Page 107 - How to Shine on Stage

modes of interpreting individual aspects of a situation in form of cer-
tain cognitive patterns and interpretive errors (Beck et al., 1979). This
recognition is an opportunity to change the approach to performance,
to oneself, and to the audience, and to develop more agile interpreta-
tions that contribute to greater efficiency on stage. A meta-analysis of re-
search on psychological interventions in MPA has demonstrated a high
degree of usefulness of psychological techniques stemming from cogni-
tive-behavioural therapy (Burin & Osorio, 2016). For example, they pre-
vail over pharmacotherapy in the treatment of depression and anxiety 105
disorders: cognitive therapy reduces the activity of the amygdala as well
as the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and insular cortex, and changes
the activation of the certain areas of the prefrontal cortex, which facili-
tates emotion regulation (Clark & Beck, 2010; Linden, 2006). According
to research grounded in musical performance, the focus of the perform-
er’s attention and their manner of thinking are key to their psychological
well-being and their performance on stage. Concentration on the emo-
tional aspects of the piece being performed (interpretation orientation)
and playing for the audience (communication orientation) seem to be the
most helpful attention anchors, while concentration on the playing tech- Direct Factors of Musical Performance Success
nique or notation alone results in a less expressive, “dry” performance,
perceived by the performer as less comfortable and as restrictive of the
freedom on stage (van Zijl & Luck, 2013; van Zijl et al., 2014). Investiga-
tions into musicians’ pre-performance self-talk (Steptoe and Fidler, 1987;
Tokarz & Kaleńska, 2005) suggest that MPA is associated with catastro-
phizing (“I am almost certain I am going to make a terrible mistake,
and it is going to ruin everything”), while positive thinking strategies
can reduce MPA (“I know I am a good performer, and I have prepared
well for this; I will continue and make them sit and take notice of me”)
in the same manner as the realistic thinking strategies (“I will surely
make some mistakes, but everyone makes mistakes”). Attention on mu-
sical performance and a development-oriented attitude where the per-
former accepts themself promote well-being on stage.
The 3, 2, 1 VAK technique (Lundeberg, 2001) is one of the most pow-
erful techniques for calming the mind. It involves the directing of atten-
tion to different sensory stimuli: visual (V), auditory (A), and kinaesthetic
(K). We begin by focusing our attention on a chosen visual stimulus and
holding it there for 20 seconds, then we choose another visual stimulus
and focus on it again for 20 seconds, and then repeat this with a third
stimulus. Then we close our eyes and focus on the chosen auditory stim-
ulus for 20 seconds, then on the second auditory stimulus for 20 seconds,
and then on the third. This is followed by focusing on the kinaesthetic