Passing Out, Confidence, and Anxiety

[screamertrumpet]

Ok, tonight, I rehearsed with our marching band. We were playing a chord sequence where the lead goes up to high d and e on two of the chords, back down to high c, high b, and then to double g. I'm lead at my school. So, I cut off the b early to get a big enough breath for the double g and all of a sudden all of this anxiety came into play. All these thoughts rushed into my mind, like, "What will happen if I don't hit this? Will everyone turn and laugh at me?", etc... I then got all this tension in my chest, my heart started beating faster and faster and I got a HUMONGOUS pain in my chest. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. The pain in my upper chest subsided and moved to the lower abdominals. I thought i was going to hurl, so I bent down and kneeled instead of even trying for the double g. The chords stopped and the trumpet assistant asked me if I was ok. I just said, "I think I'm going to throw up." and the instructor and I went inside (we were rehearsing outside). I got some water and we talked. She said, "That nauseous feeling you had is like a 2 second warning that you're going to pass out." She then said that she passed out for a funeral and into the area that was dug for the person the funeral was for.
Anyways, I didn't pass out but was wondering... Any ideas on how to improve on this aspect. I was pretty tired at the time and wasn't really sure of myself. My teacher suggested "The Inner Game of Tennis" even before I was going to pass out. I think I'm going to get it anyways.

Thanks for your help,

Trevor

[ByroTrumpet]

oh man i know how it is...

i was at this jazz festival and i had a trumpet feature, a pretty ballad with a nice scream section. The pretty part was cool but i was like... oh man here's the high stuff, i totally choked and hit about 75% of my notes. not good! Got reamed by a judge for it!

I read a book called effortless mastery by kenny warner (pardon me if i am wrong here). It basically tells you to be comfortable with what you do to the point where you are almost listening to yourself play instead of the other way around. I would reccomend reading that, it is really quite interesting.

When I get nervous I just try not to think about it and just go. If i clam i will clam. but i'll go on and i'll probably feel better about it later. JUST DO IT! What's the worst that can happen? so you missed a note, everyone who has ever picked up a horn has done it. Just try not to think so negatively, instead of thinking what might go wrong think of all the things you can do right. THey should outweigh the bad.
Hope some of this helps,
_________________
Byron

If there is anything that I stated here that someone doesn't agree with or if it is just plain wrong. Let me know (be professional about it), because I want to learn more. Have a great day everyone!

[Emb_Enh]

From my website....

This subject comes up every so often.
Here is what helpful info I've found on the subject.

From Mark Minasian:

When I was at IU, Bill Adam held trumpet classes at least once a
week. Anyone who wanted to could get up and perform anything for the
class and Mr. Adam would then offer some advice. Not only was this
another chance to get some extra coaching time with Mr. Adam, but
playing in trumpet class, in front of an entire room of trumpet
players, where some of those students were awesome trumpet players,
definitely tested your nerves. Everyone did it and everyone played
their recital pieces. Many crashed and burned the first times, but
would get use to standing up in front of their peers and ultimately
would get control of their thoughts and play very well. After playing
works in trumpet class, doing a recital was a piece of cake.

I mentioned getting control of the mind. This is the whole ball game!
I can't count how many times I saw a student get up in trumpet class
and play rather poorly. Then Mr. Adam would stand up, usually tell
some very corny jokes and start talking to the student, getting him
or her to feel at ease. If there was a troublesome spot, he'd work
out that spot with the student and make some helpful suggestions.
Then, when he saw that the student had regained his or her
confidence, he'd have the student play the work again. The difference
would be astounding. The student that sounded weak just a moment
before now sounded like a pro.

You can prepare yourself for a concert by utilizing some mental
visualization exercises. Sit or lie down so that you are comfortable.
Close your eyes and mentally visualize the concert. Make the image in
your head as real and accurate as possible. See your friends in their
seats, see the room, your accompanist, etc. Now, see yourself
confidently stride out on stage and execute a flawless performance.
Hear the music in your mind. Mentally perform the work. Hear and see
yourself playing the piece like a pro. This sort of exercise is very
powerful. Your mind does not really differentiate between the inputs
from your senses and the inputs you create through your imagination.
By imagining the concert, as far as your mind is concerned, you now
have a successful performance under your belt. By doing this sort of
exercise on a regular basis, you'll find that when the performance
happens, you'll feel much more confident.


From Bryan Edgett

As applied to music, it seems to me that we must be clear about our purpose if
we are to succeed. We must have a goal in mind if we ever are to achieve it.
Perhaps asking some questions will help to clarify those goals:

1) What do I want to do with my trumpet playing? Do I want to be a competent
amateur or a professional who earns a substantial part of his/her income from
performing?

