Are you afraid of the stage when playing the piano in public?

As a Pianist, when we face public and present symptoms like sweating, fast breathing, chills, nausea, digestive disorders, muscle tension, loss of concentration, pessimistic thoughts, and failure is clear that we are facing a clear case of Stage Fright.

Numerous factors converge to make pianistic activity a particularly stressful time. Some of these factors depend directly on the interpreter, others, the environment around him, society and the learning received.

An untrained mind can host a series of thoughts and habits that, conscious or not, make this fear appear. The problem arises when we are not able to play in the same way before the audience as when we play at home.

METHODOLOGY OF LEARNING AND FIRST EXPERIENCES

As a Pianist, you must give great importance to the work done in the classroom, and the first experiences lived by you since childhood, as this will determine your identity (way of thinking about yourselves). Self-esteem and learning methodologies used are vital to avoid the appearance of stage fright and to have self-confidence. Developing self-esteem is to expand the ability to be happy and deal with stage fright successfully.

Once you start playing the Piano, a classic mistake is to make a false start and stop. You should not interrupt the performance, in order to begin again, without stopping to the end.

CONCENTRATION

Concentration and self-control are basic pillars that must be taken into account to improve performance before the public and, therefore, stage anxiety. First, you have to have a clear idea of the work so that it is the mind that directs and dominates the body and not the other way around. As pianists, a few minutes of physical activity dedicated to muscular endurance exercises, coordination and flexibility are highly recommended.

COMMUNICATIVE CAPACITY

Communication with the audience starts from the first moment you go on stage. It is important to have eye contact with the public and thank the applause. Many students comment that to calm the anxiety they feel, when they go on stage, they do not look at the audience and think: “I’m at home, there’s no audience”.

What will really help the pianists is a behavioral work that allows him to face the situation with a more rational thinking such as: “Yes, it is true, there are public, but I have prepared for it, I am grateful to share this moment.”

The solution is not to eliminate the fear, but to learn to face it. This will reduce the symptoms to a desirable minimum that favors, even improving your performance. In short, we live in a competitive society that erroneously forces us to want to perform impeccable performances. Errors can be corrected while the passion for what we touch if it is not recognized, fed and trained ends up disappearing.

For more questions, contact us at info@willanacademy.com or 646-838-3990. Willan Academy of Music offers singing lessons, piano lessons, and more in NYC, including Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens.