Why am I so nervous? Student Awareness of Musical Performance Anxiety

Abstract

Today the students are performing a playing quiz during class. A five-minute timer has been set to give them a chance to warm up. I scan the room to make sure my orchestra students are on task and can see some people focused on their music and some talking to their friends. I can see a few nail-biters and three students immediately ask to use the bathroom. When it is time to perform in front of each other, my students stop looking at me in hopes that I will not call on them. I know they are nervous and do not want to play by themselves. I decide to let them play with their stand partner. My top violinist nails her excerpt—my lowest performer has sweaty palms and drops his bow mid-performance. He cannot seem to recover from this disruption and starts to cry. As a teacher, I know he is nervous and defeated, but I am unsure how to prepare him for a performance without his anxiety getting in the way.

Musical Performance Anxiety is described as a state of arousal, including various forms of anxiety occurring at any point while performing in front of an audience or in an activity that affects a person’s self-esteem (Huang and Song 2021). Meyers and Twenge (2021) describes the spotlight effect as the phenomenon where people tend to overestimate how much others notice aspects of one’s appearance or behavior.

Music performance may start at a young age for many students. They may explore performing on an instrument in their school classes or through private lessons. Since they have less experience performing on their instrument, novice students can lack the confidence needed for successful performances (Sieger 2017; Taborsky 2007). Musicians require much work on their primary instrument and a significant amount of time to perform well in front of others. Because musicians are on display when performing, mental distraction and distress may occur, and performance anxiety may destroy the well-prepared performance. A bad performance may spark poor mental or emotional health in a musician. The purpose of this article is to define musical performance anxiety, identify other anxiety disorders associated with Musical Performance Anxiety (MPA), examine the causes of MPA as well as emotional and physical responses to MPA, and coping strategies that can be implemented to combat these symptoms.

Defining MPA

MPA has long been studied because of the effects it has on musicians’ performances and careers. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed; DSM-5; American Psychiatric Association 2015), the operational definition of MPA is “the experience of marked and persistent anxious apprehension related to musical performance that has arisen through specific anxiety conditioning experiences and which is manifested through combinations of affective, cognitive, somatic, and behavioral symptoms” (Kenny 2016, 433). MPA and stage fright often occur during performances and situations where musicians perceive being judged (Antonini-Philippe et al. 2022; Biasutti and Concina 2014; Makiyama 2016).

MPA manifests throughout the lifespan, from when a student first starts learning how to perform their instrument to when a professional performs a significant concerto with an orchestra. There are several connections between MPA and other anxiety disorders (Antonini-Philippe et al. 2022; Kenny 2011, 2016; Patston 2013; Wiedemann et al. 2022). To better understand what MPA is, several researchers identify how MPA is associated with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Social Anxiety Disorder (Wiedemann et al. 2022).

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

MPA can be mislabeled due to having similar characteristics and symptoms as other anxiety disorders. General Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is characterized by excessive or unrealistic anxiety about two or more aspects of life, including social relationships and work (5th ed; DSM-5, Table 16; American Psychiatric Association 2015). Some of the symptoms of GAD include feeling restless and fatigued, having difficulty concentrating, becoming irritable, and being unable to control feelings (Wiedemann et al. 2022). GAD may be triggered by family or environmental stress or performance at school. These feelings of anxiety are not mitigated by the individual’s ability and level of preparation. Disorders such as GAD, social anxiety disorders, and social phobias can coexist with MPA (Dobos, Piko, and Kenny 2019), and the definition of MPA was revised due to MPA’s connection to other anxiety disorders (Kenny 2016; Wiedemann et al. 2022). This research supports a combination of cognitive and behavioral symptoms linked between MPA and GAD (Wiedemann et al. 2022).