2) What are my true strengths and weaknesses as a musician (first) and as a
trumpet player (second?) I recommend the help of at least one trusted
professional trumpeter to help with this analysis.

3) How can I highlight my strengths in my playing?

4) Do I have structured approach to address my weaknesses (both musical and
performing?)

5) Am I becoming the type of person (both in character and in musicianship)
that others will want to hire?

6) This is, perhaps, the toughest question of all to answer. Am I willing to
work hard enough to achieve the goals I have set out for myself?

While I advocate working hard, I believe that working smart is more important.
I have had students study with me who never get this distinction. One can
practice two hours a day and get worse. Yet intelligence, applied to hard
work, is a great combination.

Let me offer a word of advice to those who are college trumpet majors. College
study is what I have termed "dues-paying time." An intelligent approach
including solid listening skills, a mature sound concept, a fluent and
accurate technique, and an understanding of music's variegated styles will
yield a lifetime of enjoyment and a resource upon which to draw when life's
real pressures (such as paying a mortgage, picking your daughter up from
school because she's sick, etc.,) preclude you from all of the practice time
that you want.

On many occasions, I have had to perform a difficult work when slightly out of
shape or underprepared. Note that my habits (and my temperament) normally
ensure that I am as ready as I can be to perform. But at times, that type of
readiness is impossible. Because I worked my anatomy off during my "dues-
paying time." I have confidence that, upon occasion, I can reach into my
history and pull out a performance when I am less prepared than I ought to be.

Finally, I recommend that every college trumpet major read the glowing
testimonials about Mr. Herseth that appeared in the ITG Journal earlier this
year. I read each of them at least three times. The accolades he received from
his most accomplished colleagues made me cry (literally.)

But one in particular stood out. Charlie Geyer recalls a time where Bud was
playing the Brandenburg to begin a concert. Mr. Herseth had warmed up as
usual, and had gone on stage about 20 minutes before the performance with his
piccolo trumpet. He told Charlie that when he tried them, the high notes
didn't work. Charlie ask him "what did you do, because what I heard sounded
great?" Bud replied "I sat there recalling all the successful performances I'd
had and waited for the downbeat." Charlie mused, How many lesser players would
have kept checking the high notes and subsequently failed in the performance?

It seems to me that what makes this extraordinary confidence possible is that
Mr. Herseth was always so well prepared and so committed to performing at his
maximum, that he had deep resources from which to draw, even when the
problematic piece was the Brandenburg, and the problem was that he lost his
high notes. While few of us can be expected to muster that much confidence, we
can use the same approach for lesser challenges with success. But the ability
to summon that courage comes from developing the type of resources (with the
foundation laid during the "dues-paying time") that gives both musical and
technical maturity.

Many of my students talk to me about performance anxiety and juries.
I usually give this advice. It came from Buddy Baker at
University of Northern Colorado, where I did my doctorate.



What all musicians want when they perform is confidence--the ability
to know that they'll walk on stage and do a good job. Confidence
comes from consistency over time. If you do something consistently
well, you have confidence that you can do it. Think about all the
things you do during the day that you have confidence that you can
do. You can do them without worry.

Consistency comes from correctness over time. If you approach playing
correctly, and you do it over a period of time, then you will be
consistent.

So, when preparing a jury piece, (or any piece for that matter,)
First plan all the important events, e.g. where to breathe, where the
dynamic changes are, where to cresc. and dim, etc. Then play through
the work, just to get a feel for it. Then look for what I call the
10% licks. Those are the passages that are sure to give you trouble.
(Some works have more than 10% licks.) Work out the toughest passages
so that you can play them 10 times in a row without an error. Then
play the work at a tempo at which you can play from beginning to end.
Naturally, when tempi change within a piece, you change too. But most
students I know practice too fast too quickly, that is, before they
can control their technique. In your slower practice, strive for
ease and beauty. It doesn't matter how much you have to slow it down
or where you think you should be, play it where you can play it
accurately. Then (no more than 2 metronome clicks at a time) bring up
the tempo. It is important, when practicing slowly, to practice the
technique (especially note lengths) like it will be when you get it
to performance tempo.

The most important stress reliever, for me, is realizing that who I
am is greater than what I play. (A person is greater than his/her
art.) I want to do well. I can honestly say that I work to do well.
Usually, I do well. But, on occasion, for one reason or another, I
don't do as well as I expect myself to do. That happens to everyone
(with the possible exception of Andrè and Herseth), student and
professional alike.

That said, the next most important stress reliever for me is
thorough, intelligent preparation. I tell my students that it's
possible to practice 2 hours a day and get worse. (Some have even
proven me correct.) Remember that it is how you practice that counts.
With that, I think I'll practice when I come back from worship this morning.


