Piano Playing and Performance Anxiety

I'll never forget the first time I played the piano for an audience.

It was my first concert and it was fairly full up. I was to play my first CD "La Jolla Suite" containing 12 pieces. There was to be one intermission and the whole concert lasted about 80-90 minutes.

Let me tell you that I was very nervous. So nervous I didn't think I was going to make it through. Suffice it to say that I really didn't enjoy myself. After many hours of trying to figure out why I was so nervous, the answer came to me - it was because I was self-conscious.

I was worried about how I looked, what the music sounded like, etc. I couldn't relax because I was too concerned about what the audience was thinking about me. And to this day, giving concerts is not my favorite thing. I realized that I didn't like being the center of attention.

What to do? For most people, myself included, playing in public is a fearful experience. Many suggest that you keep at it and eventually the fear will dissipate. But I ask myself why do it in the first place if you are scared. I have no hard and fast answers like many of the public speaking books would have you believe work. The truth of the matter is that some people are more comfortable in front of others. But one thing I think works is this: Start playing for very small groups of people and work your way up.

This desensitization process works better than most other methods because you learn that the audience is just made up of a large group comprised of smaller groups. If you can play for just one or two people and feel good about it, you are solidifying this experience. Then as you gradually play for more and more people, there is no fear because you do not carry it with you.

You see, if you play first for a large group, of course you will be self-conscious. But, by gradually building up, you don't create a situation where fear is generated in the beginning. Consequently, you don't carry it with you into larger performance spaces.

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music's online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

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Do you ramble on endlessly with your improvisations? If so, good. This has its place in music making and in new age piano playing in particularly.

Home Run Gigs
Are you still playing your heart out to small audiences on gigs at unappreciative dives (excuse me, I meant to say nightclubs) that feel paying you a couple of hundred dollars for a 3-4 hour gig is also paying you about $150 too much?Unless you are a masochist, why do you continue to take such beatings? Is it due to laziness, complacency, cynicism, your now being jaded, or a combination of any of the above?Are you aware that you could dramatically improve your live performance income by making simple changes in the types of performances that you accept?For instance, see the below list of gig types and the average earnings possible, compared to traditional nightclub work:* Weddings ($1,000 *minimum* for 2-3 hours work)Instead of working yourself to death, so to speak, by chasing wedding performance opportunities on an individual basis, consider approaching a number of area caterers and offering your services to them as an add-on to their own services as, obviously, they will have significantly more client opportunities.Not only will your music service now give catering companies more value, as the client can now also purchase the wedding entertainment through a single source as opposed to contracting performers separately, but this single joint venture alone will dramatically increase your income, and on a more consistent basis.

New M3 with Competition Package
The new competition package available for the BMW M3 is almost sad as it is wonderful. With everyone knowing of the strong rumors of the M3's power plant changing to a V8, it's almost heart breaking to think about the legendary straight 6 cylinder being laid to rest.

You Cant Force Play
A student once asked me; "How come sometimes the music comes freely while other times, I feel blocked and can't play?"A perfectly valid question and one that many students of improvisation ask. You see, the problem is that many think they should be able to just sit down at the piano and play anytime anywhere.

How To Change Your Guitar Strings
Changing your guitar strings might make you feel a litte uncomfortable if you have never done it before, but it's really quite simple and should become a regular part of your guitar care routine. Before you do anything, first take time to make some personal observations such as:1.

Automatic Control of Chords
CORRECT PRACTICE IS INDISPENSABLE!Your success or failure at the keyboard may well hinge on how quickly and accurately you can memorize a new chord. To be really efficient at this you must use your eyes, your ears, and the muscles of your hands.

Spectral Muses Revisited: The Channeled Melodies of Rosemary Brown
Rosemary Brown (1916-2001) was a middle-aged South London widow, making ends meet as a grade school kitchen assistant, who rocketed to international fame in 1968 through a BBC broadcast recounting her purported collaborations with long-dead composers. These included Liszt, J.

The Top 10 Reasons Why You Suck At Playing Guitar
You don't 'need' to play guitar enough.If you desire to become a great guitarist, you have to want it badly enough to sacrifice other parts of your life to devote to practice.

SOUNDS GOOD TO ME - Eliminate Throat Tension
As a vocal coach, I hear it all the time. I love to sing but when I do, I get hoarse and need to shout to be heard after only a few hours.

Win Friends & Influence People Through Music -- Is It Possible?
The idea that studying music improves the social development of a child is not a new one, but at last there is incontrovertible evidence from a study conducted out of the University of Toronto.The study, published in the August issue of Psychological Science was led by Dr.

Music, the Spiritual Connection
All through the age's music and spirituality as served hand in hand. As for instruments, the earliest is presumed to be, percussions from noisemakers to drums.

The Revolution has begun - and it will not be Televised The new Artist Development Paradigm
In reflecting on the world of the Music Business in 2004, there were some very profound and dramatic changes that changed the nature of the Music Business itself. 2004 will always be remembered as the year the 'Big Five' became the 'Big Four' and don't be surprised if you're reading at this time next year and we're telling you about the 'Big Three'! Beside the Sony/BMG merger, 2004 will also be remembered as the year labels utilized aggressively utilized video games as a marketing vehicle for the launching of many of their artists.

New Age Music - How Its Made
Different styles of music have different "sounds." We can all pretty much agree on that point.

Does Your Band Need a Manager?
New bands looking to book gigs and establish contacts often start looking for a manager to handle the business aspects of their music. This is especially the case in cities with big music scenes, like New York, Los Angeles and Austin.

Visualization Techniques for the Pianist
Controlling the images of the mind through image projection has proven valuable not only for psychotherapy, but also as a learning aid. Visualization can have as much impact on the subconscious, memory, and entire body as a "real" experience.

Bono: From Music To Fashion To Helping The Poor
U2s lead singer Bono isn't content with being part of a top band. Fashion and Music - well I'm sure they can mix! Bono was born Paul David Hewson in 1960 in Dublin Ireland.