Social Anxiety Disorder

MPA is a disorder (Wiedemann et al. 2022) closely related to Social Anxiety Disorder. Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is anxiety about one or more social situations in which the individual is exposed to possible scrutiny by others. Examples include performing or giving a speech in front of others (5th ed DSM-5, Table 16; American Psychiatric Association 2015). Social phobias start in early adolescence, affecting social situations. For children, anxiety must occur in peer settings and not just with an adult for their symptoms to be labeled. These social settings, including a concert, may elicit fear or anxiety. The symptoms of SAD are like those associated with MPA—crying, freezing, and predisposed panic attacks. Since most people do not seek treatment for MPA, social awareness of this disorder is not widely known (Dobos, Piko, and Kenny 2019; Nusseck, Zander, and Spahn 2015; Taborsky 2007; Wiedemann et al. 2022).

Causes of MPA

MPA has the potential to help facilitate or debilitate performance outcomes (Osborne and Franklin 2002). A musician can be well-prepared for their performance through practice but can lose the performance to their fears of not performing well. Several studies have revealed that the pressure experienced by musicians can lead to distress and poor emotional health (McCormick and McPherson 2003, 2006; Osborne and Franklin 2002; Rojas and Springer 2014; Zelenak 2019, 2020). MPA is commonly not diagnosed among musicians because of the stigma that comes with identified anxiety within the music community (Kenny 2011, 2016; McCormick and McPherson 2003, 2006). Instead, musicians tend to persevere and suppress their anxiety.

Performance anxiety for musicians negatively affects their performance, which can lead to distraction and poor performance outcomes (Cohen and Bodner 2019; Sieger 2017; Taborsky 2007; Wiedemann et al. 2022). Musicians’ emotional responses to MPA include sweaty palms, dry mouths or trembling hands, and rapid heartbeat (Goldberg 1993; Kenny et al. 2004; Sieger 2017; Taborsky 2007). The behavioral responses to performance anxiety may include missing notes, forgetting words, and forgetting how to perform on the instrument correctly (Cohen and Bodner 2019; Sieger 2017).

Neuroticism is a potential risk factor for MPA in musicians. Steptoe and Fidler (1987) observed the connection between neuroticism and MPA among professional, student, and amateur musicians. Because musicians are inclined not to seek professional help dealing with issues surrounding MPA, it is not a commonly known condition. Typically, musicians can persevere and suppress their emotional responses (Cohen and Bodner 2019; Dobos, Piko, and Kenny 2019; Wiedemann et al. 2022) and continue to perform.

Physical and Emotional Responses

MPA may cause a crippling experience for a musician as they perform in a concert or testing setting (Abel and Larkin 1990; Cohen and Bodner 2019; Dobos, Piko, and Kenny 2019; Nusseck, Zander, and Spahn 2015; Pagan 2018; Rojas and Springer 2014; Sieger 2017; Wiedemann et al. 2022; Zelenak 2019, 2020). Musicians experience stress related to performance and become nervous in front of an audience. These debilitating effects include unwanted physical symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, sweaty palms, dizziness, and becoming shaky and wanting the performance to end or never occur again. Some musicians have left the field of music altogether (Dobos, Piko, and Kenny 2019; Nusseck, Zander, and Spahn 2015; Sieger 2017; Smith and Rickard 2004).

Previous studies have involved children (Sieger 2017; Taborsky 2007), adolescents (Hoffman and Hanrahan 2012), and collegiate musicians (Biasutti and Concina 2014; Cohen and Bodner 2019; Huang and Song 2021) and have examined MPA affecting these various age levels and developmental stages. In school, students are given the opportunity to perform for a formative grade (recordings, in-class quizzes, Google Classroom videos) and to perform for a summative grade, allowing them to participate in school performances in front of their peers and community performances in front of parents and peers. Taborsky (2007) discussed how students’ anxiety levels were significantly higher during a performance in front of an audience than in front of a tape recorder. The researcher points out that students with more years of formal training performed better under conditions that may cause anxiety.