From Mike Barry

Before you read further, ask yourself this: am I truly
capable of actually playing a particular performance? Have I
prepared enough so I am truly ready? If not, don't bother
with this post, because no amount of mental preparation
can overcome a lack of ability or technique.

I've been through a period of stage fright in my career and
found a solution that I think we can all relate to and receive some
benefit.

I wonder how many of us would allow a perfect stranger to
walk up to us on the street and taunt us, and then start to slap
us. (I know I'd make sure it's the last time he ever
used that hand, or I'd be seriously injured in the attempt to do so).
I'm betting no one here would allow that.

Now...how many of us would ASK perfect strangers to literally
smack us until we were beat to a pulp? Again, I bet there aren't
any hands up out there.

So...ask yourself this. Why do you allow a group of people
(an audience) to mentally beat you up so bad that you get the
shakes and perform miserably? You're giving them permission,
in your own *mind*, to smack you around and make you feel
inferior. It's YOU that is imagining these things.

Rarely will there be anyone listening to you that wants you
to perform badly. And, in the rare instance where someone does,
it's usually the case that you can't stand them either, and in life
off of the stage you wouldn't be their slave, consenting to their
smallest wish!!

It boils down to self respect.

In fact, you can take this destructive mental process and turn
it on it's head, using it to your advantage.

Oftentimes, the vicious circle we find ourselves in feeds on itself.
You don't want to play bad, so you get a little nervous. Then your nerves
affect the way you play and you don't sound as good as you can, and
you tell yourself that you're playing bad. Then you get more nervous,
etc., etc.

The mind can work in the opposite direction, and *just* as
effectively.
You want to sound good, and know that when you're relaxed you sound
great. You need to do 2 things for this to internalize and become 2nd
nature. First you need to play a good phrase in a concert. Second,
you immediately remind yourself you can do this and also place
trust in your abilities.

For me, it's like getting dumped by a girlfriend that I really liked
back in college. I remember that after a while I got so sick and tired of
feeling bad that I just let it go. And everything got better immediately.

Sooner or later, you'll get tired of being nervous and you'll
walk out on stage play brilliantly and lay waste to an audience!!!

============================

Roddy o-iii<O

PS.....go read "Zen and the art of archery" before the inner game books. This was the source book for all the "inner game" books.
_________________
Regards, Roddy o-iii RoddyTpt@aol.com

"E M B O U C H U R E___E N H A N C E M E N T"
BOOK 1 also... BOOK 2 + demo CD

[Self Analysis and Diagnostic Trumpet Method]

[dawnfrenzy]

well the reply above is pretty long and makes mine kinda look sad, but oh well here goes...

Did you eat much that day?

seems simple enough but i passed out on a train once in the morning and i was told it was because i hadnt had breakfast (being a 2k walk to the station and having to run because i was late also had something to do with it.)

as for confidence and stuff, experience is my main benefit, ive been performing for 8 years with probably an average of around 3 big concerts a year and lots of smaller onces and after a while you may just get used to it...

If it interests you i find i have alot more problems in front of small crowds where the audience is close to me and their faces can be clearly distinguished, its alot easier in a big hall with several hundred people you cant see because of the lights burning into your eyes...

[ChopsMcgraw]

Sounds like you psyched yourself out. When you're reaching for those higher notes, you have to be confident. Anything less than total confidence can and will result in disaster. This is not to say that you should be cocky, just to be aware that everyone misses once in a while, and not to stress about it. Chances are no one in the audience will even notice. One must learn to play out, if you are going to make a mistake, make a big one that every one hears, and learn from it. No one can be perfect, though the continual drive for perfection is what seperates the mediocre from the superb.

ChopsMcgraw

[trickg]

I think that you psyched yourself out. Don't feel bad though because it happens to almost everybody.

Also, don't worry too much about clamming a high note. I wish I had a dollar for every high note that I've clammed in a performance situation. I don't do it all of the time but it's the nature of the beast. The more you play and perform, the more opportunities for a clam and ultimately the more you will clam, especially if you are a hack like me!

You may have also been dehydrated or needed some carbs in your system, but I've been where you are and I think that you psyched yourself out. Just go for it next time!

Best of luck to you.

By the way, great post Roddy!

One last thought that I want to add is a quote by Bud Herseth (I may not get it absolutely right, please correct me if it's too far off the mark.)

--If you make a mistake, be proud of it. Put your horn down and stare at the conductor.

