Stagefright

[Gabu]

Any funny little tricks out there??

I am kind of curious. I have had some luck with my small performances and been recieved well. But the other day I was performing for a celebrity and although I pushed through I was blanking out a lot. Is it just a matter of practicing until I know it back and forth or should I be picturing everyone in their undies... What's the scoop guys?

[downward spiral]

I am plagued by the very idea of stagefright.... I have no idea of how to really get rid of it; I suppose it will disappear naturally after a certian number of gigs...
who were you performing for?

[hujo]

One of the violinplayers in my band usually does some pushups before every gig. He says it releaves him from tension, and is relaxing. I'm never nervous, just concentrated.

Man, that sounded cocky, but what I mean is that I almost never get really knee-shaking-nervous, I just get a very small tingeling in the stomach, or so, which just helps me to focus. If I DO get really nervous, I think about what I am going to play, and if there are any problems. If there's a problem, can i fix it? If not, can I just improvise and hope for the best? Perhaps I'll just keep a low profile?

Most of the time I think to myself - "bah, that'll work out on stage!" And most of the times, miraculously, it does!

[bassboy_jordan]

I agree with hulo's violin player, I do mild exercise before playing and then do some stretching becuase it get's me warmed up and all calm before playing.

[jrthebassguy]

before i gig i remind myself of a johnny rotten quote "i'm not here for your entertainment, your here for mine!"


just remember your out there to have fun and your supposed to have a good time. I like to jump around and tell a joke or two inbetween songs, its alot of fun.


or an oldie but goodie....

"imagine them all in your underwear!"

[bassboy_jordan]

Whoops, I mean Hujo's violin player

[Gabu]

Originally posted by downward spiral
I am plagued by the very idea of stagefright.... I have no idea of how to really get rid of it; I suppose it will disappear naturally after a certian number of gigs...
who were you performing for?

I was playing a tune for Karen Black. It was a lot of fun and she spent a good deal of time talking to me about singing.

She said my voice reminded her of cowboy singing. (Not C&W, but old Cowboy folk) I thought that was really interesting so I am going to pickup some Roy Rogers CDs and listen to them.

[Hategear]

I don't usually get too nervous until I am about to play the first note of the evening. That feeling goes away around the end of the first or second song and then I only have to worry about the other guys' screw ups. I have never played to a celebrity, but I am more nervous than usual when playing to someone that I know really well (girlfriend, parents, friends) and really want to impress. My advice to you would be to just not over-think things too much.

Another opinion: My guitarist and lead vocalist seem to think that the answer to stage fright is to get drunk or high before the start of each gig. This doesn't improve their performance by any stretch. It does however help them to not care about their performance, thus keeping them from being too nervous.

[Brendan]

I actually never get the stuff. I'm just cool that way. By the way, the whole "imagine them in their underwear" thing is BS, I happen to know quite a few girls who have a penchant for naughty thongs and g-strings...who are HOT, making that useless....

[Chris A]

Originally posted by jrthebassguy


"imagine them all in your underwear!"

Jr. How BIG are your underwear, anyway???


Chris A.

[Brad Barker]

I have an odd relationship with my stage fright.

For my first show with just me and two guitar players, i was extremely nervous.

For all of my jazz band "gigs" (which were mostly at nursing homes and dinner parties), I was hardly ever nervous, even when we played a "song" for an encore that I hadn't practiced for over a month during my first gig (i just played it cool and played random notes; while watching the video of said performance, I didn't notice my notes sticking out or anything...lucky coincidence!!).

When I played my biggest show (which only lasted one song!!-damn benefit events!!), it was just me, a guitar player and a pianist on a stage twice the size of my living room in front of over 500 people. And I wasn't nervous at all!! I guess it was from the guitar player saying," I wouldn't be nervous at all if I didn't have to sing..." then i realized that I had it made, and nailed the song perfectly!!

Then during the state jazz finals and the end of the year recital for my school, I got really nervous!! I reckon it was the whole high production value of it all combined with the feeling that the whole year led up to those performances.


So I guess if you try not to think of anything except playing the song, you will play great, unfazed by the crowd. And if all else fails, just stare at the fingerboard!!!! (but not if you are reading music. in fact, that could prove disastrous: unfortunately, i learned the hard way).

[Ryan L.]

I usually don't get nervous anymore before a gig. I have gotten used to it now, I guess. Although I did get a little nervous last month when we played in front of about 5000 people. That is the biggest crowd I have ever been in front of. But the nervousness only lasted for about half of our first song, and after that it was smooth sailing.

One thing I don't do, however, is get drunk before a gig. A couple of Bud Lights to loosen up a little, but not enough to get drunk. I used to do that when I was younger, just to overcome stagefright. Trouble was that even though I thought I was really playing good, I sucked.

Only thing I can say is that it goes away in time.

[brewer9]

I never get it. In fact just the opposite. I love showing off what I do best in front of people. Just knowing others get stagefright spurs me on even more.

[Bass Guitar]

I only get nervous when I am doing a cover of a song with a very complicated bass line or bass solo live for the first time - before the show, I end up practising like nuts and I get lots of anxiety. During the actual show, I am usually never nervous. I do lots of deep breathing exercises if I get nervous to calm down.

[tufnuts]

I get nervous/tingly because I wanna get my butt on stage and play! It's wayyyyy fun and I dig it.

[MetallicadetH]

My first gig was only 6 or 7 months ago, and we did 10 cover songs. Luckily, we played in front of a supportive crowd of 50-100. My stage fright lasted for only two songs...after that, it was great!!!! Unfortunately, the freakin rhythm tripped on my cords 60 seconds into my bass solo!!! Other than that, I improvised without fright for the rest of the night

[Munjibunga]

Karen Black? She makes my TEETH itch.

[john turner]

i often get terribly nervous before my gigs - the whole weight of what i'm trying to do (different, non-traditional styles on non-tradtional instruments) , and the consequences if i fail or screw up, come crashing down on me, and i get paranoid and a little sick to my stomach.

once we start playing, though, that usually disappears in a few seconds - i get really into my playing, and that's that.

[Gabu]

Originally posted by Munjibunga
Karen Black? She makes my TEETH itch.

LOL - Care for some scope?

I am wondering what your reference is to? It sounds really funny.

Karen Black is an awesome singer. I have seen her perform twice and both times she had everyone so into it, it was just way cool.

[Ívar Þórólfsson]

Originally posted by hujo
One of the violinplayers in my band usually does some pushups before every gig. He says it releaves him from tension, and is relaxing.

Ohh...now that´s a trick I´ve gotta try. I'm usually very nervous before I get onstage, my fingers er ice cold etc. Doing some pushups might be a solution for me

W/best regards,
Ivar