Osborne and Franklin (2002) compared cognitive processes of social phobia to musicians with high MPA in formal and informal solo performance settings. The sample came from eighty-four participants with various levels of musical background, including professionals, students, and amateurs. The researchers discovered significant effects in formal performance settings and explained how subjects with high MPA disclosed most cognitive processes connected to social phobia. Additionally, they illuminated that those past negative experiences in music performances surfaced when encountering highly evaluated performance situations, leading to lower self-efficacy and low self-esteem. When a musician experiences several negative performance experiences, their low self-efficacy and self-esteem can lead to negative behavior, including irritability, anger, sadness, and anxiety.

Understanding how MPA can overtake a musician’s performance can allow researchers and psychologists to investigate the need to provide coping strategies to combat the symptoms of MPA. Teachers can help provide coping strategies to students of all ages to manage their performance anxiety. MPA is prevalent in the musical classroom climate. It occurs every year in ensembles because it surfaces when performing in front of an audience—an unavoidable experience in a performance-based class. Huang and Song (2021) discuss how self-monitoring can be a beneficial skill for students in the music-learning process by using a performance diary to help facilitate higher-order thinking about performance. Students can learn to recognize their performance anxiety using a Current Performing State (CPS) checklist. The checklist includes self-talk strategies, mental rehearsal, visualization, accepting mistakes, muscle relaxation techniques, and a how-to-taper-off practice guide. The students in this study were able to implement these strategies in performance preparation as well as for their future musical careers by utilizing the Performance Diary. String teachers in the classroom and studio settings can provide tools to help nurture students’ motivation to succeed on their instrument.

Coping Strategies

Musicians and music educators are aware of the symptoms of MPA and have explored the coping strategies that were found essential to combat MPA. It is important to recognize how MPA looks at each stage of life. There have been several studies on how MPA affects musicians of various age levels—children, adolescents, and adults (college age) and coping strategies these ages use to combat MPA. Musicians can change their mindset when they are performing to not focus on technique, but the enjoyment of the music, and reduce their symptoms of MPA.

Breathing

Breathing exercises and changing the focus in the performance venue effective coping strategies for combating MPA. Breathing exercises allow a musician to consciously slow down their breathing and allow them to regain composure before a performance. One specific exercise I like to use in the classroom is to visualize a box when talking the ensemble through controlled breathing. For example, we will inhale for four counts, going up one side of the box, hold our breath for four counts as we go across the box, breathe out for four counts as we come down the other side of the box, and hold again for four counts as we close the last side of the box.

Another way to apply breathing exercises with your ensemble is to take a moment and breathe to ground their thoughts and then shift their mindset from negative thoughts and feelings to positive ones. Creating slow, deep, conscious breathing allows the musician to slow down their thoughts and gain control of their situation.

Self-Monitoring MPA

Another coping strategy for MPA is self-monitoring one’s anxiety. Crafting performance experiences with attainable goals helps students harbor positive feelings and obtain positive outcomes for their musical experiences, both technically and emotionally. Students can implement Huang and Song’s (2021) CPS checklist mentioned above (especially monitoring self-talk and acceptance of mistakes) during performance preparation as well as during their future musical careers by keeping a Performance Diary.

Changing the Focus

The musician can create positive self-talk to allow for a positive mindset and a positive performance experience. Musicians should take a moment and breathe to ground their thoughts and then shift their mindset from negative thoughts and feelings to positive ones. Creating slow, deep, conscious breathing allows the musician to slow down their thoughts and gain control of their situation.

Sieger (2017) investigated the strategies and methods of coping with MPA with music teachers of middle and high school instrumentalists. Findings include turning out the lights before a concert and using breathing techniques to help students focus and reduce anxiety. Teachers concentrated on the musical and technical aspects of playing and coached students to recenter their focus when they started to feel nervous or anxious. These strategies allowed the students to focus less on the audience and more on the performance as enjoyment within their ensemble.

