[Trombone-l] Thoughts on Practicing and Auditions, was Re: Beta-blocker info requested

[Chris Tune]

GREAT!    True.  Last resort.  I'm not against pharmacology if done 
thoroughly, however I think the mind's own psycho-pharmacology is equally 
powerful to the drugstore and lab variety.

Profound and valuable quotes there Gabriel -- especially.  (I've placed 
<esp> tags too . . look. . .) this most excellent comment:

>Practice for your mind at least as much as your body. <esp>Find the most 
>productive thought processes<esp> that help you in the moment of 
>performance, and practice those as >you prepare for the performance and 
>audition.

Your comment about concentrating on rhythm also falls under this 
category-this applies to sudden changes from triplet patterns to dotted 
eight and sixteenth in non-commercial/jazz settings. . .it is easy to 
"swing" the 3:1 rhythm rather than performing a correct rhythm. . .much 
harder to goof, if you "think" the underlying pulse of pure sixteenths for a 
few or a couple of beats prior to doing the newly based rhythm.  Also, good 
tempo concept comes from here. . .you need to clear your head and feel the 
speed accurately. Hearing the musical material in your head is essential to 
doing this right.  Thus, we all can use good ear training.

Your mind is the most powerful organ in your body.  It is essential to 
creating and especially creating something which is transient like music, 
dance or acting.

Of course you can actually find ways of making your time be used more 
effectively.  For those of us who have to fight their way through many miles 
of commuter traffic, we can go over the entire performance and every aspect 
of the piece sequentially in our mind.  We can especially focus upon 
envisioning ourselves performing the hard part well, in keeping with our 
"mind's eye" view of what sound and phrasing we want to do at the time.

I had not heard about the reputation of bananas as being an adrenaline 
"blocker".  Is that adrenalin or cortisol?  The adrenal glands produce 
cortisol during stressor situations that need that "fight or flight" kinds 
of reactions.  The thrill of listening to the CSO playing Tchaikovsky (as I 
did today a bit) results in that "chill up and down your spine" which is 
evidence of adrenalin in the bloodstream.  They are similar but not totally 
the same as neurotransmitters, especially in terms of how they may influence 
our attitudes in non-life-threatening situations.  Perhaps the difference is 
also a part of the problem of reacting poorly to adrenalin, thus switching 
over to more a "cortisol" response.  I'd posit that productive thoughts, 
even including ones where we acknowledge with modesty, our insignificance in 
front of the majesty or (insert whatever deity you believe in. . .even if it 
is just "nature") causes our mere mortal coil to be producing the more 
benign adrenalin, rather than the "run-awaaaaay!" style cortisol.

I'm not aware of anything that can actually block cortisol as it enters the 
bloodstream (despite the charlatan diet pill folk that seem to populate 
late-night infomercial TV), although there may be something that our med. 
friends know about (the "wizards". . .).

I think these items should be posted up on the musicians BULLETIN BOARD OF 
LIFE. . .with a parenthetical comment that these seem to apply to anything 
you want to do well. Perhaps I'd add:

"KEEP PERSPECTIVE". . . ."You are blessed. . .whether you know it or not. . 
. you need to try and remember this . . .often, this is key to your enjoying 
life and performance."

Luck to all!

Chris

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Gabriel Langfur" <glangfur at yahoo.com>
To: "Trombone-L Trombone" <TROMBONE-L at server5.samford.edu>
Sent: Friday, November 10, 2006 11:21 AM
Subject: [Trombone-l] Thoughts on Practicing and Auditions,was Re: 
Beta-blocker info requested


I think part of the sentiment behind Chris' response is that a drug-based 
solution should probably always be a last resort. I would second that. What 
types of performances is your student stressed about? Are they so important 
that he should consider taking a drug into his body that affects his heart 
rate, metabolism, etc.? Does any part of his future income depend on them? a 
significant part of his future happiness? I doubt it, but that's certainly 
not my call.

