OWNING THE STAGE
Strategies for Successful Performance
by Leone Buyse
You've practiced well and are eager to perform. Standing backstage, you hear the audience become quiet as the house lights dim. Next comes a crucial moment: your opportunity to connect with your listeners and put them and yourself at ease even before playing a note.
Many instrumentalists ignore a simple fact that singers learn early in their training: Your stage demeanor creates a vivid impression and is vitally important to the success of your performance. Music lovers attend concerts rather than listen to CDs at home because live performance offers the excitement of unexpected, spontaneous interaction among the musicians onstage. Since watching performers is as entertaining to many audience members as listening to the music, instrumentalists need to practice skills which will make a favorable visual impression. Read on for advice about acquiring a polished, professional stage manner as well as mental confidence.
First, when walking onstage immediately make eye contact with your audience, smiling in a natural, unforced way. Both your pace and your physical posture should convey purposeful assuredness rather than nervousness or hesitation. Choose a walking speed that is neither too hurried nor too deliberate. Standing tall, imagine a rope attached to the top of your breastbone and allow yourself to be reeled onstage effortlessly by an imaginary pulley. A confident posture will lead to a confident performance and also helps your audience to relax, eagerly anticipating your performance. Women wearing heels should avoid stepping heel-first, which produces a loud, clomping sound. Instead, practice placing your weight first on your toes, then on the rest of your foot. Carry your instrument in a comfortable way and avoid bringing your own music onstage whenever possible.
Applause--essentially a pat on the back from afar--is an audience's way of both welcoming and thanking a performer. Bowing graciously to acknowledge applause is one of the most essential stage deportment skills a musician must master, and also one of the most difficult. Your bow offers an opportunity to reach out to your listeners and also to take the pulse of the hall. It should be unhurried, so try counting slowly to three as you bend forward to study your shoes. Make sure that the top of your head (rather than your face) is visible to your audience, but refrain from bowing too deeply, which can look awkward. Remain smiling whenever you look directly at your audience.
Videotaping yourself or asking a friend to evaluate your bow can be very helpful as you work to improve this gesture. In addition, observe performers whose stage manner you admire and then emulate those qualities which you find particularly appealing. If you are using a music stand, stop to bow just before you reach the stand so that you won't be hidden. When performing with other musicians, wait until your colleagues have arrived at their respective places and then bow together. In a woodwind quintet formation, always step well to the right of your chair so as not to block the oboist behind you, reminding the clarinetist to do the same thing for the bassoonist!
Unless you are performing unaccompanied, you'll need to tune once you've completed your bow. Remember that turning your back to an audience appears rude and makes the process of tuning seem embarrassing or secretive. Instead, rotate slightly toward the pianist for a tuning note while basically still facing your listeners.
Your body language throughout your first minute or two onstage will reveal a lot about your mindset, and it's important that you maintain a poised demeanor before beginning to play. Sports commentators often discuss an athlete's body language, especially during tennis matches, and musicians should realize that audiences are just as likely to be affected by a performer's bearing and actions as sports fans are. Whether standing or sitting, strive to maintain erect posture throughout your performance. Erect shouldn't imply stiff, but rather flexible, with a feeling of energy flowing upward through the top of your head. Lessons in the Alexander Technique can be very useful for developing a strong sense of physical freedom and upward direction onstage.
While playing, stay calm and focused in the moment, resisting any urge to dwell on negative thoughts, such as a missed note or cracked attack. Refuse to engage in a dialogue with any internal judging voice that may attempt to interfere. Your face should remain serene despite any unexpected or momentarily annoying occurrence; actors learn to do this and so must musicians.
Developing powers of concentration and positive visualization to aid in performance is as necessary for musicians as it is for athletes, and there are many fine books dealing with these subjects. For ideas, see the list at the end of this article. Nonetheless, the single most effective way to prevent performance anxiety and assure success is to be thoroughly prepared for every concert or competition you play.
If you are playing an entire recital, or several works in a row, it's always a good idea to plan when you will exit and return. Leaving the stage between each piece might be excessive, but after a particularly long or intense work your audience will welcome a short break just as much as you will. While backstage be careful about engaging in loud post mortem discussions with your collaborator(s). Instead, keep your mental focus and prepare for the next item on your musical agenda.
