… a blog post from Chairman’s Corner.

Hey hey there music lovers. The topic of stage fright has been on my mind recently, as the band I’m in just played at a venue that is quite a bit larger than our usual performance spots.

I used to think that seasoned performers didn’t get stage fright. Turns out that’s not always the case! Even some of the pros who perform on a regular basis struggle with show-related jitters. Although I’ve done pretty well with being relaxed on stage for quite some time now, I have most definitely had my share of performance anxiety in the past.

Perhaps the most uneasy I’ve ever been before a performance was at a city-wide talent show that our beloved Portland Mercury put on. At the time, the alternative weekly auditioned folks from all over the city (comics, musicians, dancers & more), and then picked 10 acts to perform at a sold-out Wonder Ballroom. I managed to get on the show, doing a solo thing – singing along with my trusty bass guitar. I had performed alone before of course, but not in front of a really huge crowd at a large ballroom. As a result, one could safely say that I was very…on edge. I was used to typically having a band behind me, therefore not all of the pressure to perform well to an immense crowd was solely on me alone. In this case, I really just didn’t know what to do with my anxiety. I was visibly trembling. An acquaintance who I had known for a while happened to be working backstage as a stagehand, so I voiced my concerns to him. I told him that I was really nervous. His response was great: “That goes with the territory”. This response doesn’t seem like it should have been very helpful, as he wasn’t really saying anything to try to boost my confidence as a performer. However, there was something about his response that really resonated with me. With his words, he had acknowledged that being nervous before a performance is not at all uncommon, making me feel less ALONE (despite the fact that I was about to go on stage all by myself). With just five simple words, the stagehand had managed to put me at ease, and I was ready to roll on stage…only just a few minutes later.

Here’s an older, yet quite well written blog with some solid advice on beating stage fright. Written by a magician, this blog contains many pointers, but (wisely) concludes with the following words: “If nothing else works, just go with the wind and accept that being nervous is OK”. Of course, different strategies to combat the jitters are going to work for different people – but being okay with yourself and your feelings (regardless of your anxiety level) before the show undoubtedly seems like a great idea. As the blog goes on to say, “Relabel those ‘nerves’ as ‘excitement’ to finally share this thing you have prepared so hard for”.

I have found that with enough practice, it’s possible to deliver the goods in a live setting even if you’re not totally relaxed. Personally speaking, the goal (in a live setting) is NOT necessarily to be ‘perfect’ – the goal is to simply put on an entertaining show. It’s important to remember that sometimes the crowd actually enjoys seeing performers make mistakes. It humanizes the musicians to the audience.

At the end of the day (IMHO), it’s all about accepting yourself and your feelings during a live performance – even if you’re frightened. Besides, even if you’re unhappy with a particular show, you can always continue to put in the work so that the next performance is superior.

Cheers,

Jeffrey “Chairman” Couch

Music lover, creator & collector

chairman@spinneymedia.com

Chairman currently enjoys freaking out & creating panic with his spastic rock band Nasalrod, which is based in Portland, Oregon. He created this blog to share his serious love of music, the arts, and physical media.