Honestly, I have no direct experience with beta-blocker drugs. I have eaten 
bananas before auditions, for their reputed adrenaline-blocking properties, 
but my experience has been that my own preparation, physical and - even more 
importantly - mental, has been the single most important factor in how well 
I responded to and dealt with the effects of the extra adrenaline in 
stressful performance and audition situations.

I have some general thoughts about this, much of which were spurred by an 
article on Jay Friedman's website: 
http://www.jayfriedman.net/reflections/20060309Audition_First_Aid.php

We often think about practicing as a way to refine the physical skills 
necessary to playing our instruments, or as a process of learning and 
thinking about the music we will play. But I think the time we spend 
practicing also has to address some of the issues inherent in performing. 
When you are at home practicing, you can play a passage multiple times until 
you get it the way you want it...but on stage, in the moment, you only have 
one shot. So...devote some of your practice time to determining the most 
useful, most consistent mental process to carry out BEFORE you play the 
first note of a piece or passage. I find rhythm to be incredibly helpful - 
to get the pulse of the piece going in my head long before I play the first 
note, and to hear some of the characteristic rhythms of the piece in their 
proper character.

As I write, I realize I've written a bunch of this before, in some documents 
I prepared for an audition preparation workshop I taught to some high school 
youth orchestra students. I'll paste the relevant ones below:

---------------------

Thoughts on Practicing

“Always start with what you CAN do.” – Norman Bolter. Whatever you want to 
achieve, you have to start with what you can do today and work towards it 
patiently and deliberately.

“The highest reward from your working is not what you get for it but what 
you become by it.” – Sydney Harris. Keep the ultimate goals in mind: being a 
wonderful, expressive musician.

Tell, don’t ask. Don’t play anything, ever, wondering how it will come out. 
Direct it, tell it, sing it in your brain, be in charge of the sound. If it 
doesn't come out the way you imagine, that's something to work out practice 
methods to improve. But keep your imagination in charge of your body, not 
the other way around.

Be creative. Invent routines and methods for yourself to address specific 
problems. Hammering away at something hoping it will get better is probably 
the slowest way to improve. It’s better than not practicing at all, but not 
by much.

Be productive. Don’t just put in hours because you think you should; find 
ways to use your time productively. If you only have a few minutes, figure 
out what you can accomplish in that time. If some aspect of your playing is 
going so poorly one day that even trying to fix it will be frustrating, work 
on something else and vow to come back to that aspect the next day. 
Practicing slowly is always productive.

Monitor your body for relaxation and ease of motion/tone production/etc.
“I want it to be EASY!” – Sam Pilafian

Think more about great phrases and less about perfect notes – particularly 
as you get closer to the audition or performance.

Practice for your mind at least as much as your body. Find the most 
productive thought processes that help you in the moment of performance, and 
practice those as you prepare for the performance and audition.

Practice performing. Devote some of your regular practice time to 
performing. Commit to the moment, play as if there’s an audience, and don’t 
stop for anything. Using a recording device is one excellent way of doing 
this. Evaluate afterwards to determine what specific technical aspects and 
overall musical ideas you want to do better, and then practice those things 
very specifically. But make sure to practice the commitment to the moment 
you will need for performance.

---------------------------------

Thoughts on The Audition

"strive to EX-press not IM-press" – Buddy Baker

My advice is to fill your mind with musical thoughts.

First, be sure the tempo of everything you play, and start the inner 
metronome going at that tempo as soon as possible after you've finished 
playing what comes before. At the start of the audition, of course, fill 
your mind with the pulse of the first tempo even before you walk into the 
room. A steady pulse is a great kind of focusing thought.

Have a reason for everything you play. Know something about every piece - 
have a visual or psychological image. For example, when I play The Ride, I 
imagine the monsters flying in attack formation. At the B section of the B 
Major (F#, G#, E, G#, B...), where the dynamic is marked louder, I imagine a 
second squadron joining the first.

