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Old 04-12-2011, 03:13 PM
6stringsteve 6stringsteve is offline
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Cool HOW do y'all deal with stage fright???

.......When I play in front of folks,I get a good case of butterflies-Once I start and get going,its usually not too bad.
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Old 04-12-2011, 03:28 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 6stringsteve View Post
.......When I play in front of folks,I get a good case of butterflies-Once I start and get going,its usually not too bad.
Hi Steve…
I breathe slowly and deeply through my nose (taught to me by a vocal instructor in college) to slow both my breathing and heartrate. Works whether I'm singing or just playing.

Then I relax and go over the easiest song I can play in my head, or I chat with folks about their families, kids, etc (if I know them) to distract myself. Small talk and friendly chatter are good - and I'm pretty outgoing so that comes naturally.

For me a touch-o-nervous can hit at the most weird times, as I'm usually not nervous to play in front of folks. In fact I love it.

If it hits in the middle of a song, I start the deep breathing and splice in an instrumental section (if I'm singing and playing) to slow me up again.

Hope this adds to the discussion...

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Old 04-12-2011, 03:32 PM
Thrillhouse Thrillhouse is offline
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I don't really play out but when I play in front of people that I feel are judging me (even though they probably aren't) it helps to shoegaze. Just look down, forget about them. Not the best advice for "stage presence" but might help you get through the songs.
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Old 04-12-2011, 03:37 PM
cary cary is offline
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I've recently started experimenting with hypnosis. I've been performing off an on for 20 years, and the stage fright can make it VERY unpleasant, so after seeing some success applying hypnotherapy in another aspect of my life I've decided to give it a go.

I'll let you know how it goes!
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Old 04-12-2011, 03:37 PM
lmacmil lmacmil is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 6stringsteve View Post
.......When I play in front of folks,I get a good case of butterflies-Once I start and get going,its usually not too bad.
That's the key isn't? Once you get started, if you know your material, it's usually ok. It took me about 10 open mic appearances before I was no longer consciously nervous when I started. Now I'm just unconsciously nervous.
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Old 04-12-2011, 03:38 PM
TinyMontgomery TinyMontgomery is offline
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"Holy smokes! You need booze!" - Dr. Nick (from The Simpsons)
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Old 04-12-2011, 03:40 PM
GibbyPrague GibbyPrague is offline
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A lucky strike and a pint of czechs finest brew pilsner urquell usually does the trick :-)
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Old 04-12-2011, 03:42 PM
skatalite skatalite is offline
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Recipe for success:

- Steak dinner, a good rib-eye, medium rare
- One Chimay Blue with meal
- Before going on stage, consume two Irish Car Bombs and a shot of whiskey
- Play the set
- Get the ladies (or the men)
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Old 04-12-2011, 03:44 PM
RustyAxe RustyAxe is offline
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It's been so long since I've felt it I can't remember, really. Just keep doing it, and it gets easier. I admit to a few butterflies when playing the occasional gig I consider "important" (not necessarily the size, more often about who is in the audience). A beer or wine might be good for some, but not for all. Can't say I recommend it.
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Old 04-12-2011, 03:52 PM
jay7347 jay7347 is offline
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The first time I played guitar, about thirty years ago for a little over a year, the "fear beast" as I call him was so overwhelming that I gave up playing. I figured I could never beat it. At the time in my professional career I was already starting to give lectures and seminars in front up to a couple of hundred people and it was tough there also, but I could hide behind my pictures and slide shows.

When I began anew on guitar three years ago the beast reared its ugly head again and its been a constant battle ever since. Over time, I've gotten better at dealing with it through hard practice, (knowing it in my sleep, so to speak). But then, situations like last Sunday come up where I did a solo piece and all of a sudden I started to freeze. Although I didn't stop, I struggled though a piece I've played maybe 200 times in the last couple of years and it was a battle... no fluidity, no relaxed timing, none of that soul that makes a song come from the heart.

The guy next to me was our percussion player, a guy just over 60 with a master's in music and tons of playing experience in jazz bands. He whispered to me after I gave him a pained glance "you're not having fun are you?" I said "No... no I wasn't". He responded that I need to learn how to make it fun, then I'll loosen up to play it the way I played in rehearsal.

By nature, I'm rather hard on myself, but I have to say his words of advice will stay with me for a long while. Back to the woodshed as they say...
-jay
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Last edited by jay7347; 04-12-2011 at 04:33 PM.
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Old 04-12-2011, 04:57 PM
mhs mhs is offline
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The idea that you're not supposed to have stage-fright, or experience it, is probably not much of a premise. It's like the expectations some have that life is supposed to for some reason go well for you, or you're supposed to be happy, when ~90% of the population of the world is in completely dire straights (starving, dying of something, being slaughtered..). Expectations are really bad things.

Since it tends to go away eventually (a few minutes to awhile after beginning), just don't stop playing, singing, or whatever it is you do that brings it on. I find that talking to the audience helps if it's truly bad. Just saying a few words can mostly defuse a bout. Talk about anything. It doesn't matter. Getting a few words out matters. Play the theme from Leave it to Beaver.

We're in a world where we've all seen too much TV or movies where people aren't showing fear, anxiety, etc, but that's TV. In life, there is fear, anxiety, and all of that good stuff ;) Doesn't mean you shouldn't do things anyway.

The post about deep breathing (by Larry) is good and always is a good thing to do in panicky moments (or non-panicky ones too, have to practice it a little).
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Old 04-12-2011, 05:06 PM
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years ago, i asked a bass player i admire (d.a. foster) about this. he doesn't think of people as an audience but as individual people who could be friends and probably are looking forward to what he's about to play. i found that thinking like this kept me from being nervous before-hand. after talking with him, i also found that if you get a chance to mingle first, getting to know some people in the audience can be really helpful.

back when i got bad stage fright, i avoided a large meal or too much liquid before a show. having butterflies in your stomach isn't as uncomfortable if your stomach isn't full.
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Old 04-12-2011, 05:28 PM
Stringplukker Stringplukker is offline
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Been playing in clubs for 20 years and stage fright is not so much an issue there. Maybe because some people are there to listen, others to party etc. and they may or may not be paying attention to the band.

But when it comes to playing in church where it is very quiet and every one is listening intently, the fingers start to shake a little and I fear messing up so much that I usually do. It really makes me mad at myself because I can play. But sometimes it does not sound like it......... (sigh)..............
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Old 04-12-2011, 05:32 PM
Rick Jones Rick Jones is offline
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When I let go of trying to impress anyone, and just started enjoying playing because I love playing, my nerves left me.
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Old 04-12-2011, 05:33 PM
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I just pretend I'm naked.








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