Stage fright

[4SG]

A lot of good advice, especially Stumbo's reply #8. One thing I'd add to the mix is that, unless you have a keyboard player, bassists are the least interesting band members to the crowd. We tend to be less histrionic and our instruments are too big to swing around like props. And we seem not to crave the limelight like lead singers/guitarists. Stage fright's considerably less problematic when you accept the fact that most of the audience isn't paying attention to us anyway.

 

[Mr.Ace]

Embrace the fright. It makes you feel alive.

 

[Plutonium244]

Experience and a solid knowledge of the material are by far the 2 best things to get over stage fright. Also "basses" is definitely not the correct forum for this topic.

This. If you know the material inside and out-- that is, preparation-- you can't fail. When you know you could play the part in your sleep, you'll feel confident.

Sometimes, that isn't possible, if you're playing pickup gigs and such, and are asked to fill a role on the fly or play a song that wasn't on the list they gave you. If I ever found myself in a situation where I felt like I was not doing my best, worrying about something thrown at me that I was not comfortable with, and thinking about how I was coming off, I just remind myself that this moment is not really about them, but about me and the joy I get from playing; I am here to enjoy myself and life is short, enjoy this moment, let it loose; and that I am going to do what I do, not try to meet some amorphous expectation. For me its when the expectation isn't clear-- does the BL want me to play it this way or that way?-- that uncertainty can creep in. Make sure what's expected of you is as clear as possible, and when in doubt know that what you do is good enough, you on even a bad day is good enough, so be yourself and do your thing.

 

[bobba66]

Imagine you have an armadillo in your trousers.

 

[JoeWPgh]

My bass is a shield. It protects me from what an audience might think. I hide behind it.

 

[Rudyboy98]

Forgive me if this is posted in the wrong section. I'm curious what tricks you've learned to combat stage fright?

I can’t say I’ve ever had stage fright. My only quasi-fright problem would be not the amount of people present. Rather my concern is always if fellow musicians are there to watch and listen. That feels like serious pressure. Knowing I will likely be criticized is a sucky feeling.

No tricks here. I just suck it up and concentrate on my set I guess. Try to focus on your bass sound and your mix. If you can do that..it’ll keep your mind off the stage fright you’re feeling.
Just my opinion.

 

[Ric5]

Forgive me if this is posted in the wrong section. I'm curious what tricks you've learned to combat stage fright. I played many years ago, but usually only in garage band settings. We did gig a few times, but every single time, I had almost crippling stage fright.... To the point of fingers locking up, etc. I always enjoyed playing, and will be getting a whole new rig in a week or so after a 15 year hiatus.
What caused me to want to get back into it (beside the fact that I've always been obsessed with music and bass lines) was an invitation to be one of the backup bassists in my church band (new age church, great music, great band). Rather than playing to a group of 50-100, I would be playing in front of 800-1000 people twice on each Sunday that I play. I had to GC almost every weekday during lunch to check out different , and narrow down my final selection (it's only 2 miles from work), but I picture myself standing in front of that huge crowd, and start doubting myself. Having the ability to play the music isn't the issue. Can anyone else relate to what I'm feeling, or am I the only one? I'd you've experienced something similar, how did you get over it?

For me the problem is stage boredom ... boring band, boring song, lame dive bar, drunk audience who can't tell quality from crap, I played the song too many times, and I'd rather be somewhere else ... that's my problem

 

[gumtown]

I just picture myself in my underwear.

Just imagine yourself as the best dressed, and everyone out there in the crowd has no clothes on.

It is a matter of frame of mind.
You could try to convince yourself that you are doing to gig to save all those staving children in Africa,
or you are saving the world from exploding if you play the gig.

Put in your mind the people there are insignificant to what is currently happening in the Universe.

 

[Steven Ayres]

I worked in theatres for decades, and did a fair amount of stage coaching. The primary method for preventing stage fright requires work, but it's not complicated. Simply put, you have to practice focusing completely on what you're doing and the people you interact with onstage. Stage fright is a toxic form of self-consciousness, which takes your attention away from the action and onto yourself. As you move the focus away from yourself and onto the other person and/or the work you're doing, the self-consciousness melts away.

