Hello everyone! On June 22nd, I'm performing Syrinx by Debussy in the Sydney Town Hall to an audience of about over 2,000...
I have two concerns here:
1. I worry that my sound won't fill the entire hall... It is really large and I'm not sure if my sound can project that much! Particularly the low register parts... And the pianissimos... Will I be able to be heard at the back? This is very worrying, as I can't rehearse at the hall until the actual day of the concert! I have performed at that venue before though, but never solo.
2. Performance anxiety! How can I overcome it? Should I take beta blockers? I have a limited amount of people to actually perform for, so I can't really perform it in front of a random large group. How can I overcome the performance anxiety?
3. I have to write program notes for it, and I'm not sure how to start. I already know the story behind the piece, but how do I make it presentable/interesting/suitable for the theme. It fits the theme of the concert to varying degrees, subject to interpretation... The theme is the quote, "If music be the food of love, play on!" So there is a big emphasis on love, in the theme. How can I fully draw out that concept in my program notes?
Any advice would be amazing! Thank you very much!
Help me! Performance soon!
Moderators: Classitar, pied_piper, Phineas
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JasonTongRulz
- Posts: 48
- Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2010 6:18 pm
- Location: Sydney, Australia
Re: Help me! Performance soon!
First of all, keep in mind that the experience of playing, rather as an accompained soloist, inside a group or even solo alone, only makes sense if you get pleasure out of the activity. This reflects directly on the way you produce music and also in the perception of the public. I don't mean you must be perfect. Far from that. I just believe you have to keep this sense as a principle in making music.
Stage anxiety, considering the three forms of playing I listed above, is part of the process. If someone tells you as not having it at all, so it must be a terrible experience hearing this person playing. Only a completely insensible person could announce it and so would be his/her sounding.
So, based on the fact that anxiety is always present, in minor or major degree, each one must work it out so it takes part in the process and end up helping, instead of causing problems. The key word is CONCENTRATION.
One of the biggest tools in keeping concentration is playing by memory. This keeps us so busy that there is almost no chance for anxiety to play the bad role. Also gives the audience a sense of quality and secureness, which contributes in the direct perception of the music, not in the way you play. Let's say we keep a low level of distraction of the public, being the resulting music the main asset.
There are also exercises that prepare you to deal with a concert hall full of people. One that I like is keeping a posture with your head up and looking at the last row of chairs (well, at least of the first floor...). Think as if you wanted (and you really want it...) your sound to reach those people seated there. Even if you read a score in a stand, you can keep this posture imagining you are looking at them. The obvious counter measure is avoiding looking at the people near you. Not that you must pretend they do not exist, they are your audience as well. But create a kind of blur in your eyes that you feel your music flowing through them and going far and up all the theater. This makes your tone a bit louder and brighter, believe me.
Also, there is no way you can control every aspect of a concert. In this regard, you must think every performance as being unique. Even if you don't have the chance to rehearse properly and test for acoustics and so on, the magic of this uniqueness is one of the aspects that poses a challenge. Once more it's a chance for you to practice concentration. Use it to your benefit, not the contrary.
Regardless of how big your anxiety could be, don't take anything to create an artificial state of mind when you "think" you are in control. This must be worked out with just the tools we all already have inside. Our internal chemistry is perfect, just need to be activated in a gradual process.
About the program notes, I think a good search at the wikipedia could help a lot.
I don't know if I was clear enough to make my point. Just ask if you need and good luck!
Stage anxiety, considering the three forms of playing I listed above, is part of the process. If someone tells you as not having it at all, so it must be a terrible experience hearing this person playing. Only a completely insensible person could announce it and so would be his/her sounding.
So, based on the fact that anxiety is always present, in minor or major degree, each one must work it out so it takes part in the process and end up helping, instead of causing problems. The key word is CONCENTRATION.
One of the biggest tools in keeping concentration is playing by memory. This keeps us so busy that there is almost no chance for anxiety to play the bad role. Also gives the audience a sense of quality and secureness, which contributes in the direct perception of the music, not in the way you play. Let's say we keep a low level of distraction of the public, being the resulting music the main asset.
There are also exercises that prepare you to deal with a concert hall full of people. One that I like is keeping a posture with your head up and looking at the last row of chairs (well, at least of the first floor...). Think as if you wanted (and you really want it...) your sound to reach those people seated there. Even if you read a score in a stand, you can keep this posture imagining you are looking at them. The obvious counter measure is avoiding looking at the people near you. Not that you must pretend they do not exist, they are your audience as well. But create a kind of blur in your eyes that you feel your music flowing through them and going far and up all the theater. This makes your tone a bit louder and brighter, believe me.
Also, there is no way you can control every aspect of a concert. In this regard, you must think every performance as being unique. Even if you don't have the chance to rehearse properly and test for acoustics and so on, the magic of this uniqueness is one of the aspects that poses a challenge. Once more it's a chance for you to practice concentration. Use it to your benefit, not the contrary.
Regardless of how big your anxiety could be, don't take anything to create an artificial state of mind when you "think" you are in control. This must be worked out with just the tools we all already have inside. Our internal chemistry is perfect, just need to be activated in a gradual process.
About the program notes, I think a good search at the wikipedia could help a lot.
I don't know if I was clear enough to make my point. Just ask if you need and good luck!
Re: Help me! Performance soon!
How did it go?
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iholland95
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Tue Oct 30, 2012 10:37 am
Re: Help me! Performance soon!
Well I play my flute at church every Sunday and they mic me with an overhead choir-like mic and it works perfectly. That might make you a little bit uncomfortable at first, but you'll get used to it. I promise (: