How To Change The Way You Feel About Auditions - Bulletproof Musician

29/01/2022, 22:18 How to Change the Way You Feel About Auditions - Bulletproof Musician
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Have you ever heard the phrase “perception is reality?” I read a book the other day in which
the author described one such experience.
During a ride on the subway, a man and his young children entered and sat down near him.
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/how-
The children were yelling, being rowdy, and disturbing the other passengers, while the man
many-hours-a-day-should-you-practice/)
stared off into space, seemingly oblivious to their antics and rudeness. After he had seen
How Many Hours a Day Should You Practice?
enough, the author asked the man if he might do something to control his children’s
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/how-many-hours-a-day-should-
you-practice/)
https://bulletproofmusician.com/how-to-change-the-way-you-feel-about-auditions/ 1/13
behavior. The man looked at him, apologized, and explained that they had just come from the
hospital where his wife had died about an hour ago, noting that he wasn’t sure how to deal
with this and that the kids probably didn’t know how to handle it either.
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/why-the- 
Imagine you were this author. Can you imagine how quickly your feelings would have shifted
progress-in-the-practice-room-seems-to-
from irritation to compassion?
disappear-overnight/)
Why the Progress You Make in the Practice Room Seems to
Reframing reality
Disappear Overnight – PART 1 (https://bulletproofmusician.com/why-
the-progress-in-the-practice-room-seems-to-disappear-overnight/)
Admittedly, that is a pretty dramatic example, but what if there were a way to “reframe” the
way you see performances, competitions, and auditions, and by doing so, feel differently
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/is-slow-
about them? To feel more positively about them, and perhaps even to enjoy them?
practice-really-necessary/)
I think you can — it’s just a matter of finding a believable framework that allows you to go
Is Slow Practice Really Necessary?
into a performance situation with a more positive mindset. Whether the framework is
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/is-slow-practice-really-necessary/)
objectively “true” or not is beside the point — try to resist the temptation to evaluate its
validity. In other words, whether the man’s wife really died, or if he had lost his job, or if his
sister was in a severe car accident doesn’t matter. The point is that when we change how we
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/8-things-
see things, it changes the way we feel.
top-practicers-do-differently/)
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Here
8 Thingsare
TopaPracticers
coupleDothat you might try on for size.
Differently
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/8-things-top-practicers-do-
differently/)
A framework for performances

Have you ever heard people say that they see performances as an opportunity to give the
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/why-
audience a gift? If that works for you, terrific. Somehow
 that never worked for me. I did,
improvisation-should-be-part-of-every-
however, see opportunities to play for people as a rare and welcome privilege.
young-musicians-training/)
In POPULAR
Whyfact, I was talking
Improvisation
ARTICLES
Should Beto anofacting
Part coach
Every Young recently,
Musician’s who illustrated this even more clearly. He
Training
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/why-improvisation-should-be-part-
said that being able to act in front of real people was always a joy, since the alternative is
of-every-young-musicians-training/)
basically to talk out loud to himself and play make believe with imaginary characters all by
himself. Think about it, would you want a career in which you could practice and play music
every day to your heart’s content, but could never let anybody hear you?
A framework for auditions or competitions

you-practice/)
Call me crazy, but I always enjoyed competitions and auditions more than performances. Did
I get nervous? Absolutely, but I loved it anyway.
How did I become such a nut case? Well, in my mind, juries, audition panels, and
competition judges were an ideal audience (remember, we’re looking to adopt a helpful
framework, not prove whether this is objectively true or not).
Howthedo
Why I figure?
Progress You Make in the Practice Room Seems to
They’re trapped
For one, jurors are a captive audience. A regular audience is free to leave mid-concert, fall
asleep, read program notes, or compose snarky Facebook status updates on their phone. A
panel of judges could do the same I suppose, but since it’s their job to sit there and listen to
Is
me,SlowI’d
Practice Really
like to Necessary?
think that it’s a little less likely.
More sensitive ears