Last, several teachers shared the strategies they applied in their classes to help individuals with different symptoms of MPA, which include: rewriting difficult music to accommodate the skill level, redirecting the student’s concentration during a performance, and the use of the Alexander Technique and beta blockers to combat MPA. The Alexander Technique uses body awareness to help identify the harmful habits built up over time involving stress. It teaches musicians to work through these harmful habits to break free of their debilitating outcomes. The technique targets explicitly improving posture and movement during musical performance to reduce problems with poor performance and onset symptoms of MPA. The technique suggests that a musician with good posture and performance habits will become a more comfortable performer with more successful performances. Focusing on correct posture and movement moves negative thoughts out of the performance.

Applying the Construct of Self-Efficacy

Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s belief in their ability to be able to do what is necessary to accomplish what is needed in a given circumstance (Bandura 1986, 1997). Self-efficacy reflects confidence in the ability to exert control over one’s own motivation, behavior, and environment. Researchers have suggested that the higher a musician’s self-efficacy for performance, the less challenging MPA becomes. Those with higher self-efficacy tended to set higher goals (Bandura 1997; Jinks and Lorsbach 2003; McPherson and McCormick 2006), and students with higher self-efficacy found resources to gain confidence and to facilitate their self-management of MPA (Huang and Song 2021).

Self-efficacy is related to MPA because anxiety-producing circumstances are (typically) inversely proportional to the self-efficacy beliefs of a person. That is, if someone thinks they can achieve highly in a circumstance, their anxiety is typically lower. If someone thinks they are failing, their anxiety is typically higher. Teaching students about the four sources of self-efficacy can help increase motivation, combat symptoms of MPA and low self-efficacy, and result in positive long-term experiences for young musicians in a music setting and other areas of their life. Four sources of self-efficacy are: 1. enactive mastery experience (performance accomplishments), 2. vicarious experience (favorable self-comparison), 3. social persuasion (positive feedback/encouragement) and physiological arousal (emotional state) (Bandura 1997). In the following section, the research addresses the music educators’ roles in guiding students to develop self-efficacy beliefs.

Summary

MPA can affect the performance experience. Most people would identify anxiety as fear, dread, and uneasiness. The research explains several factors that influence the magnitude of anxiety, including rapid heart rate, sweaty palms, dizziness, state anxiety, and several other symptoms. Other factors that trigger anxiety for a musician include the presence of an audience, trait anxiety levels of performers, general anxiety, social phobia, and calamity of the performance. Many musicians experience MPA at some point during their studies and professional careers if they pursue music performance.

Coping strategies are a person’s choices about how to respond to a stressor. Musicians and music educators are aware of the symptoms of MPA and have independently explored coping strategies. Research-based coping strategies for MPA include:

Self-monitoring one’s anxiety

Applying the construct of self-efficacy

Creating vivid mental images of a desired outcome or a specific situation

Applying positive thinking and concentration before and during public performances

Setting realistic performance goals

Breathing exercises and changing the focus in the performance venue

Rewriting complex music to accommodate the skill level

Using Performance Diaries and Current Performance State checklists

Redirecting the student’s concentration during a performance

Using the Alexander Technique

The music becomes more complex as musicians progress in their studies, and their abilities to evaluate performances critically improve with experience and motivation. Music educators may consider assigning repertoire that students can perform with confidence and including easier tasks in measurable steps. By familiarizing themselves with research, teachers can be better prepared to help students with self-perceptions of performance abilities and various degrees of MPA they encounter throughout their journey.

“ By familiarizing themselves with research, teachers can be better prepared to help students with self-perceptions of performance abilities and various degrees of MPA they encounter throughout their journey.”

Footnotes

ORCID iD

Mary Elizabeth Henton

Mary Elizabeth Henton (mary.henton@eku.edu) is the orchestra director for grades four through twelve at Model Laboratory Schools at Eastern Kentucky University. She is a Ph.D. student in music education at the University of Kentucky. Mary Elizabeth is the assistant conductor of the Bravo Orchestra for the Central Kentucky Youth Orchestras (Kentucky).

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