you are doing. What you must train is your ability to perform WHILE you are nervous. In practicing like this you are putting yourself in a situation that hopefully simulates the kind of stress you would be in a real concert, and visualizing not only useful feedback from the listeners but also a successful performance.
Beta blockers, as covered extensively here on the BB (see the keepers thread on it), make sense when a person's physiological response to performance stress is beyond normal, to the point that it is debilitating. They do not confer any sort of advantage to the user, despite what some people may think. It will stop your hands from trembling uncontrollably, but it's not going to generate a gorgeous phrase in the second movement of the Mozart concerto for you.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2015-10-26 13:47
I believe that debilitating nerves stem from concentrating on the wrong things. You are (at least subconsciously) thinking of the ramifications of screwing up; failing; not getting first chair; not going to the right college; not having the right teacher; etc. etc.
Performance art is dependent on being IN THE MOMENT. That basically means the note you are playing (or more importantly, the phrase you are in) is the ONLY things that your mind must be processing. That is also to the exclusion of what JUST happened (which could not be LESS important).
I would recommend the book "The Inner Game of Tennis." For me the upshot is concentrating on a bit of minutia of what you are doing so that playing the right rhythm or right note is too big a target to miss (for that you must find your own solution, but for me it is concentrating on the vibrations of each note under my fingers).
There is a similar book that has more direct (in a way) connections to music called "The Soprano on Her Head." But I still like the former a little better.
................Paul Aviles
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Author: ClarinetRobt
Date: 2015-10-26 20:09
You might also try these methods...even if they sound cheesy...
Jog around the block (get your heart rate up) then immediately sit down and play. You'll teach yourself very quickly how to calm down and get the job done.
Another thing, when you audition (usually nobody can see you, or at least not your face), literally smile at your music. That physical action will help. It's almost like you're forcing yourself to be happy. When you're happy, you're not nervous.
Read the "Inner game of Tennis"; it's brilliant. And certainly focus on the action at hand and don't worry about everybody else. (I know easier said than done).
Also if you practice to the point of literally having everything memorized, you'll reached the point of 'muscle memory'. No matter how nervous you are, your fingers will always know where to go without fail.
~Robt L Schwebel
Mthpc: Behn Vintage
Lig: Ishimori, Behn Delrin
Reed: Legere French Cut 3.75/4, Behn Brio 4
Horns: Uebel Superior (Bb,A), Ridenour Lyrique, Buffet R13 (Eb)
Post Edited (2015-10-26 22:02)
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Author: fuzzystradjazz
Date: 2015-10-26 20:56
So many people with nerves, and so many people with "What works for me..." That, in a nut shell is the dilemma. You have to find what works for you - regardless of what works for everyone else. Your post here is a great start - and I'd recommend trying each idea to see if it works...works somewhat, or works "not-at-all."
Though I tried each of the above methods throughout my college years, none of them worked for me. (Later, I found other ways to get rid of the nerves - mentioned in another post). However, while I was in college, I came to one realization:
The view of my own abilities was based on the "best-of-the-best" of my rehearsals (combined with the apparently glowing reviews of my friends, family, and even teachers), and not based on an accurate picture of my "average" rehearsal.
So, on jury day, I'd get up in front of the faculty and my nerves would show up in shortness of breath, hissing reads, missed notes, shaking fingers/tone, etc. This happened because playing in front of faculty was already nerve-wracking enough, plus knowing my semester grade could be changed by a full letter by a bad performance, etc., etc., etc. However, I could survive those - the one that got to me was my own fraudulent expectations of myself, and (while playing in front of the jury) realizing I wasn't meeting those expectations, so my nerves just tore me apart from there on out.
So, for me - while in college, the trick was to get my mind around an accurate picture of my "average" playing, and to understand that's how I would play in front of the jury. Without false expectations of matching the "best of my best" practice sessions, I found the stresses of jury play went away entirely.
While I continued to set goals of improvement, by the time jury arrived (or any stressful performance), I had to shift gears into an "I am what I am, and that's all that I am" mode. "What you see is what you get." Then, I'd lay it all out without being nervous. Music became much more enjoyable, with nerves being way easier to control.
...but that's just what worked for me.
Fuzzy
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Author: MichaelW
Date: 2015-10-26 22:31
I'm lucky that I never had to perform music before a jury but played only for my own (and some friends') pleasure or disappointment. But "fuzzy.."'s point is exactly what I experienced with school or university exams, professional challenges etc.: At one point I said to myself: "That was it. End of preparation and anxiety. Let's see if it was enough". And mostly it was.
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Author: Maruja
Date: 2015-10-26 23:31
I am with Fuzzy on this. Before I went in to my last exam, I said to myself -'I have never played any of my set pieces without mistakes, either in practice time or with my teacher. So it's not going to happen now. Just go in and play as musically as possible'. And hey - that took away the pressure and I did pretty well. Whereas on the previous occasion, I must have had some sort of panic attack - a feeling of intense pressure weighing down on my head and getting tighter all the time, until, when I left the exam room, the weight miraculously lifted...
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Author: clarinetguy ★2017
Date: 2015-10-28 01:20
Several people in the past have suggested eating a banana before an audition or performance, and there is something to it.
You could try creating a mock audition in a very noisy place. Sometimes a run-through in a place with a lot of background noise helps to get the jitters out. I've seen it work.
David Pino, in his book The Clarinet and Clarinet Playing (p. 188), tells his personal story of overcoming these jitters. After playing a poor jury in college, he decided that he'd go into his next jury thinking of himself as an actor in a play. He decided to play the part of "one of the finest clarinetists who ever lived." He says it worked very well for him.
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Author: Stingerbee5000
Date: 2015-10-28 04:59
Thank you all for your kind replies. I do confess I tend to obsess and I need to practice not obsessing over mistakes. Hopefully, I'll have a chance to try these methods out in the coming weeks and it sounds like I'll have to take a look at "The Inner Game of Tennis"
Thank you!
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Author: Tom H
Date: 2015-11-02 02:01
When I started playing solos publicly in the early '70s I started taping them (reel to reel back then!--still have those). I found as time went on I could lessen nerves by playing to the recorder and making believe I was alone and just making a tape to listen to. Later on this worked off and on.
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Author: Stingerbee5000
Date: 2015-11-24 08:21
Thought I might put an update-
To prepare I mostly played for others and tried listening to myself play a lot.
I also lowered my expectations going in which actually helped a lot. It's sort of a play between keeping yourself motivated and frustrated.
It went well enough, the first etude was a little rough but I felt myself relax and perform like I wanted the further I went.
Some things that helped during the performance was not so much suppressing but controlling my anxiety- that is using my anxiety as excitement which helped me focus and took a bit of the edge off.
What really did the trick, and I think Fuzzy is right about this, was lowering my expectations. Having done so, I stopped getting hung up so much and falling down that slippery slope of negative feed back and really enjoyed playing. As I should.
Thank you all, I'll be doing phase II in a couple weeks- wish me luck.
I hope this thread helps someone else in the future.
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Author: David Kinder
Date: 2015-11-24 08:32
A couple of thoughts for you:
The 1st thing... is to breathe.
Breathe in slowly and deeply for 5 counts.
Hold your breath for 5 counts.
Exhale slowly for 6+ counts.
Repeat as necessary.
The 2nd thing... is to TRUST yourself and your preparation.
If you are well rehearsed and prepared, all you have to do is repeat it for your audition.
The 3rd thing... is to play "what would be the worst that could happen?"
- If I really screwed this up... what's the worst that would happen?
Guess what?
- It won't be the end of the world.
- It won't be the end of your life.
- You won't be branded a failure for the rest of your life.
I write this because I am a financial consultant. I go through similar anxiety when I'm working on large complex financial cases... and I've got over a decade of experience! This isn't limited to just music, but for many facets of your life. You'll find other tips and tricks to help tame your mind to help you reach your peak performance.
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Author: Ralph Katz
Date: 2015-11-25 19:49
All good advice. Above all, think of how much you like to play and how wonderful the music you are making is. Nothing else should matter.
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2015-11-26 01:26
At any audition, play a little slower than your maximum speed. Slower with accurate rhythm and technique is much better than dazzlingly fast but uneven.
Ken Shaw
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