Second, they know the music better than anybody else, so they are capable of noticing and
appreciating every intricate little
 TAKE THE MSA detail. The cool little bowing you came up with, the little
slide
8 Thingsyou
Top used to Do
Practicers getDifferently
from one note to the other, the subtle shading of dynamics, the extra
time you took, the control it took to play the whole phrase in one breath, the accents, the
differently/)
phrasing, the articulations, and so on. All of this is more likely to be noticed by a panel of true
experts.
Why this isicn=msa&icm=blog&ics=sidebar)
a good thing 
Admittedly, this is a double-edged sword. If you aren’t prepared, if your playing is devoid of
ideas, POPULAR
or if you’re
Why Improvisation Should
ARTICLES
just trying
Be Part to get
of Every YoungbyMusician’s
on technical
Training proficiency alone, you’re probably toast.
But assuming you have put time and thought into preparing your music, and have “made it
your own” as teachers like to say, who else is going to notice these nuances? The average
concertgoing music lover will probably not. In fact, the average musician will not. Unless the
listener has played your instrument and knows the piece well, these things will go unnoticed
and underappreciated.
you-practice/)
For instance, I was listening to a percussion mock audition the other day. The percussionist
was playing the soft snare drum excerpt from Prokofiev’s Lieutenant Kije Suite. I had heard
that this was a difficult excerpt, but would never have guessed from how easy this individual
(https://bulletproofmusician.com/why-the-
made it look. Later, he tried to explain to me some of the differences
 between mallets and the
reasons for some of the choices he made in other excerpts. Could I have identified these
details on my own? Nope.
Want toOvernight
Disappear see another
– PARTmore startling example of just how much of your performance probably
1 (https://bulletproofmusician.com/why-
goes unnoticed by most concertgoers and musicians? Watch this video, and notice how few
people stop to listen (or look for that matter), even though from the audio, this seems to be a
pretty skilled musician.
Un violinista nella metropolitana
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8 Things Top Practicers Do Differently
differently/)
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Why Improvisation Should Be Part of Every Young Musician’s Training
Who is this street musician? Click here (https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-
dyn/content/article/2007/04/04/AR2007040401721.html) to find out.
One implication of this experiment is that most people can’t tell the difference between a
great performance and an ordinary performance, in much the same way that I may not be
able to discriminate between differing levels of percussion playing. Sure, there are other ways
you-practice/)
to interpret the results of this experiment, but again, we’re just trying to find a reasonable
framework that will help you feel differently about an audition panel, not determine what is
true or false.
A super duper privilege?
If it is a Overnight
Disappear privilege– PART
to be1 (https://bulletproofmusician.com/why-
able to play music for real live people, wouldn’t it be an even greater
privilege to play for not just one listener with a high degree of sensitivity and appreciation for
the nuances of your performance, but a collection of such individuals? When else are you
going to have the opportunity to have such an audience take time out of their day to listen to
you? You can’t buy a more perceptive audience.
When I took the time to really work out a piece, I was pretty opinionated. I had definite ideas
about how things
Is Slow Practice should sound, and liked experimenting with unconventional fingerings and
Really Necessary?
bowings. Having done this much work, I wanted someone to notice all of these details. I
wasn’t thrilled if the listener disagreed with or disliked my choices of course, but this was far
better than the details going unnoticed. It was like telling a joke, and nobody realizing that I
just told a joke.
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Create your own

differently/)
Keep in mind that these frameworks are just suggestions, and you are free to take them or
leave them, depending on how they resonate with you. The idea is to create one that helps
you adopt a mindset that is more conducive to performing your best. There is no prize for
having the most accurate view of reality (well, actually
 the prize seems to be a state of mild
depression – read this
(http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/nov/25/healthandwellbeing.features1) brief
POPULAR ARTICLES
explanation
Why Improvisation that is either
Should Be Part ofdepressing or encouraging
Every Young Musician’s Training or funny, I’m not sure which).
If these particular ones don’t fit, you can totally invent some of your own — and please do
share in the comments if you have one that really works for you. It’s likely that someone else
could really benefit from it too.
The one-sentence summary

you-practice/)
“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” ~Albert Einstein
Noa
Why the Progress You MakeKageyama, Ph.D.
in the Practice Room Seems to
Performance psychologist and Juilliard alumnus & faculty member Noa Kageyama
teaches musicians how to beat performance anxiety and play their best under pressure
through live classes, coachings, and an online home-study course
(https://members.bulletproofmusician.com/edu/beyond-practicing-3/?
icn=beyondpracticing&icm=blog&ics=after-post-bio). Based in NYC, he is married to a
terrific pianist, has two hilarious kids, and is a wee bit obsessed with technology and all
things Apple.
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Ack! After Countless Hours of Practice...
Why Are Performances Still So Hit or Miss?

It’sprogress-in-the-practice-room-seems-to-
not a talent issue. And that rush of adrenaline and emotional roller coaster you experience
before performances is totally normal too.
Performing at the
Why the Progress upperin the
You Make ranges ofRoom
Practice yourSeems
ability
to under pressure is a unique skill – one that requires
specific mental
Disappear Overnightskills,
– PARTand perhaps a few other tweaks in your approach to practicing too. Elite
athletes have been learning these techniques for decades; if nerves and self-doubt have been
recurring obstacles in your performances, I’d like to help you do the same.
Click below to learn more about Beyond Practicing – a home-study course where you’ll explore the
6 skills that are characteristic of top performers. And learn how you can develop these into strengths
of(https://bulletproofmusician.com/is-slow-
your own. And begin to see tangible improvements in your playing that transfer to the stage.
LEARN MORE
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COMMENTS
differently/)
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Nicole says:
Another interpretation of the Joshua Bell incident is that perhaps Bell has more experience
playing full recitals than busking, and both was put in an unsuitable place — where people are
hurrying to work — and was performing unsuitable material for that setting. Put him in a place
where people are lingering, spending leisure time and are already in the frame of mind for
dropping cash, and have him play something a little less dark and demanding, see how the
How Many
results Hours a Day Should You Practice?
differ.
you-practice/)
Reply
Reply
Jaba says:
Iprogress-in-the-practice-room-seems-to-
really enjoy and find most articles on this website helpful. Getting ready for two auditions, I was
hoping to find something in this article that would ease my mind. It seems though, that I feel
completely opposite. The audition/competition committee is there to catch any mistake they can
to eliminate
Disappear you –from
Overnight PARTthe next round. They are trapped and, in my mind, they cannot wait to
leave. They don’t enjoy how we play and that makes me very tense and prevents me from
enjoying the moment myself.
I have friends who appreciate music, but aren’t musicians. They often leave mediocre
performances with a feeling they just took part in something extraordinary. I usually get very
positive feedback when I play for non-musician audience, but most importantly I don’t feel a bit
nervous and often I do play my best. I wish I could take that mindset to my auditions, but I don’t
seem
Is to be able
Slow Practice Reallyto make a connection. Any suggestions?
Necessary?
Reply
Dr. Noa Kageyama (https://bulletproofmusician.com) says:

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Hi(HTTPS://BULLETPROOFMUSICIAN.COM/ASSESSMENT/MSA18?
Jaba, ICN=MSA&ICM=BLOG&ICS=SIDEBAR)
Ultimately, the audition panel is irrelevant. Meaning, focusing on them takes your precious
differently/)
attentional resources away from playing your repertoire as you want to play it. You can’t
directly influence what the panel thinks they’re looking for, whether they like the piece you are
playing, or whether they may only be thinking about an argument they had with their spouse
earlier in the day or how they really need a bathroom break.
 you play in such a way that you are
Your only responsibility is to go in, and make sure that
happy with what you’ve done. That way at least one person comes out of that room happy –
you.POPULAR
The alternative is that nobody comes out of that room happy.
ARTICLES
Good luck in your auditions!
Reply
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29/01/2022, 22:18 How to Change the Way You Feel About Auditions - Bulletproof Musician

 TAKE THE MSA

A framework for performances

A framework for auditions or competitions

More sensitive ears

Create your own

The one-sentence summary

“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” ~Albert Einstein

Ack! After Countless Hours of Practice...

Why Are Performances Still So Hit or Miss?

Dr. Noa Kageyama (https://bulletproofmusician.com) says:

Should Eliminating Procrastination Be a Top Priority? (https://bulletproofmusician.com/should-

Join 48,000+ other musicians, and learn how performance

© Bulletproof Musician | Disclosures (https://bulletproofmusician.com/disclosures/) | Credits (https://bulletproofmusician.com/credits/)

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