Page 133 - How to Shine on Stage

Conclusions and a Look Ahead

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A review of the vast literature on the subject of musical performance suc-
cess and optimal musical performance reveals that much has changed
in this area in the last ten years. For several decades prior to this, sport
psychology was ahead of the music psychology. Now, we are witnessing
major advances in the research on the factors of musical performance
success as a prototype example of one of the most complex types of per-
formance, which also serves as a model for performance optimization in Conclusions and a Look Ahead
other professions (surgeons, pilots, etc.).
At present, there are three main trends in musical performance re-
search: (1) from an elementarist approach of studying the elements of
a successful musical performance to a holistic study of musical perfor-
mance as an emotional and social phenomenon,
(2) from a focus on investigating psychological problems as barriers
to achieving musical success to investigating factors that promote mu-
sicians’ well-being, and (3) from a theoretical research orientation to a
practical one in terms of designing interventions to optimize musical
performance.
So what does the future hold? The listed trends will certainly also
extend to music education, so that it will incorporate from the very be-
ginning a holistic approach to planning a musical performance. This
will enable teachers of instruments/singing to consider the whole musi-
cal self-image in their teaching, rather than just the academic and cogni-
tive aspects which currently dominate the teaching. This will also boost
student satisfaction and, consequently, motivation. The education of fu-
ture teachers of instruments/singing will also include the acquisition of
basic skills for successful mental preparation for performance, so that
they will be able to help future students to preventively build the emo-
tional and social competences needed to perform successfully. It will
become increasingly important to recognize that the purpose of mu-
sic education is not merely to sharpen musical skills, but to contribute to
one’s overall well-being and to benefit from transfer effects of active en-