At the end of your performance respond again with warmth to applause. There is no need silently to mouth the words "Thank you," which looks strange; just smile and bow graciously. If you have been playing a work with piano, first look toward your pianist and wait for that person to rise so that you can bow together. Exit the stage briskly, and if applause is strong return promptly for a curtain call rather than keep the audience waiting. Again savor the gift of applause and leave the stage quickly, returning once more if applause remains enthusiastic. Leave your music onstage unless there is no stage assistant to remove it. If you must take your own music offstage, leave it in the wings before taking a curtain call.
Quintets or any other chamber ensemble should always discuss group choreography before a performance, reviewing basics such as who will lead on or off, who will lead the bow, and where to stand for curtain calls. Generally, the musician with the farthest distance to walk will enter first, and the last to arrive onstage will leave first. A good strategy for a curtain call is to form a line and bow behind the set-up rather than returning to quintet formation. Yet another curtain call might be well served by a line bow in front of the chairs near the edge of the stage, space permitting. It is always better for members of a group not to carry music on or offstage but rather to let a stage assistant do so.
Getting adequate rest and nutrition prior to performing is as important for musicians as it is for athletes. If you stay up late in the week preceding a concert, your ability to concentrate and your physical coordination may be seriously impaired. Likewise, if you overdose on sugar or drink caffeinated beverages before performing, you will probably notice unpleasant mental and physical effects. Plan to eat healthfully in preparation for any performance; you are in training for a big event and need proper sustenance!
Final considerations for performers are the issues of concert attire, coiffure, and verbal communication with an audience. Whether male or female, performers should choose clothing that will 1) allow them to breathe, bow, and play with ease; 2) help them and the audience feel that the performance is a special occasion; and 3) be appropriate for the concert venue and time of day. If more than one person will be onstage at the same time, colors need to be coordinated so that listeners aren't subjected to half an hour of brilliant orange next to shocking pink. Solid colors are highly preferable since polka dots, large floral prints, or other designs are tiring to look at for long periods of time. An evening concert often requires a more formal style of clothing, but the most important consideration is to have a similar style of dress among the performers involved. Women should dress stylishly and attractively without causing audience members to be distracted from the music. Rehearsing in recital shoes is a wise idea because balance can sometimes be affected by heels. Hair should be kept away from the face so as not to fall into your eyes or (worse yet!) your mouth. Attractive clips or pins and a can of hair spray are inexpensive ways to avoid those dangers.
At this point in time, classical musicians are working harder than ever to attract and build future audiences. Being able to demonstrate your excitement about music to your audience, whether in a concert hall or in an informal atmosphere such as a community brown bag lunch concert or school means potentially reaching new listeners. Whenever you study a new work, learn enough about the piece or the composer to be able to tell your audience about it. Write a few special points on an index card if you don't feel adept at speaking extemporaneously, and refer occasionally to your notes when addressing your audience. They will appreciate having information about what to listen for, and you will gain valuable experience in public speaking each time you reach out in this meaningful way.
One last thought about performance. If you walk onstage remembering that you perform because you love to play, you'll always understand what a privilege it is to be able to share that passion with others. This attitude will sell both your performance and the joy of music. Take it with you throughout your performing career and you will truly own the stage.
Recommended books on Performance Psychology. Titles in bold are especially recommended.
Julia Cameron
The Artist's Way
Putnam, 1996
Shirlee Emmons
Alma Thomas
Power Performance for Singers
Oxford U. Press,
New York, 1998
Timothy Gallwey
The Inner Game of Tennis
Random House,
New York (1974)
Timothy Gallwey
Inner Tennis: Playing the Game
Random House,
New York (1976)
Charles A. Garfield
Peak Performance
Warner Books,
New York, 1984
Barry Green
Timothy Gallwey
The Inner Game of Music
Anchor Press
New York (1986)
Don Greene
Performance Success: PerformingYour Best Under Pressure
Routledge Press
New York, 2001
Don Greene
Fight Your Fear and Win
Broadway Books
New York, 2001
Don Greene
Audition Success
Pro Mind Music
New York, 1998
Eugen Herrigel
Zen in the Art of Archery
Vintage Books
New York (1971)
Phil Jackson
Sacred Hoops
Simon & Schuster,1995
Susan Jeffers
Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway
Ballantine, 1987
James E. Loehr
The New Toughness Training for Sports
Plume, 1994
James E. Loehr
Toughness Training for Life
Plume, 1994
James E. Loehr
Breathe In, Breathe Out
Time-Life, 1999
Dan Millman
Body Mind Mastery: Creating Success in Sport and Life
