Page 130 - How to Shine on Stage

and professional musicians. Mental preparation, an established and
long-standing practice in sports, has only begun to be addressed system-
ically and more broadly in music in the last few years. It involves the de-
velopment of programmes to help musicians optimize their mental skills
and, consequently, achieve greater success and satisfaction (Williamon
& Antonini Philippe, 2020).
Psychological well-being is a multidimensional phenomenon en-
128 compassing both emotional and cognitive dimensions of subjective ex-
perience, which is the result of individual evaluation of numerous aspects
of life (Disabato et al., 2016). There are two orientations in research on
psychological well-being: the hedonic orientation, centring on the indi-
vidual’s subjective well-being and its three main constituents, namely
How to Shine on Stage (emotional component), and the eudaimonic orientation, which defines
life satisfaction (cognitive component), positive affect and negative affect
psychological well-being more broadly and focuses on the experience of
life meaning and on self-actualization (Musek, 2008). The factors that
influence subjective well-being are genetic, motivational, emotional, and
cognitive. The best predictors of subjective well-being in the area of per-
sonality are extroversion in a positive correlation and neuroticism in a
negative correlation (Musek, 2008). The eudaimonic approach defines
psychological well-being as a construct with six dimensions: self-accept-
ance, positive relationships with others, autonomy, environmental mas-
tery, meaning in life, and personal growth.
The last few years have seen a growing exploration of the concept
of well-being in music. Most of the research emphasizes primarily the
negative aspects of well-being in professional musicians, particularly re-
garding their physical health (Matei et al., 2018). Studies reveal often
insufficient adaptation strategies to achieve health (Antonini Philippe,
2013; Antonini Philippe & Güsewell, 2016). A growing body of research
suggests that the specific stressors and demands faced by musicians in
their professional domain are reflected in performance-related pain
and physical discomfort, performance anxiety, and occupational stress,
which can have a significant negative impact on musicians’ well-being
and present barriers to successful performance (Cruder et al., 2018; Wil-
liamon & Thompson, 2006).
The findings indicating significant levels of negative well-being in
music students and in professional musicians have in recent years in-
formed the intervention programmes designed to promote well-being in
the music education environment, directed at conservatory and acad-
emy students (Ascenso et al., 2017; Ascenso et al., 2018; Matei & Gins-
borg, 2022; Perkins et al., 2017). Roberta Antonini Philippe et al. (2019)