I was always EXTREMELY nervous about performing (giving talks, presentations, etc.), but I've never screwed up too badly, so it's abated in the last ten years or so (I haven't performed music in over 15, but giving talks at conferences is, in all honesty, a somewhat higher stakes game for me). The mic was always my focal point -- I just concentrated on the thing in front of my face, and the whole world pretty much disappeared. I always performed solo, voice and lap dulcimer, so it all showed, good and bad.
I've known people who had extreme stagefright of the type and degree Anna is enquiring about. There's a medication called Inderol ( or enderol) that's primarily a blood-pressure drug, but is also prescribed for extreme stage fright, and I've heard is very effective.
Charlie
Mircrophone Terror and Total Humiliation
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AnnaDMartinez
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StevieJ
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To add to all the good advice given above, here are a couple of points that have helped me a great deal.
When you are "put on the spot" and asked to play for people unexpectedly - not necessarily on stage, but maybe in a session, or in front of some famous musician you've just been introduced to - always start with a piece that you have been playing a long time, that you know inside out, and that is well within your abilities. And play it more slowly than you think you normally would: nerves nearly always make you play faster.
Whatever you do, <i>don't</i> try that wonderful and difficult new piece that you are still learning or that thought you had mastered the night before. You'll almost certainly bungle it.
Once you have started with something easy, you have a better chance of relaxing. Anyway, better to play a simple polka with a good steady beat than to play something complex that you can't keep a steady beat on.
When you're playing on stage, take the attitude that what you have to offer is worth hearing. OK so you're not Mary Bergin, but you are someone up there with a real instrument and you are going to play real live music, and that is a very valuable thing. And the kind of music you play is valuable music, right, otherwise why would you want to play it to anyone? Play your music modestly, but as if it means something to you - people will tune in to this very quickly, even if they know sweet FA about whistles, or music in general, or the type of music you're playing in particular.
People will usually be on your side, and if anybody isn't, well, take the view that that's their loss, not yours. Also, you don't have to be perfect: allow yourself to make mistakes.
As for microphones, well, it's a chance for you to hear the sound of your instrument filling a room or big hall. It's power! Enjoy the feeling...
When you are "put on the spot" and asked to play for people unexpectedly - not necessarily on stage, but maybe in a session, or in front of some famous musician you've just been introduced to - always start with a piece that you have been playing a long time, that you know inside out, and that is well within your abilities. And play it more slowly than you think you normally would: nerves nearly always make you play faster.
Whatever you do, <i>don't</i> try that wonderful and difficult new piece that you are still learning or that thought you had mastered the night before. You'll almost certainly bungle it.
Once you have started with something easy, you have a better chance of relaxing. Anyway, better to play a simple polka with a good steady beat than to play something complex that you can't keep a steady beat on.
When you're playing on stage, take the attitude that what you have to offer is worth hearing. OK so you're not Mary Bergin, but you are someone up there with a real instrument and you are going to play real live music, and that is a very valuable thing. And the kind of music you play is valuable music, right, otherwise why would you want to play it to anyone? Play your music modestly, but as if it means something to you - people will tune in to this very quickly, even if they know sweet FA about whistles, or music in general, or the type of music you're playing in particular.
People will usually be on your side, and if anybody isn't, well, take the view that that's their loss, not yours. Also, you don't have to be perfect: allow yourself to make mistakes.
As for microphones, well, it's a chance for you to hear the sound of your instrument filling a room or big hall. It's power! Enjoy the feeling...
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Otter
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Anna,
...and you say you can read your poetry in front of hundreds without any problem. It is obviously because writing is something you do very well. It is "YOU" and you are comfortable sharing that part of you with anyone.
Make the tunes you want to play in public "yours" as well. Practice them, know them inside out. Pick tunes you love to play.
The suggestion to play for a few close friends was a great one.
You could also try aromatherapy. I have a litle inhaler that looks like a "vicks" but contains a mix of fragrances which brings your "balance" back.
It does work for me when I need to calm down.
Laughter is also a great stress reliever, in whatever way. (and I am sure you 'll think of something)
Best of luck. I know exactly what you are going through
Sibyle
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Otter on 2001-10-29 21:45 ]</font>
...and you say you can read your poetry in front of hundreds without any problem. It is obviously because writing is something you do very well. It is "YOU" and you are comfortable sharing that part of you with anyone.
