Double bell tuba

Double bell tuba
Double bell tuba

Sunday, July 8, 2012

How to Clear Your Mind of Worries Before a Big Performance...

How to Clear Your Mind of Worries Before a Big Performance by Dr. Noa Kageyama
It’s 10 minutes before you walk on stage. You know you’re prepared, but there are people in the audience whose opinions mean a lot to you, and you’re playing some difficult repertoire. As the butterflies start swirling around in your tummy, what should you do? Is it better to stay relentlessly positive and write down all your good optimistic thoughts before walking on stage? Or is it better to be honest with yourself and write down all your negative thoughts and worries about the upcoming performance instead? How to Clear Your Mind of Worries Before a Big Performance by Dr. Noa Kageyama · 0 comments It’s 10 minutes before you walk on stage. You know you’re prepared, but there are people in the audience whose opinions mean a lot to you, and you’re playing some difficult repertoire. As the butterflies start swirling around in your tummy, what should you do? Is it better to stay relentlessly positive and write down all your good optimistic thoughts before walking on stage? Or is it better to be honest with yourself and write down all your negative thoughts and worries about the upcoming performance instead? Test anxiety The test anxiety literature provides some intriguing answers. Test anxiety? Yes, I know that taking a final exam in organic chemistry and playing in the finals of an orchestra audition are two very different tasks, but when it comes to our focus and attention, there are some key similarities. Recall that there are two broad categories of elements we can think about when we’re performing: 1.Task-relevant details that will help us play better (or in a testing situation, read/process the question, recall relevant info, and answer the question correctly) 2.Task-irrelevant details that lead us to play below our abilities (or worry about whether we know the answer or not, re-read the question multiple times without really reading it, freak out about failing the exam, and blank out on much of the information until we walk out of the test and suddenly remember all the right answers) As you probably can guess, our ability to focus on the things that are relevant and ignore the things that aren’t, is a critical skill that largely determines the quality of our performance.