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hi guys - anyone got any suggestions for overcoming stage-fright? - You know - have you every been in that situation where at home you put Al Dimeola to shame, but as soon as you are in front of an audience things tense up and your playing is reduced to that of an "apprentice" . I've tried alcohol, anger, meditation - all kinds - Any suggestions
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04-07-2010 06:09 PM
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Experience. Sorry, but apart from hypnosis, there is no shortcut. You need to face your fear, and you can only do that by gigging. Some people NEVER get over it, even with experience. No matter how many people tell you to take deep breaths, or to focus on 1 nice looking person, or to take a couple of pills or pints-none of it really works.
Some fear is good. I gigged tonight and had absolutely no fear, as it was just a regular gig-150 people, solo, and I've been gigging for 35 years, but tomorrow is a BIG one-1500 people. It's for Charity-a 1 year-old with cancer-and we have to also back 4 guest singers-professionals- 4 songs each. And it has to be PERFECT. People have payed big bucks to come to this. And we have a big brass section to play with us. Now we've rehearsed, but I have a bit of nervousness about tomorrow. Lot's of it- I'm running through it again now I'm home. Once I'm on stage, it'll go. I KNOW my stuff. They know their stuff. I've learned that people think I'm a guitar God, so there's no need to worry, as they'd be happy no matter what I did. Not other guitarists (
)-just people. And at the end of the day-you are playing to just people. They don't know a flattened 13th from a hole in the wall. The only person I need to impress is myself, and that would really take something I'm not capable of!!
You obviously know your stuff as well-you just don't believe you know your stuff. There is no substitute to actually just keep gigging and dealing with it. Use that adrenaline-and that's what it is- to see you through the gig. After the gig, you'll get a bit of a downer, but it doesn't matter then, as you've done it. It's just the adrenaline leaving the system. That's the time for a quiet 5 minutes.
Remember-they are coming out for a good night, and you CAN provide them with that. Unless you stop playing, they are going to have a good night in spite of your nervousness.
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I remember how nervous I was when Buckwheat asked me to do a gig with him and this hotshot accordian player. This guy made Lawrence Welk look like a beginner. I was sweating, and kept dropping my banjo pick...yikes. I just focused on the music, and when I locked in with Buckwheat's groove on the washboard, we played the "Catfish Strut" like we owned it! That accordian player had the biggest grin, he knew we were badass. At break, the accordian player lit a funny cigarette and said it helped him with nerves, and shared some with us. I don't remember Buckwheat bringing me home in a wheelbarrow, but I do remember eating a whole box of donuts...
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You sound really full of yourself.
Originally Posted by billkath
Experience. Sorry, but apart from hypnosis, there is no shortcut. You need to face your fear, and you can only do that by gigging. Some people NEVER get over it, even with experience. No matter how many people tell you to take deep breaths, or to focus on 1 nice looking person, or to take a couple of pills or pints-none of it really works.
Some fear is good. I gigged tonight and had absolutely no fear, as it was just a regular gig-150 people, solo, and I've been gigging for 35 years, but tomorrow is a BIG one-1500 people. It's for Charity-a 1 year-old with cancer-and we have to also back 4 guest singers-professionals- 4 songs each. And it has to be PERFECT. People have payed big bucks to come to this. And we have a big brass section to play with us. Now we've rehearsed, but I have a bit of nervousness about tomorrow. Lot's of it- I'm running through it again now I'm home. Once I'm on stage, it'll go. I KNOW my stuff. They know their stuff. I've learned that people think I'm a guitar God, so there's no need to worry, as they'd be happy no matter what I did. Not other guitarists ( )-just people. And at the end of the day-you are playing to just people. They don't know a flattened 13th from a hole in the wall. The only person I need to impress is myself, and that would really take something I'm not capable of!!
You obviously know your stuff as well-you just don't believe you know your stuff. There is no substitute to actually just keep gigging and dealing with it. Use that adrenaline-and that's what it is- to see you through the gig. After the gig, you'll get a bit of a downer, but it doesn't matter then, as you've done it. It's just the adrenaline leaving the system. That's the time for a quiet 5 minutes.
Remember-they are coming out for a good night, and you CAN provide them with that. Unless you stop playing, they are going to have a good night in spite of your nervousness.
The best advice I can give you is to just focus on the music. Easier said than done, but I suppose being accustomed to that sort of situation is key; Repetition.
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Start small. Play for a few family and friends, maybe one song. Then, when you are more comfortable playing for others, slowly increase your playing time and audience.
It also helps if you are just part of the band instead of a soloist.
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Billkath Johnson is right! In all seriousness, though, you'll just have to do it a lot and get over it. On the psychology side, what Bill suggested is great. People who come to see you are there to see you succeed. I don't know what your performance situation is like, but if people are watching you, they chose to do so. They're there to support you, they want to see you do good. Only musicians ever walk into someone else's performance and say "alright, let's see what this feller can do. C'mon, bub, impress the hell out of me." Sensible, mature musicians don't even do that. To make a short story long, anyone who comes to your performance to critique and ctriticize, short of a record company talent scout or your college professor at your Senior Recital doesn't matter. (As a side note, billkath isn't being full of himself. He's simply stating facts).
