"I find it helpful if I know in advance exactly what it is that I am hoping to achieve in a performance, especially if this goal is something that I can easily attain if I simply remain focused on it. I decide ahead of time that if I accomplish this one task, that I will be satisfied with my performance. Knowing that I only have one thing to think about helps me to avoid losing my concentration to nervous jitters. Choosing an appropriate goal is of course very important, as it must be attainable. Surprisingly, I find it most helpful when the goal is not directly related to the piece that I am playing, but rather is something that I have been working on in my technique in general or is related to muscle relaxation.
Some examples of appropriate, achievable goals:
To keep my head up
To relax my feet
To feel the bow moving from my back
To continually sing the piece in my head as I play
To feel the pulse in my hips throughout
Some examples of unreasonable goals that will add stress to the performance:
To play everything in tune
To win the audition
To nail the difficult section on page 2
To not have any memory slips
To not make mistakes"
**If you guys need ideas of what your performance goals should be, shoot me an email or a comment, and I'll give you some specific suggestions. Happy practicing.
Thanks Jamilyn for posting this. One question- where am I supposed to look when playing? Out at the audience? At my strings?
ReplyDeleteShawna :)
I struggle with anxiety when playing in front of anyone (including my own husband!). With the upcoming recital, having goals like these help ease the pressure a little bit. I know that I can’t control forgetting a line, or having a completely perfect performance, but I can try to truly enjoy myself and achieve smaller goals like the ones you listed here. Some of my specific goals are to relax my thumb behind the neck, and to not play so close to the bridge. We’ll see how it goes!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great advice!
-Michelle