Make the tunes you want to play in public "yours" as well. Practice them, know them inside out. Pick tunes you love to play.
The suggestion to play for a few close friends was a great one.
You could also try aromatherapy. I have a litle inhaler that looks like a "vicks" but contains a mix of fragrances which brings your "balance" back.
It does work for me when I need to calm down.
Laughter is also a great stress reliever, in whatever way. (and I am sure you 'll think of something)
Best of luck. I know exactly what you are going through
Sibyle
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Otter on 2001-10-29 21:45 ]</font>
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Spot Beagle
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Grannymouse
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I'm so glad you started this thread Anna Banana.....guess it happens to the best of em. If I'm playing solo....I close my eyes and block everything else out. Someone on the Praise Team said the other night..when a guitarist makes a mistake nobody notices but when the whistler makes a mistake...everybody notices. How would you like to live with that one? LOL.. I've nicknamed her Tactful Tillie.
No stage fright(for me) has been as bad as the shakes I use to get when I had to write in front of anybody. When I was young I had to literally change my style of handwriting because of it.
So hang in there......you'll make it! Gm
No stage fright(for me) has been as bad as the shakes I use to get when I had to write in front of anybody. When I was young I had to literally change my style of handwriting because of it.
So hang in there......you'll make it! Gm
Go placidly amid the noise and haste...
Desiderata
Desiderata
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AnnaDMartinez
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- Tell us something.: Good to be home, many changes here, but C&F is still my home! I think about the "old" bunch here and hold you all in the light, I am so lucky to have you all in my life!
Oh, I wish alochol were the solution! I'm the only one who hangs around who doesn't touch the stuff. Allergic to it, one of those "Instant A**h*le - Just add Alcohol" type deals. I envy people who can take the edge off with alchohol, but it's a rare performer that does better drunk! I knew this flamenco guitarist once...On 2001-10-29 23:36, Spot Beagle wrote:
I've heard of this, but it's so much fun to go stand in front of every one. Maybe if you had a pint of ale first.
I'll beat THIS phobia into the ground and stomp on it and get over it, if it kills me, which I doubt microphones do unless you drop them into the bathtub or something.
_________________
Let it shine! Anna "RoaringMouse" Martinez
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Anna Martinez on 2001-10-30 03:19 ]</font>
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Bloomfield
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I think the suggestions about laughter and connecting with the audience are great. I once decided to sing a song, accompanying myself on the guitar. I neither sing nor play the guitar well at all, but it was a surprise for someone's birthday.
So I get up there infront of 100 people and start, and I have forgotten the tune. I am grunting stuff that has nothing to do with where the notes are supposed to be. It was bad. I am searching wildly for the pitch and the melody, and after about half a verse I had to stop. I felt like I would die. I mean, dead.
But then I said into the mike, "Funny, it was working at home when I tried it..." and everybody laughed. Before they had really finished I just started over and it worked well. I was still sort of stressed, but not really nervous or worried anymore. I felt it was the laughter and admitting that it had been terrible at first that brought the audience around to my side. That felt great afterwards.
So, if you can do something that makes you feel like the audience is on your side, that will help a lot.
So I get up there infront of 100 people and start, and I have forgotten the tune. I am grunting stuff that has nothing to do with where the notes are supposed to be. It was bad. I am searching wildly for the pitch and the melody, and after about half a verse I had to stop. I felt like I would die. I mean, dead.
But then I said into the mike, "Funny, it was working at home when I tried it..." and everybody laughed. Before they had really finished I just started over and it worked well. I was still sort of stressed, but not really nervous or worried anymore. I felt it was the laughter and admitting that it had been terrible at first that brought the audience around to my side. That felt great afterwards.
So, if you can do something that makes you feel like the audience is on your side, that will help a lot.
/Bloomfield
Recently, Anna Martinez scribbled in this manner:
I don't touch the stuff either. I don't care for the loss of control -- which seems to be what you're saying about yourself -- and I certainly don't like what it does to my ability to play music. The old saw about "being able to handle one's liquor" is very much beside the point, which of course is that it handles you. Otherwise, why would anyone drink it?
