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Performance Anxiety

johnvic

johnvic

Mar 15, 2011
81
12
NYC
#1
No not that kind!

I mean getting really nervous before a gig. Last night I played a gig and normally I'm a little nervous but okay. But for some reason my hands felt disconnected and tight. I have to still listen to the recording we got to see how I played, but I felt horrible. I did not drink alcohol before the show. One thing that may add to it was that I have been feeling sick so I have been feeling disconnected in general and was cranky before the gig.

Anyway, I felt like posting this. I know that musicians can be hard on themselves but the hand tightness and disconnection were bad.

I did drink a few glasses of wine afterwards!:)
 
#2
Sounds like a one-off kind of thing caused by special circumstances, so it doesn't seem to be something to dwell on :) To those who experience this kind of thing often (like I have done), I recommend taking a look at how you react to those feelings. In my experience, it may start of unpleasant, but doesn't get really bad until you start fighting it. The moment you let it to whatever it wants, it starts going away. Accepting it instead of rejecting it is the key. It's basically some alertness increasing processes, but not "bad" until you get into the habit of trying to push it away or getting obsessed with it.
 
#3
I have been playing for 33 years and rarely get nervous before a gig. A few years ago, I developed a fear of performing live. I was able to work through it but it wasn't easy. In your case, it might be because you were not feeling well. I wouldn't worry about. You stated that you didn't drink alcohol before the gig. I usually have a couple of beers to take the edge off but am careful to not get drunk.
 
#5
last semester a very talented violinist friend of mine absolutely bombed his student recital, because he was crazy nervous.

one of the professors was in the backstage area hanging with us, and he said to the violinist "so you wanna know how to never get nervous in front of an audience again?" "play for an audience 500 more times"

hes totally right. i remember getting nervous before crappy bar gigs when i was starting gigging. i've been gigging a lot for around 6 years or so now, and in that short amount of time, ive had so many horrible experiences in front of audiences, theres nothing that scares me now. ive had amps die. broken strings in the middle of unacompanied solos, been too drunk to play (im ashamed to admit), gotten shocked by microphones, and most of the bad stuff has happened infront of large, seated audiences- never bar gigs. i dont really get nervous anymore.

its also important after you get used to performing, to learn how to use those nerves positively. if you think mick jagger is totally calm before he gets on stage your wrong. but he certainly has done it enough to know how to cope with it, and how to channel nerves into positive performance energy.
 
#7
Recitals were bad, yes. But regular gigs? Naw, they don't bother me. I remember about 20 years ago fronting the Atlanta Rhythm Section before several thousand folks and not feeling nervous.

Ya know what makes me nervous? Those kinds of bands where they crucify you for ever missing a note. Seems like they are just waiting for the opportunity. Played awhile in one like that, and it was sooooo serious that it was NEVER any fun at all. Just the thought that you're going to get ridiculed bigtime if you miss even one note makes you miss it, or feel like you're always getting ready to. Don't play in an anal band.

To the OP, don't worry, pal. Anxiety is normal. When ya get up there, forget it and just get into the music. And if you miss something, laugh. If you have a bad night overall, just chuckle and shake your head. When something feels bad, it will eventually feel good again.
 
#8
Inevitable : feeling excitement and energy before/during performance.
Not Inevitable: mistaking the excitement as fear, anxiety and thinking it's undesirable. Which causes you to mentally resist the energy. Being in a state of mind that thinks "this is bad, how can I stop it" creates all unnecessary stress and distraction.

Take a few breaths, acknowledge and accept the excitement as a crucial part of performance, energy to be used.
 

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