Please help???

Question

Hi i have a really annoying problem - i love playing the piano and its fine when i'm at home practising alone but as soon as i play in front of an audience i get really nervous and i play ALL the wrong notes. Its really frustrating for me - i recently screwed up an important performance and lost a place to play in one of my school concerts. Are there any musicians out there who have any advice about preparing themselves before performing to an audience??

Answer 1

I think you could be subconciously trying too hard to impress.  You obviosly know your pieces well.  Remember why you play,  enjoy it.  Que sera sera.

Try to turn your nerves into excitment by being positive and condifent that you've rehearsed enough to do a good job.

Answer 2

I too played the piano, and did recitals. I HATE audiences...especially the ones where some of your school mates are in..YIKES!

Think of the music as though you were reading a story. It is veyr hard to concentrate on the song when you know there are people watching you...especially an auditorium full. But playing music is another way of expressing emotions...

With that being said, concentrate on the emotions behind the music, try to connect the audience with the emotions by concentraiting on conveying what you are trying to portray. What do you want the audience to take from the music? Is it happy? somber?

I know it is hard to do, but once you concentrate on the music, and what you love about it, the audience seems to fade into the background.

Another note is try not to concentrate on "messing" up and playing the "wrong" notes, because doing this will inadvertantly have you playing the wrong notes. So instead, go out and use positive self talk in your head to replace those. For example:

Oh my gosh there are so many people out there, what if I play the wrong notes??!!

Replace it with:

I am going to go out there and show the audience how beautiful and expressive this song is.

Does that make sense?

Answer 3

there so many tricks you can do!! you can pretend that all the people are in there under wear or you can have one of your friend there right in front of you so you can focus on them and remember to just think about the music besides i play piano too, remember to just have fun with it

Answer 4

you have to imagine that you are alone in that room and that the audience is not there at all. if that is too difficult, then choose a piece that you can really get into and when playing, only concentrate on the music - get lost in it, like it is just you and the music in that room, in your bubble.

Answer 5

Good evening,

Your stage fright is very normal and understandable.

There is some kinds of craftinesses.

The first, is to laugh and laugh again about a comical episode, something that happened to you, so that you'll keep more trust in yourself and won't laugh about someone, which could disturb your performance.

The second one, is to eat and drink water or juices. To be not feverish.

The third is to repete, while you're playing piano for yourself that you're yet in audience, in the middle of every kind of audience.

As you're making concerts, I suppose you have a teacher. Why won(t you expose the facts to her or him ? He could help you.

Courage and perseverance.

Friendly.

P.S : One other thing, some concertists say that playing in front of an audience is a bit like falling or making love : there is  a moment while you let you fall. Symbolically, it means, jump and go. Kisses.