Performance anxiety

Byron · 2009-11-21T17:47:26+00:00

Hi there So I'm probably going to be playing my first gig within a few months from now. Im scared to death though, A few months ago i would have never considered joining a band to play live EVER! I didnt think I had it in me to do that kind of thing, but here I am within a few months of doing it. I would like your advice on things you do to help with stage anxiety that you may have experienced. What kind of techniques have you perhaps used? Also I am interested to know how you go about dealing with on stage mistakes. Lets i say i completely mash up a riff or something. What would the best thing to do be? Thaaaaaaaaanks Fretting fretter out

singemonkey

It is amazing though. I watched a couple of video tracks from my band's performance about 7 years ago - videos that embarrassed me at the time. Watching them again i was like, "Damn. This rocks!"

Our emotional perception of our playing is an extremely strong filter.

Keira-WitherKay

but yeah I agree with the accepted philosophy that an artist really reach's his/her potential, when that artist becomes self critical, but in a positive way........ and uses video/recording ect to help "polish" their act.........

so @ Bob using the recordings will be invaluable....

and i was once told in my youth by a pro jazz musician that it's actually the bad shows that we learn more from than the good ones....and which makes us better "performers" . by bad he meant the ones where we had to "recover" after a blaps in front of an audience or win over a tough crowd.........

cos really learning how to perform is a skill one has to learn over just how to master your instrument ............ cos no matter how well you play in rehearsal room, when you play in front of a crowd and in a strange venue with sound you not used to...it can and will rattle/distract most muso's who have no live experience and put them off their game...........

but the more one places oneself under the microscope the more one learns what to do and what not to do live onstage the more you will grow............. but as i said earlier all in a positive way ..............

Bob-Dubery

Keira WitherKay wrote but yeah I agree with the accepted philosophy that an artist really reach's his/her potential, when that artist becomes self critical, but in a positive way........ and uses video/recording ect to help "polish" their act.........

so @ Bob using the recordings will be invaluable....

Yes I'm sure. In the same way that some medicines are "invaluable". ?

and i was once told in my youth by a pro jazz musician that it's actually the bad shows that we learn more from than the good ones....and which makes us better "performers" . by bad he meant the ones where we had to "recover" after a blaps in front of an audience or win over a tough crowd.........

Oh absolutely - though we may not like to admit it. As Bill Gates said "success is a lousy teacher".

cos really learning how to perform is a skill one has to learn over just how to master your instrument ............ cos no matter how well you play in rehearsal room, when you play in front of a crowd and in a strange venue with sound you not used to...it can and will rattle/distract most muso's who have no live experience and put them off their game...........

It's an interesing aspect of live performance. And there seems to be no golden rule really. Steve Newman just sits there and plays. Tony Cox, who operates in the same broad territory, tends to talk a lot more and he talks WITH the audience ands get an interactive thing going. Somehow these different approaches work for the two artists.

This, for me, is a very interesting topic. I can't claim to have any great experience or renown, but I've found it quite interesting to try pushing different buttons in the audience - which can include taking pot shots at myself - and seeing how they respond and trying to learn from that. I play mostly at TJs where I am getting a certain reputation for explaining a lot about the songs that I peform (great way of filling the time without having to do risky things like singing or playing the guitar) and for having a high body count in my choice of material, so it was very interesting to play to a different audience in a different a venue and having to modify my between songs patter.

singemonkey

I had a real face-palm realisation about my last "performance" that I was agonising about so much in this thread. The song that messed me up the most, that I felt like I'm really comfortable playing? Well, I sat down with a metronome. Before I switched it on, I set the tempo with my vocal and adjusted the metronome to match.

It was way too fast. There's no way, I could play that fast. I had to keep racking it back until I got to the point I could play it through. Now the song starts with the harmony vocals unaccompanied. Bit of pressure on the night and, hey presto! Trying to play it much faster than I could possibly manage.

Oh gardenia... :-[

vic

singemonkey wrote I had a real face-palm realisation about my last "performance" that I was agonising about so much in this thread. The song that messed me up the most, that I felt like I'm really comfortable playing? Well, I sat down with a metronome. Before I switched it on, I set the tempo with my vocal and adjusted the metronome to match.

It was way too fast. There's no way, I could play that fast. I had to keep racking it back until I got to the point I could play it through. Now the song starts with the harmony vocals unaccompanied. Bit of pressure on the night and, hey presto! Trying to play it much faster than I could possibly manage.

Oh gardenia... :-[

Singe, what is this song that's giving/gave you so much stress?

Bob-Dubery

singemonkey wrote I had a real face-palm realisation about my last "performance" that I was agonising about so much in this thread. The song that messed me up the most, that I felt like I'm really comfortable playing? Well, I sat down with a metronome. Before I switched it on, I set the tempo with my vocal and adjusted the metronome to match.

It was way too fast. There's no way, I could play that fast. I had to keep racking it back until I got to the point I could play it through. Now the song starts with the harmony vocals unaccompanied. Bit of pressure on the night and, hey presto! Trying to play it much faster than I could possibly manage.

I've struggled with this and suspect that I still do on some numbers. What the answer is I'm not sure, but I think being aware of it helps.

One of the first songs I ever played in front of an audience (might even be THE first) was an old Richard Thompson song "The Old Changing Way". I was getting more or less happy with what I was practicing, but I was not sure about an intro so I listened to the original. It was like hearing the thing in slow motion. So I played it to a stop watch. Handily under 2 minutes. I was going to get a 15 minute slot at TJs so I played my whole planned set to the stop watch. It came in at about 8 minutes! So I played it again this time including lots of ~~bollocks~~ patter in between songs. Still under time.

I had to work hard at slowing things down. Of course when I did that the songs got easier and I made less mistakes.

I think I may have still rushed it on the night, but at least I'm aware of the problem now and can try to prepare better. Getting a rough idea of the tempo and tapping that out with my foot helps some - I think if you can hear the beat externally (even if only softly) then that gives you a better idea of what tempo you're about to play at and you have a shot at altering the tempo.

So anyhoo... you're not alone, and I suspect this is a not uncommon problem. It may be more easily dealt with in a band, especially if there's a couple of experienced players involved. I think it's trickier for solo performers.

I also think that with experience you develop a better instinct for such things.

singemonkey

vic wrote
Singe, what is this song that's giving/gave you so much stress?

House Carpenter - the old folk standard. I Travis pick it. Not very rock 'n roll huh? ?

We do it with the first verse unaccompanied. So then I have to hit the tempo with my fingers dancing about like frogs on a hot rock. Reality is, I've never performed live without a drummer. I think I just discovered what they're for ???

I hear what you're saying Bob. I think I've got to practise hitting the tempo. Maybe just try it a bunch of times and then see where I'm at on the metronome. I think we felt under pressure too, because that song can sound dirge-like if not sung with enough energy. Not tempo- per se - but energy. But under pressure, you try to push the energy and you can end up pushing the tempo.

So what may sound like a reasonably paced intro becomes a nightmare when you have to go all Earl Scruggs on the back of a flat-bed being chased by drunken cops on the finger picking.

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