I had, and sometimes still have, a huge obstacle to overcome in playing in public -- much less in front of a microphone. I play songs that I like, that have meaning to me and which I find moving, so when I play them there's rather more of <b>ME</b> showing in that public place than I'm normally comfortable with. I started by playing for friends in camp at reenactments, and later when I took my daughter to the park in the evenings after work. I take my fife and whistles with me to my sportsmen's club, where my friends now ask me to play for them. It's relatively easy to play in these venues, because I'm comfortable there, but if I'm not it's like someone turned a valve off in my throat. That happened the other evening when an acquaintance asked me to fife up a tune in Border's (sp?) Bookstore. It just wasn't the right place.
I sat in on some sessions at the nearby Barnes and Noble Bookstore last summer, and had a similar experience. I could play passably when everyone else was ( and I knew the song ... ), but solos just weren't on. I started "Leitrim Fancy," a favorite of mine from "The Bothy Band," and the fiddlers ran away with it so I had to drop out -- which wasn't good, because I was the only one who could play the melody. I did notice, however, that the world didn't end. Little lessons like that make it easier by degrees.
You have to follow your own heart. If you want to play, then keep at it until it until you're comfortable with it. Play where you can, and you'll find that there are more and more places where you <b>CAN</b> play. If it doesn't feel right, then don't.
---------------
Best regards,
Neil Dickey
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: ndjr on 2001-10-30 11:14 ]</font>
<b><strong><i>No you're not!!</b></strong></i>Oh, I wish alochol were the solution! I'm the only one who hangs around who doesn't touch the stuff.
I don't touch the stuff either. I don't care for the loss of control -- which seems to be what you're saying about yourself -- and I certainly don't like what it does to my ability to play music. The old saw about "being able to handle one's liquor" is very much beside the point, which of course is that it handles you. Otherwise, why would anyone drink it?
I had, and sometimes still have, a huge obstacle to overcome in playing in public -- much less in front of a microphone. I play songs that I like, that have meaning to me and which I find moving, so when I play them there's rather more of <b>ME</b> showing in that public place than I'm normally comfortable with. I started by playing for friends in camp at reenactments, and later when I took my daughter to the park in the evenings after work. I take my fife and whistles with me to my sportsmen's club, where my friends now ask me to play for them. It's relatively easy to play in these venues, because I'm comfortable there, but if I'm not it's like someone turned a valve off in my throat. That happened the other evening when an acquaintance asked me to fife up a tune in Border's (sp?) Bookstore. It just wasn't the right place.
I sat in on some sessions at the nearby Barnes and Noble Bookstore last summer, and had a similar experience. I could play passably when everyone else was ( and I knew the song ... ), but solos just weren't on. I started "Leitrim Fancy," a favorite of mine from "The Bothy Band," and the fiddlers ran away with it so I had to drop out -- which wasn't good, because I was the only one who could play the melody. I did notice, however, that the world didn't end. Little lessons like that make it easier by degrees.
You have to follow your own heart. If you want to play, then keep at it until it until you're comfortable with it. Play where you can, and you'll find that there are more and more places where you <b>CAN</b> play. If it doesn't feel right, then don't.
---------------
Best regards,
Neil Dickey
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: ndjr on 2001-10-30 11:14 ]</font>
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WyoBadger
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Anna said, "I'll beat THIS phobia into the ground and stomp on it and get over it, if it kills me, which I doubt microphones do unless you drop them into the bathtub or something."
Yeah! That's the spirit! The audience is your friend. In my entire career of teaching and performing, I can't think of a time when an audience was truly hostile; the worst I've ever experienced was sympathetic: "Off day, huh buddy?" They really do want you to succeed. The only time audiences get truly annoyed is when the performer is a fake. And Anna, my dear, I don't perceive that as much of a problem for you.
Stage fright isn't really your enemy, either. It's an adreniline rush. It used to make me scared; now it just gets me really focused and wired on stage. It's almost addictive--I LOVE IT!!! And it's the same reaction you're facing. I've just learned to harness it and make it work for me, as someone already said.
Remember, when you suffer some sort of psycho-physiological reaction that seems harmful, it's just your body/mind trying to help you. It just needs to be readucated. By doing, doing, doing.
