Roland Atelier
Landmark Organ Sound, Performance, and Luxury
Roland AtelierLandmark Organ Sound, Performance, and Luxury
by Lynda Smith
While it is fun to play for others and share what we have been doing with our music, it often produces a great deal of stress. Below are some tips to think about in preparing for performance – regardless of the venue.
Don’t play your piece over and over again in it s entirety, as you waste time and often only occasionally play the troubling section correctly. Psychologically, you always know where the bad spot is and when nerves are added to the equation, the likelihood of a “slip up” will occur. Practice the most challenging portions of your piece, and then integrate them with the entire selection. You will find that this not only saves time, but will assure you of a smoother performance.
Performing music takes about as much work as an athlete in training. Be sure to practice basics along with your performance piece, get enough rest prior to performance, stretch out to relax your body and eat something healthy to provide the necessary energy to perform.
This is the tough one – it is easy to say you are going to “psych yourself up for the gig,” but that takes a lot of mental control. Your mind set should be that you are sharing your music with others, and if you trip up a bit, it really doesn’t matter. The audience is very kind and generally appreciates the time you have spent preparing. While you are playing, most people in the audience are thinking, “I wish I could play like that.”
Be positive, repeat a positive message:
“I am going to play my music and enjoy myself; this experience is good for me.”
When you sit down to play, take a deep cleansing breath, settle yourself by relaxing your body, look over the instrument and begin to joyously play.
No matter what happens keep going. Sometimes the small “mistake” you make can be perceived by you as a major “clam” (“ clam” is what gigging musicians refer to as bad notes.) I will guarantee you that no one in the audience will even notice.
Good Luck and Happy Playing!