How to deal with nerves!!!

[Kel]

hey everyone
i was wondering how everyone deals with nerves
sometimes before i perform i just feel like im going to be sick
ive got my uni auditions coming up and i dont want to be out of control nervous for them

how does everyone deal with this???

[musicmaker18]

Just forget that the audience/judges are there.  I know that is easy to say, but if you try hard enough, it works.  It is easier when you can't see the audience due to the lighting.

When I was in high school, I would go in after school was out and play the piano.  While playing, a lot of kids would come to me to listen or ask me questions about composing.  So, this might sound silly, but I try to view the audience as those kids that were always looking up to me.  In doing so, I don't feel so nervous.  

Always tell yourself that no matter what, they will love your performance.  Repeat it constantly to yourself.  Also, before you go on stage, take some big deep breaths.  That is all the advice I can offer.  Best of luck to ya!

[eddie92099]

I recently had a seminar on performance psychology - I have a sheet at home with lots of usefull information on it. I will be home on Wednesday and will post it,
Ed

[dj]

well whatever u do, DO NOT picture the audience in their underwear! besides the fact that this never works, u should really not be looking at the audience when ur playing

[jlh]

I've found that the best way to deal with nerves is to get as much experience performing as possible with the repertoire you're going to perform for auditions, recitals, etc.  Play the music for your friends, set up a little recital for your family.  Play the music as much in front of people as you can so that when it counts, you can concentrate on the music and not who's listening to you.  Good luck!

[piani0player]

well ,i have the same problem ,too few months ago.my ways to overcome that is to play in front of people as much as possible .the more you do the better it will be and now i feel better. also, think you are the best and the other is nothing.

[tomingram]

This does work for me, no joke, find a hat, or scarf, or bag or purse or something out in the audience, and play to that hat or wutever.  If you can't find a hat, try a chair!

[eddie92099]

This was Rubinstein's method although he used a person rather than an inanimate object,
Ed

[thracozaag]

hey everyone
i was wondering how everyone deals with nerves
sometimes before i perform i just feel like im going to be sick
ive got my uni auditions coming up and i dont want to be out of control nervous for them

how does everyone deal with this???

 practice.

[robert_henry]

There will always be someone in the audience who doesn't like you, your hair, you suit or dress, your smile, or playing.  Maybe all of the above.

Is there anything you could do to change this fact?  NO.

So, play to please yourself.  

Does this mean I don't care about the audience?  NO.

But you can't change who you are or the way you play every time you walk out on stage in the hopes of making them like you.  Some will, some won't.  That's the definition of 'opinion.'

Being nervous is a matter of not being confident in your artistic presentation.  Are you confident in the way you look?  Are you confident in your interpretation?  Your sound?  

Or are you apologizing for it?

You sit down, you say, "This is the way the piece goes."  End of story.
When you sit down on stage, you are God.  The interpretations that follow are YOUR collective statement and are not subject to debate (at least until after the performance).  

A former voice teacher of mine (yes, I was a double major for a while) said:  "There is a line drawn in the middle of the floor.  On this side of the line, you are afraid and apologetic.  One that side of the line, you embody confidence and the freedom to move your audience with your music.  When you walk out on stage, on which side will you stand?"

Robert Henry

[eddie92099]

There will always be someone in the audience who doesn't like you, your hair, you suit or dress, your smile, or playing.  Maybe all of the above.

Is there anything you could do to change this fact?  NO.

So, play to please yourself.  

You give the impression that the audience are looking to criticise, which is in fact not the case at all. They want you to play well and communicate to them,
Ed

[robert_henry]

ED SAID: You give the impression that the audience are looking to criticise, which is in fact not the case at all. They want you to play well and communicate to them,
Ed


Agreed.  And what happens, when the concert is over,  if some in the audience don't think you played well or communicated with them?  Then those are the people who dislike you, and that goes to my point.  Whatever impression I give is irrelevant.  What I said is true.  If you want to dream that the minute you walk out on stage you have everyone in your back pocket, go ahead.  The fact is there are SOME discriminating listeners out there at every recital, but we can't be concerned with them or their opinions while we are on stage.  We can only be concerned with what we are doing at the moment.  That is the most healthy way to perform.

Robert Henry

[eddie92099]

And what happens, when the concert is over,  if some in the audience don't think you played well or communicated with them?  Then those are the people who dislike you, and that goes to my point.  

That is after the concert, not when you walk on stage!        
Ed

[robert_henry]

When the realization occurs doesn't matter.  Before or after, it makes no difference.  It is an inevitability.  I appreciate your passion for semantics  , but my point is, whatever we do in life coupled with our perception of our own self-worth and our self-perceived success must not be made subject to the approval or disapproval of an audience.  Part of performing is realizing that some will like you and others won't.  (Too often though, people get hung-up on wondering what people think of them and they never move to the point where the opinions of others don't matter.  Do peoples' opinions matter? Yes, but not once you set foot on the stage).  But knowing this fact, we must mature and disregard it as irrelevant.  Our performance should stand on its own two feet whether people love it or hate it.  It is OUR performance.




Why do we get nervous?
Because we fear rejection and disapproval.

Is your confidence tied up in what people think of you?
If "NO, then good for you.  However, a "YES" means there is still some work to do in your performing.





There are four ways of getting dressed in the morning:

1.  "I'm going to wear this outfit and I'm not sure people will like it.  I really hope they do.  If they don't like it, I will feel like a loser."

2.  "I'm going to wear this outfit.  It may not suit everyone, but this is what I will wear."

3.  "I'm going to wear this outfit."

4.  "I'm going to wear this outfit and to Hell with everyone else."

When we perform, we should be like the third statement.  1, 2, and 4 are unhealthy.

Robert Henry

[arcadi]

it's good to remember what you are doing - it's not a life or death situation. i always suffer from memory and nerve problems.
there is something in all of us that wants something to go wrong so that we can relax. like if you break something and are going to get told off, you actually want to get told off so it's over with. in the same way, something in you says that if you go wrong, everything will be fine from then on in the concert. this leads to nerves.
martha argerich was preparing to go on at carnegie hall, and she was so nervous. a steward said to her "appreciate the wisdom of uncertainty." you must let some things get on themselves, while you play the piano the way you want to.

[inkiepoo]

1. Practice as much as possible beforehand.

2. Don't look at the audience before you play or while performing.

3. Concentrate as much as possible on your piece while you play it.  Don't let that concentration stop until you are done with your piece.

4. If you make a mistake, don't let it bother you. I tell my students to just tell theirselves "this" is the way they decided to play their song today.

5. Your knees might "knock" and your fingers might feel slippery or shaking terribly, but don't worry...no one in the audience will notice. The audience isn't nervous like you are--most are wishing you well.

6. Don't worry, you won't throw up. And after it is all over, you will feel much MUCH better.

[ahmedito]

meditate on this.

In a very famous acting workshop, which I regret dont remember its name (it was some rusian guy's thats supposed to be very important. (sorry, this is what I got from a teacher about nerves.).... this famous russian guy would make students perform in public and they would get nervous as hell. Then he owuld do a monologue and purposely break something or topple something over. His students would walk in, and pick whatever fell off the floor, and they wouldnt get nervous at all, even though theirs was a much more embarassing activity.

I think that when you KNOW truly what you are going to do when you come out, you dont get scared. If you eneter the stage with no clear idea of what you are doing, you are going to get panicky. If you're going in because you have to retrieve a broken whatsis... you wont...