jupitersterrain four

It all begins when our minds wander. Some distraction, usually minor, occurs, 
and we become less and less able to concentrate. The results are nervousness, 
memory lapses, technical errors and general discomfort with and, ultimately, 
fear of performing. The whole mess can often be avoided quite simply by 
thinking a few essential thoughts before going on stage. A few years ago, after 
experiencing a string of unpleasant performances much like the description 
above, I did a lot of soul-searching about what kinds of thoughts and feelings 
were distracting me in performance and what advice I could give myself to 
counteract them. The result was Six Golden Rules that summarize issues crucial 
to successful concentration in performance.

I meditate on these a few minutes before going on stage. Ever since the 
beginning of this practice, I have had very few concentration lapses in concert 
and have found performing to be far more fun and satisfying than ever. In 
addition, my students and all those with whom I have shared these ideas have 
had similar benefits, and have been astonished at how quickly their 
performance anxiety dissolved

Now the time to practice has passed. Rather, you are going to use your 
"automatic pilot," which you have been training during practice sessions. The 
automatic pilot (a.p.) is at work, for example, when you learn the fingering for a 
piece. When you repeat and reinforce the new patterns, the a.p. retains them, 
so that when you go on to practicing, say, dynamics, you don't have to think 
too hard about the fingering.

The most comforting aspect of the a.p. is that it works all by itself. It is indeed 
automatic. So when it is time for you to perform, all you need to do is trust 
your a.p. to do most of your work for you. No effort or thought is required to 
bring back all that you have practiced. It will be there for you.

GOLDEN RULE TWO

Do not judge what just happened or is about to happen. Self-judgment during a 
performance is futile because it takes you out of the present and into the past or 
future and destroys the natural flow of your thoughts and physical actions. 
Whether the judgment is positive or negative, it introduces a verbal aspect into 
an activity that is most successful when it is non-verbal. Reserve judgment for 
after the performance, preferably after you have listened to other people's 
reactions.

Rather than judge your playing, simply observe it without verbal description, 
and motivate your intentions. When you are about to make a crescendo, for 
example, intend to do it and then feel it as you are doing it. There is nothing 
verbal about this process. You are, rather, putting intention into action - that is, 
motivating

Do not second-guess any audience member's reaction to your playing. During a 
performance most of us feel quite certain we know exactly what the responses 
to our playing are by our teachers or students or colleagues, boyfriend or 
girlfriend or spouse, critic or some illustrious musician we happen to spot in the 
audience. More often than not, these thoughts prove to be completely, 
ludicrously inaccurate and only serve to further remove us from the moment 
and the music