We're all behind you! You can do it! Roar, mouse!
Good luck and God bless--
Tom "'I Can't Is Not An Option" Wilson
Yeah! That's the spirit! The audience is your friend. In my entire career of teaching and performing, I can't think of a time when an audience was truly hostile; the worst I've ever experienced was sympathetic: "Off day, huh buddy?" They really do want you to succeed. The only time audiences get truly annoyed is when the performer is a fake. And Anna, my dear, I don't perceive that as much of a problem for you.
Stage fright isn't really your enemy, either. It's an adreniline rush. It used to make me scared; now it just gets me really focused and wired on stage. It's almost addictive--I LOVE IT!!! And it's the same reaction you're facing. I've just learned to harness it and make it work for me, as someone already said.
Remember, when you suffer some sort of psycho-physiological reaction that seems harmful, it's just your body/mind trying to help you. It just needs to be readucated. By doing, doing, doing.
We're all behind you! You can do it! Roar, mouse!
Good luck and God bless--
Tom "'I Can't Is Not An Option" Wilson
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AnnaDMartinez
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<b><strong><i>No you're not!!</b></strong></i>
In Deadwood, with all of 1,500 people here in the winter, I'm considered an anomaly simply because my social life does not happen in bars or casinos. I'd rather do jigsaw puzzles with little old ladies! In fact, the poeple I play with at the open mikes, travel approximately 18,000 miles a year just to make music with each other, and of course all of us have day jobs, so getting together to practice is something else. It doesn't happen. I was practicing with a buddy's CD the other day, and when we got to play together, I'd been playing in all the wrong key, because somewhere between cutting the CD and going to the open mike, his A harp gave up the ghost on him. The entire area can support the arts, but we travel from venue to venue and some of them are much more comfortable. There's one in Sturgis that has little kids running over your toes on trikes, and that's comfortable for me. The one is Deadwood is all professional musicians, and that's a bit intimidating. Making music with other people here is grab them when you can. On the other hand, I'm not crazy about the Deadwood open mike because I'm the only one who doesn't get a free drink, and have to buy bottled water, while the beer drinkers just slurp it up on the house! Most of the folks around here are pretty good about this stagefright thing of mine, but it's take me the whole year just to be able to sit in the back and play and to sit and play on the street! The ranchers don't have time during planting season, some of us can't make it from Wyoming in a truck with no heater in a blizzard...it's much more fun to sit around a kitchen table and play and I do much better there, than a stage with a mike and lights and beer drinkers. Campfires in the summer are fun, too!
In Deadwood, with all of 1,500 people here in the winter, I'm considered an anomaly simply because my social life does not happen in bars or casinos. I'd rather do jigsaw puzzles with little old ladies! In fact, the poeple I play with at the open mikes, travel approximately 18,000 miles a year just to make music with each other, and of course all of us have day jobs, so getting together to practice is something else. It doesn't happen. I was practicing with a buddy's CD the other day, and when we got to play together, I'd been playing in all the wrong key, because somewhere between cutting the CD and going to the open mike, his A harp gave up the ghost on him. The entire area can support the arts, but we travel from venue to venue and some of them are much more comfortable. There's one in Sturgis that has little kids running over your toes on trikes, and that's comfortable for me. The one is Deadwood is all professional musicians, and that's a bit intimidating. Making music with other people here is grab them when you can. On the other hand, I'm not crazy about the Deadwood open mike because I'm the only one who doesn't get a free drink, and have to buy bottled water, while the beer drinkers just slurp it up on the house! Most of the folks around here are pretty good about this stagefright thing of mine, but it's take me the whole year just to be able to sit in the back and play and to sit and play on the street! The ranchers don't have time during planting season, some of us can't make it from Wyoming in a truck with no heater in a blizzard...it's much more fun to sit around a kitchen table and play and I do much better there, than a stage with a mike and lights and beer drinkers. Campfires in the summer are fun, too!
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totst
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I play a lot in front of people and have my fits with stagefright. Some classical singers I know have recommended eating a couple of bananas before a performance. It does sound strange but it does work. Something to do with Potassium, I don't understand it but I keep a whole bunch backstage for the reason that it has worked for me countlesss times. You could also try meditation, that works nicely too.
Tots
Tots