Know the high point of the phrase and show the listener what that is. Know 
the softest and loudest thing you will play in the audition.

If you're going to monitor anything physical during the audition, make it 
your breath (if you are a wind player). Find useful visualizations for the 
most delicate physical activities you have to carry out. For soft playing on 
a wind instrument, I like to imagine the air rolling slowly down a gentle 
slope; I control the angle of the slope with the embouchure.

Some other thoughts:
Show how much you love the music you are playing and maybe how much you love 
your instrument. Demonstrate your joy!

As you get closer and closer to the audition, think more and more about 
great phrases and less and less about perfect notes.

Tell, don't ask. Don't play anything, ever, wondering how it will come out. 
Direct it, tell it, be in charge of what comes out, sing it in your brain. 
If it doesn't come out the bell the way you imagine, that's something to 
work out practice methods to improve. But keep your imagination in charge, 
not your body.

All of this needs to be practiced. You can't just turn on these thought 
processes for the first time when you walk in the audition room. Practicing 
is for your brain just as much as it is for your body.

And for that matter, follow Jay Friedman's advice: play an audition for 
yourself, or somebody else, or a tape recorder, as often as possible - every 
day if possible. Dedicate a portion of a practice session every day to 
getting it right the first time. Evaluate what went well and what didn't, 
and then figure out how to do detailed practice on the things that didn't.

------------------------

Really, honestly, I think most of the issues involved with performance 
anxiety can be dealt with by practicing creatively and productively. If 
you're goiong to be serious about performing, you need to be serious about 
practicing...and practicing performing.

Gabe


----- Original Message ----
From: Chris Tune <crtune at adelphia.net>
To: Dean Hubbard <bonedean at msn.com>; Trombone-L Trombone 
<TROMBONE-L at server5.samford.edu>
Sent: Friday, November 10, 2006 11:09:59 AM
Subject: Re: [Trombone-l] Beta-blocker info requested


It probably DOES work.  But, I'd caution that psych work with a counselor is
probably a better solution because the performance anxiety is probably not
the only thing that could be improved by competent counsel and continuing
sessions.

I've not heard about a person developing "tolerance" to the B blocker, but
maybe some others here have heard definitely about that.

I'm very lucky.  I'm one of those who responds well to Mind Game methods of
getting away from performance anxiety.  I think of the audience as all kinds
of things other than what anxiety says they are.

The anxiousness also is not the first thing that starts this process.  The
first thing to occur, is the body gets more Cortisol and/or Adrenalin shot
into the bloodstream.  This in turn causes more rapid breathing, increased
awareness, "goosebumps", etc. then the mind perceives this as anxiousness.
. . .something to be Concerned about.  I try to focus upon how INTERESTING
this whole psycho-physiological process is.

You see, refocusing upon something as being INTERESTING causes beneficial
neurotransmitters to be produced to soothe away the opposing symptons.  This
results in Endorphin and perhaps Dopamine to be produced which accompany
your feeling that you have DISCOVERED some new information.   Usually right
after I absorb this briefly, I refocus upon the particular demands right
before the performance (refocusing upon anything memorized. . .double
checking that I have my mutes out. . .my lube available. . .horn properly
assembled).

Chris



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dean Hubbard" <bonedean at msn.com>
To: "Trombone-L Trombone" <TROMBONE-L at server5.samford.edu>
Sent: Thursday, November 09, 2006 9:59 AM
Subject: [Trombone-l] Beta-blocker info requested


> Friends,
>   One of my adult students asked me about beta-blockers.  He's having
> performance anxiety and his doctor suggested trying this medicine.
> Please share any experiences you've had with this drug.
>
>
> Truly,
> Dean Hubbard
> _______________________________________________
> Trombone-l mailing list
> Trombone-l at maillists.samford.edu
> http://maillists.samford.edu/mailman/listinfo/trombone-l

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