If you need less psychological and more immediate help, try beta-blockers. A couple of other things I've heard work is sunflower seeds or turkey. The tryptophan in turkey (what makes you sleepy after Thanksgiving dinner) in smaller doses than Thanksgiving dinner just calms you down. There's something in sunflower seeds that I've been told does the same, I just don't know what it is. Hope this helps.
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Keep it quiet, BKD or they'll ban it sure as eggs is eggs.The tryptophan in turkey (what makes you sleepy after Thanksgiving dinner) in smaller doses than Thanksgiving dinner just calms you down. There's something in sunflower seeds that I've been told does the same, I just don't know what it is.
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I know exactly what you're talking about. For years I never played outside the home because every time I tried, I froze up: no idea what to play, heavy fingers... even among friends, or at parties, I just couldn't do it. Originally Posted by jazzphantom
Suggestions:
1. go out and play in the park — just sit on a bench and do what you'd do at home, never mind if anyone can hear it; just get used to making music in a public place
2. play in front of a video camera and then watch yourself on playback... it gets you accustomed to being seen and heard
3. invite a sympathetic friend to come and hear you play a particular piece you've been working on; then do the same for two or three friends at once
4. read about the Alexander Technique Alexander technique - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
5. read this book: Amazon.com: Inner Game of Music (9780330300179): W. Timothy Gallwey, Barry Green: Books
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Originally Posted by musicjohnny
It does "sound" like that, but I'm not. I have the same fears as everyone else. I don't overestimate my ability (especially in this exalted company-but I don't underestimate what I have either. The guitar god comment is meant to illustrate what OTHER people- normal gig-going people- think of me. And I use that as a crutch, no matter how untrue it is. It's something to give me belief in my own ability. It's something I've realised over the years-Confidence=lack of stage fright=better performance=more confidence=ad infinitum.
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In order to get through it I just use that old trick of closing my eyes and imagining Uma Thurman naked. Oh, I think this is how I get through being with the Missus. Sorry, wrong forum
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I can give you some great advice about dealing with stage fright. I didn't come up with it but I used it during a stint in my life where I had to speak in public a lot. One reason we get stage fright is that we're in a *helpless* position before the show starts--we're just standing around waiting, thinking of things that might go wrong, and trying to psyche ourselves up--it's all anxiety feeding on itself. You need to chill that out. Here's how.
It sounds dopey and New Age (-for the record, I'm no more mystical than a cat) but it comes from stage performers who have to deal with this every night of their professional lives.
You say four things to yourself over and over. Silently. You don't have to believe them or mean them (though in time you will believe them), just say them. Their main job is to keep you from thinking *other* things that would increase your anxiety. These reduce it because they are bland and repeated over and over. "I'm glad I'm here. I'm glad you're here. I care about you. I know that I know." They aren't magic words or prophecies; they ease anxiety through repetition. It may sound silly---and you may feel silly when you start doing it---but it works.
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The best article I ever read on this was an interview with a famous acoustic player (name escapes me). He said after 40 years of performing, he still gets some stage fright. He learned though that fear and anxiety are twin guardians of a special place where music happens. He said that rather than fighting them, he has learned to make friends with them, and accept them. Thought that was an enlightened perspective.
Do not eat right before, research has said it effects our hearing some. The idea of starting small, friends, family is a good one. The playing in the park is also good. Having a 30 minute or hour long house concert, with other players scheduled, or part of a dinner party is also a good intermediate step. From there, open mic nite and jam sessions. If you attend church, being in the band is another good performance opportunity.
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Just be prepared for the gig.
If you're prepared all of you other fears are just secondary because you're there to make the music better. If you have to, take a deep breath, close your eyes and keep your ears open. If you get lost or miss something, just remember that it's better to lay back than to crash and burn.
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Be prepared! Really know the material! Practice like it's the gig! That being said, I'm always a bit nervous before the beginning of a gig - any gig. I find it's best to start with an 'easy' song; about half way through it, I begin to realize that I can still play, and then I relax. Another very important thing is to try to warm up before you play, and that seems to take longer as I get older!
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First of all, are you realy sure of that? What I mean to say is: are you not fooling yourself? I know that when I am practising I think I am Wes himself, but if I record it and listen back to it, only then I actually hear I am still not mastering something I thought was already in my fingers.... and live on a stage everything gets enhanced in a big way, so the piece that you mostly play flawless will go wrong! Originally Posted by jazzphantom
Piece of mind is the key. Preparation and experience will get you there. Ever read Kenny Werner's Effortless Mastery? I think you will like it!
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I think much of the above advice is sound so far as it goes---musicians should be prepared for gigs---but stage fright is *independent* of one's skill set. (Some incredibly gifted performers battle stage fright nightly while some hacks never experience.)
You have to regulate your breathing or you will *stay* anxious. The idea of starting with a slow, familiar song is good becuase that's what happens when you get into it--your breathing slows, grows regular again--but you can get into that state *before* going onstage too.