Again, no one should assume that this is easily accomplished. Actors train for years with various exercises to help reinforce that focus. But I do think for musicians it can be easier, because we can focus almost entirely on one thing, the music.

 

[Peteyboy]

Picturing everyone naked in church is maybe kind of a conflict for a God-fearing dude. Once you get good at that it's hard to stop. You know, I HEARD that it's difficult...

 

[Christine]

My way of dealing with it is to know the first couple of songs so well it's almost muscle memory playing them. When we go on I don't look up at all and for those first two songs I just look at my bass and concentrate, between those songs I'll either pretend to play with my amp or look at the drummer. After that I start loosening up and enjoy myself but beforehand and those initial few minutes I feel sick. I think it helps too if your first song is a lively one but also a simple one that is hard to play badly, it just sort of breaks you into the night

 

[Bobro]

Forgive me if this is posted in the wrong section. I'm curious what tricks you've learned to combat stage fright. I played many years ago, but usually only in garage band settings. We did gig a few times, but every single time, I had almost crippling stage fright.... To the point of fingers locking up, etc. I always enjoyed playing, and will be getting a whole new rig in a week or so after a 15 year hiatus.
What caused me to want to get back into it (beside the fact that I've always been obsessed with music and bass lines) was an invitation to be one of the backup bassists in my church band (new age church, great music, great band). Rather than playing to a group of 50-100, I would be playing in front of 800-1000 people twice on each Sunday that I play. I had to GC almost every weekday during lunch to check out different , and narrow down my final selection (it's only 2 miles from work), but I picture myself standing in front of that huge crowd, and start doubting myself. Having the ability to play the music isn't the issue. Can anyone else relate to what I'm feeling, or am I the only one? I'd you've experienced something similar, how did you get over it?

The way I got over stage fright is not for everyone but it is 100 effective- 2 1/2 years ago I had a massive aneurysm, complete with out-of-body near-death experience, perfectly recovered except for some strange aftereffects like heavily appreciating cornball pop song lyrics, and I'm now religious again for the first time since childhood, but haven't had stage fright since then!

 

[Skybone]

I assume that your band rehearses regularly. Do they rehearse where you're going to be playing, or somewhere else?

I also assume, because it's a church band, that there'll be more than just a 4 or 5 piece band on stage. hide behind someone!

Seriously, practice deep breathing & being calm. Give yourself time, and push anything outside of actually playing out of your mind before you hit the stage. Make sure you're well rehearsed, going through the songs at band rehearsals and at home. If you have any recordings of your band playing the songs, all the better.

Maybe have a talk with the Band Leader about your stage fright issues, and that you're anxious/nervous.

Stay calm, and play bass.

 

[Space Pickle]

Just playing out a lot got me over it, no problems anymore.

 

[Bassmantd]

Remember that anxiety is based on what you think might happen. Fear is something imminent. Don't get caught up on the things you can't control, and just enjoy using the gift that you have. Have fun and don't worry.

 

[Brent Davenport]

The practices are at the church. The largest that I've ever seen the band is 6 pieces. We don't have a choir, just a band. The BL knows about my stage fright, and they're all very accommodating.

 

[bassbully]

Focus on the music, turn halfway to your drummer, and look over the crowd not at them. I love performing so stage fright has never effected me but I understand it happens.

 

[Plastalmonus]

I just picture myself in my underwear.

I too picture myself in @lug ’s underwear.

 

[lbbc]

I never had stage fright...at least that's not what I called it. I've always been excited about playing. There's always the butterflies, but just attribute that to excitement!

 

[micguy]

The military deals with this problem all the time - combat is stressfull. If you talk with people who have been through that, what they describe that helped them is the training - obsessive, perhaps excessive preparation is the key to performance in a stressfull situation - they know what to do because they've done it so many times that it's second nature. I've heard it said that amateurs practice until they get it right, professionals practice until they can't get it wrong.

I practice my butt off (I play at churches, some the size you're describing - for me the crowd size is actually not a factor, which is another story). I also have a sheet of paper that lists the songs we're doing, and the first couple of notes that I play - once in a while I blank on exactly where to start in a song. When that happens, I have a clue there that'll get me going. I work really hard on any tunes that are new, and...even if it's a tune I've done a lot of times, the first one in the set gets some extra attention - once I'm up and going, the rest seems to fall in place.