_________________
Patrick Gleason

[ This Message was edited by: trickg on 2002-08-22 08:22 ]

[SHS_Trumpet]

Yeah I know the feeling. I was playing some chords today in the marching show. I have a really cool lickstarting on e then it modulates upand the lick starts on A. Then theres a run from high E to double A. I of course am supposed to hold over on the Dubba A. I play all of the 20 counts in one breath and I passed out today.... It might have had to do with the fact it was like 100* and maybe it had to do with not eating breakfast, maybe because I don't know but it happened and sometimes it will. Just try not to overdo it. I have to remember I'm going to be heard I don't have to Blastissimo it.
_________________
Andrew Fowler
MYNWA
"90% of trumpet music is below high C"

[Lazarus]

Awhile back I put up a similar post but with a bit of a different twist. The scenario: I completely blew my All-State Audition that I had had ready and learned very well for a long time (I blew scales and everything!). I could not understand it, or why I did so crappy after much preparation. I started to beat myself up and then whenever I would play the trumpet and would have slight discrepencies in tone or techinicallity I would start doubting myself. I'd say, "Holy crap man, you've been playing for seven years and you still mess up auditions, blow technical things, and don't have the range you should. Whats wrong with yoU?!?!". Of course I was making it worse than it was. Everyone blows it and its that simple. Its true because otherwise there wouldn't be this many posts . How do I solve it? I just don't give a hoot. I blew it so what? I can play the part over and over again without error, I can do it for myself so what does it matter if I messed it up once and there just HAPPENED to be people watching the time I screwed up. We are humans, and we want others to see how good we do. I realized this about myself (this may not be true of you). And then I realized that my focus was totally wrong. Personally for me, I realized that I should have been playing for God (I am a Christian and I know this isn't the same for everyone, so I am sharing an opinon only and not forcing anything on anybody). Once I realized that, man I was set! God had heard all those right notes and he knew I could do it.

In a nutshell? Play it cool! Just have that attitude and make friends with everyone around you so that they know you are playing it cool. The more comfortable you are with the band around you, the more comfortable you will be playing. Have you ever truely examined why you are afraid? In my case I came to realize that I was actually afraid of embarrassing myself in front of my ensemble, not the crowd. I thought that I had lost their respect in some way. Alright I'm ending this long post. Sorry it is so disjunct. Have fun and stay cool!
_________________
God Bless,
Stephen O.
_________

Bb Trumpet - Kanstul 1500A
Cornet- 1939 King Master
_________

[_Don Herman]

Another explanation:

"Every trumpet player has experienced the sensatoin of 'blacking out' after blowing too hard to reach high notes. The reason for this has been poorly understood by brass players.

If the lungs are over inflated or if the player blows too hard, the pressure within the chest is increased to the point that it completely prevents blood from returning to the heart from the body. The blood backs up in the veins and causes the swelling of the neck veins and redness of the face well known to high note trumpet players.

If the blood cannot get back to the heart, the heart is unable to pump it out to the body. When the brain has been deprived of blood for only a short period of time, one experiences the blacking out. Upon relaxing, a hard beating of the heart is experienced for a few beats as the blood is again returned to the heart and is pumped out."

Eric H. Widell, Jr., M.D. -- studies the Maggio system with Carlton MacBeth

FYI - Don
_________________
Don Herman/Monument, CO
"After silence, that which best expresses the inexpressible, is music." - Aldous Huxley

[dwm1129]

It sounds like you had a little anxiety attack, which some people at some point or another in life might have and although they are scary they aren't going to kill you, the most important thing though is to get right back out there and do it again...get back on the horse don't let it stop you from making music or living life, the quicker you can get back out on the field and prove to yourself you can do it, (which you have in the past many times, so why should the next be any different?) the better you will feel.

[Greatest Trumpeter]

Hey that happened to me once, but it was a high C held for like three measures. I started to get tunnel vision, wow! I'd just recomend that you just stop trying so hard to hit the notes and just play them.
_________________
SCHILKE
"O Music, sphere-descended maid
Friend of pleasure, wisdom's aid" -William Collins

"So live that you can look any man in the eye and tell him to go to hell." -Anon

[screamertrumpet]

Thanks guys,

Come to think of it, I didn't really eat much that day. I woke up at 9:00, ate a pop tart, went to driver's ed at 11:00 which ended at 1:00 and then went to my trumpet lesson which was at 2:00, and then directly to school at 3:00 because I wanted to show some of the incoming freshman some stuff I learned about high notes over the summer.
That's all I ate that day, was a pop-tart.
I think it helped the cause but wasn't the creator of the cause though, because I almost passed the day after that with food in my stomach.
The high e is what I think killed me. I did an experiment where I skipped some notes of the sequence. The best one was where I skipped the high e. It almost feels to me that it takes more effort to find the high e on my horn than it does to play high Eb and F combined. So, I skipped the high e and nailed the double g at the end. It may also help getting a lead mouthpiece, too (I just don't think the B3 could be a very good lead mouthpiece).
Anyways, I got "The Inner Game of Tennis" from the library and requested the Zen Archery book, too.

Thanks for your guys' help,

Trevor