Remember, you can be anxious about things other than your playing. (Maybe you have to speak--introduce the band, or make an announcement, and you're not used to that and you get anxious; you have to battle that anxiety *as* anxiety becuase you don't have time to write and rehearse what you're going to say.)
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I don't play out any more but I still do a lot of music lectures. Stage fright is in your mind. Just remind yourself that you are on stage because you have a gift. The people in the audience want to like you. You can do stuff that they can't. You're their King!
Think about that the next time. Really, it works.
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I suffered from very bad performance anxiety up until about 8 months ago. I would get so incredibly nervous - shaking, dry mouth, loss of metal acuity, to the point where it definitely negatively impacted my performance - just doing 1-on-1 examinations. But something fundamental changed last September when I did my first "gig" at a local hotel's dive bar, with the little combo I'm involved with through school. I played like absolute CRAP - and maybe that was the key. After that, I figured, how much worse could it get? Something inside me shifted, and now my attitude whenever I have a performance is "Screw 'em! I don't care if they like the way I play or not!"
I did do some hypnosis MP3s, which might have helped somewhat (PM me if you are interested in 'previewing' them). But as others have said, I think the real way to get over the situation is just to do it. For me, it was to do it so poorly that I just gave up caring. :-)
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A lot of great stuff hear about ways to manage anxiety in a performance situation.
Here are a couple of practical ideas that will get you into a stressful "performance" situation but in a controlled manner that will allow you to work on managing the situation. As a bonus, they have some additional nice benefits associated with them.
1. Get on down to your local community college and sign up for apublic speaking class. You will be with a sympathetic group as most will have some level of "stage fright". The point of the class is to "stand up, screw up" and then talk about it with others. This generally helps give you enough low stress failure followed by success and positive reinforcement from a sympathetic group that you begin to get over the phobia. It helps that you take the guitar out of the equation and develop confidence in your ability to deliver in front of a group.
2. Look into being a tutor at a local high school (or community college if you qualify). This is great for the ego and really reinforces the fact that you have something to give that someone else will be grateful for. Just like in a performing situation you have to prepare, manage the unexpected and deliver on the person's expectations.
I was lucky. I was pretty timid until I learned in high school that I was a natural born ham. I spent a large part of my career doing training, presentations and other public speaking type stuff. I also did a lot of amatuer theater. Being confident in front of a group is a great skill and one worth acquiring for a wide variety of reasons. Stick with it, you will be glad that you did! It sure has been a great part of my life.
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I know this guy out on the bayou that will sell you a mojo bag to wear, that takes stage fright away.
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I have a good drummer friend and playing partner who is INCREDIBLY talented, but suffered from debilitating stage fright. Any performance gave him flop sweats before and during, and he couldn't look at the audience cuz it would cause him to freeze. Really, really bad. But in the practice room or rehearsal room or studio, the guy is AMAZING. Imagine Erskine meets Gadd at Bill Stewart's house. Ego free playing too, man. Sensitive yet confident musicianship...such a crime no one heard this cat!!!
So he read about beta blockers. He read that either Carly Simon or Carol King, I can't remember which, suffered from it and beta blockers were the cure. He tried them and they helped so much. We then started playing together out alot...he was still very timid behind the kit...afraid to take chances, etc....but through many wonderful discussions and chats on the way to and from gigs, he began to see the stage as a place of creativity, adventure and expression. Slowly his fear disappeared completely. It has been 3 years and he never fails to impress, and doesn't even take the betas anymore.
Other names for beta blockers are Metaprolol, and Lopressor.....
Good luck!
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I hope people aren't just popping beta blockers without talking to their doctors! Their main use is to treat hypertension and angina.
From Wikipedia:
Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) associated with the use of beta blockers include: nausea, diarrhea, bronchospasm, dyspnea, cold extremities, exacerbation of Raynaud's syndrome, bradycardia, hypotension, heart failure, heart block, fatigue, dizziness, abnormal vision, decreased concentration, hallucinations, insomnia, nightmares, clinical depression, sexual dysfunction, erectile dysfunction and/or alteration of glucose and lipid metabolism.
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[quote=BigDaddyLoveHandles;75378]I hope people aren't just popping beta blockers without talking to their doctors! Their main use is to treat hypertension and angina.
From Wikipedia
snip)
, erectile dysfunction quote]
Reminds me of a story I heard-
An old guy goes to the doctor.
"What seems to be the problem?", asks the Doctor.
A bit embarrassed, the gent replied-
"Well, Doctor-My wife and I have been.... having some problems in the... bedroom department-We just don't seem to be able to, as we used to, you know what I mean?".
The doctor looked at him and asked "Sir-how old are you?
"I'm 87"
"And your wife?
"She's 91"
"And you first noticed this-when?"
"Twice last night, and again this morning!!"
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You can't get it without a prescription from a doctor. And it gives no buzz, so it would be a waste for someone wanting to "pop" some, therefore there is virtually no illegal market for it. Originally Posted by BigDaddyLoveHandles
And by the way, you can get all those symptoms you mentioned my eating regularly at McDonald's!
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I heard that orange juice actually has measurably calming effect, doesn't hurt to try ^^
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