Performing is one of the most fundamental aspects of a musician’s training, because of the enormous capacity it has to motivate both students and professional musicians, since the goal to be reached is clearly defined. In the endless years of study in a musician’s career, there is one subject that is taught neither at conservatories nor at music schools and that, for me, is among the hardest, most difficult and most important:
What to do with everything you know and have learned at the moment the musician has to face an audience. The knowledge acquired with so much effort over so many years of learning, natural talent, or the ability to show what one is capable of can be greatly diminished if the performer lacks the right preparation to get on a stage. The truth is that it is quite hard for a teacher to explain what the feelings we have when playing music in front of an audience are all about, and not because they lack the necessary experience, but because the feelings that can be unleashed on stage are many, very personal and come from different sources.
Facing an audience is not an everyday event, not even in a performer’s life, but something that results from exhaustive preparation and many rehearsals, so it must be seen as something exceptional and, as such, treated by preparing at very different levels. But that preparation is not limited to the day before the performance: a true musician is one twenty-four hours a day, everything is inevitably connected, and the psyche will influence everything the performer lets surface. Character, shortcomings, insecurities, fears and so on will find in the very moment of performance the ideal place to show themselves in all their rawness, to everyone and to oneself. Self-knowledge, acceptance of who one really is and what one can do, and good use of emotional intelligence will make the performer free on this path, on which the musician is constantly facing himself while also facing the continuous scrutiny of others.
Performing can also be very rewarding, because after having felt like the protagonist and having had the ability to face the audience, together with all the emotion closely tied to the raw experience of playing live, our self-esteem rises and all those hours of study make sense.
But have we ever stopped to think about what it means to us as musicians to play, sing, give a concert in front of an audience or be part of a band? Of course there will be as many different motivations as there are people answering this question. But if there is anything we can call the essence of this vocation, the link that drives so many musicians to keep going down this road, it is the desire to create and the search for beauty.
Without a doubt, the act of creating (or re-creating) is an experience that lifts us, helps us break from routine and fulfills us. It is also very true that anyone who is able to create something beautiful feels the need to share it with others. This desire to share the beauty discovered in a score or a composition is inherent in music itself, since music is a language, and every language is created to communicate, to convey messages and emotions. Music is created to be heard by someone, and the performer is a translator, a re-creator of art for the listener. It is true that until one knows and masters an instrument, the ability to communicate and re-create is subject to progress in that mastery, but that is no reason to ignore it; it should be present from the very start of learning.
PSYCHOLOGICAL PREPARATION FOR PERFORMANCE
Starting from the sound premise that the musician’s profession involves, intellectually, physically and mentally, an activity as demanding as that of an elite athlete, psychology can give us resources to improve the practice of an extremely complex activity.
1.- The importance of small successes
The success achieved in each performance is much more important than we imagine at first glance, because the impressions they leave on the student are very important moments in a musician’s formative process, forging a path that can lead us to many different places. The mark they leave on the beginner is big, in both a positive and a negative sense. When the impression is received in a positive sense, we gain a little more security and confidence with the instrument, which allows us to approach the next performance with more excitement and spirit. If, on the other hand, we suffer a sense of failure, our confidence undoubtedly erodes, we take a small step back, and we will experience the next occasion with more anxiety and insecurity, which can create a vicious circle that may be hard to get out of in the end. To gain confidence, self-esteem, mastery and so on with the instrument in particular and with music in general, it is essential to build a track record of small successes. For that, these three elements must basically be present:
• A sound choice of repertoire.
• Good technical and musical work.
• Good psychological preparation.
2.- Psychological preparation for the performance
The attitude with which any activity is carried out and prepared, especially an artistic one, is fundamental and determines the success of the final result. For example, it is completely impossible for the audience to enjoy our performance if we ourselves are not enjoying playing. And it is harder for us to enjoy ourselves on stage if our work has lost its magic or charm and turned into routine or drudgery, or if we have reached such a degree of exhaustion that it has turned into stress or anxiety.
Some healthy attitudes that help us fight that damned stress:
.- It is highly advisable to use physical and mental energy with caution, that is, to reach an optimal, balanced physical and mental state. We should never get carried away by a frenetic pace of lessons, concerts and other activities that leads us to a state of chronic stress. It is very important, and at the same time difficult, to know how to say NO and how to plan.
.- Develop sensory and emotional receptiveness.
.- Don’t let the excitement, the passion, the love of music turn into routine, into just one more obligation because of overwork, making it impossible to “make music.”
.- Adopt a critical but enriching attitude, that is, be able to recognize both your own merits and those of others and value anything done with effort and care.
.- Enjoy the more playful and informal sides of music, with the aim of encouraging and developing uninhibitedness, creativity and spontaneity.
.- It is very important and necessary to adopt a positive attitude toward failures and accept them as an opportunity for personal growth, necessary and indispensable for achieving success.
.- Develop our personality, grow as people and mature. This takes a good dose of humility and willpower.
THE FIGHT AGAINST INSECURITY
It is often the case that a person is hardworking, has musical sensitivity and a good capacity for a brilliant performance, but suffers from certain psychological hurdles that keep them from expressing their abilities in front of an audience and prevent them from giving their all. Most of the time we blame this problem on excessive nerves or what is now called “stage fright.” But in reality, the underlying problem is usually something else, one whose result is the appearance of that negative anxiety stemming from a feeling of insecurity, of having little regard for what one does, of worrying too much about the audience’s opinion, of confusing our worth with our temporary achievements or failures.
It is clear that being a perfectionist is important, since it gives us the drive to improve, and logically, this is very good and necessary. But it becomes worrying when this drive for perfection keeps us from seeing everything positive we do and only magnifies our flaws as if they were great atrocities we had committed. Feelings like these are of no use whatsoever. All we get from them is loading ourselves with anxiety and insecurity, besides depriving ourselves of the pleasure of making music. It is very important to trust our abilities and believe in ourselves. It takes a lot of confidence in ourselves and in all the potential we have inside.
We must cultivate self-esteem. Professor Gerardo Castillo, in his book La rebeldía de estudiar, describes it very well: “The self-esteem I am talking about is not self-satisfaction; nor is it egotism or vanity. It is simply confidence in oneself, in one’s own possibilities. It is a confidence necessary for getting through life. A person who does not believe in their ability to do what they have to do is an insecure person. And they will have to fight that insecurity if they want to be effective in exercising their rights and duties. A student with self-esteem believes in their ability to learn on their own and to learn more and better all the time.”
It is necessary to make interpretive decisions with courage or, in other words, to perform with confidence and conviction. This is part of the alma mater of the true artist; it is what leads them to desire communication, to progress.
When we study an instrument, we must keep firmly in mind that it is an investment with medium- to long-term returns and that it takes quite a bit of time to see progress. Therefore, it is very advisable to cultivate patience.
As the great drummer Gavin Harrison says, we have to be brutally honest with ourselves. That is: know what our strengths are, what sets us apart or makes us different from others and, above all, what our weak points are. Knowing this, we can build on everything we like about ourselves and try to improve, correct or conceal those flaws or quirks in our musical side that are the weakest.
PLAYING FOR OTHERS
The essence of a musician is playing for others. If we lose sight of the true meaning of our vocation, music will also cease to have one. Let us always keep in mind the main goal we want to achieve with our work, which is to move people and be moved; to create beauty and offer it to the audience.
As Mª Angeles Manresa says in her book titled La actuación musical: “Let us not waste this wonderful and fascinating opportunity that is offered to us and that not many people have: that of connecting and communicating with others through the most beautiful language man has ever created: MUSIC.”