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research-article2021
IJM0010.1177/0255761421990800International Journal of Music EducationHuang and Song

Article

International Journal of
Music Education
How do college musicians 2021, Vol. 39(2) 95­–118
© The Author(s) 2021
self-manage musical performance Article reuse guidelines:
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anxiety: Strategies through time DOI: 10.1177/0255761421990800
https://doi.org/10.1177/0255761421990800
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periods and types of performance

Wei-Lin Huang
South China Normal University, China

Bei Song
Harbin Conservatory of Music, China

Abstract
Musical performance anxiety (MPA) occurs throughout musicians’ careers. The existing literature
on coping with MPA is underdeveloped in its understanding of how college musicians develop
their own coping strategies. This article explores the ways in which MPA is self-managed by
college musicians, drawing on qualitative data from the local context of Taiwan. A ‘performance
diary’ for managing MPA was prepared and semi-structured interviews were carried out with
53 undergraduate students (from Year 1 to Year 4) from a university’s music department. The
findings show that college musicians have developed at least nine self-management strategies,
which they implement throughout a specific timeline leading up to a performance, from 4 weeks
before right up to the performance (concert, exam and recital) itself. These strategies are products
of musicians’ self-regulated learning process of developing their own expertise and building
up their self-efficacy. The findings also reveal that providing information about psychological
strategies in a performance diary could help musicians to become aware of MPA and develop
their metacognition of coping strategies. Highlighting the importance of the specific time periods,
types of performance and performance environments, this article has implications for college
musicians, teachers and institutions that are looking to develop MPA-management strategies.

Keywords
College musicians, coping strategies, musical performance anxiety, self-management, time
periods, types of performance

Corresponding author:
Bei Song, Department of Musicology, Harbin Conservatory of Music, 3179 Xuezi Street, Song Bei District, Harbin
150000, Heilongjiang, China.
Email: songpei2010@163.com
96 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

Introduction
In recent years, awareness of musicians’ mental health and well-being has been increasing among
professionals and college musicians across the world. For instance, the BBC radio programme
Music Matters discussed mental health issues from the varied perspectives of psychotherapists,
scientists and conservatoire students. Among musicians’ mental health and well-being issues,
musical performance anxiety (MPA) has been reported in the contexts of Europe, the Americas,
Asia and Oceania (Fehm & Schmidt, 2006; Huang, 2005; Kokotsaki & Davidson, 2003; Patston,
2014). MPA, often known as ‘stage fright’, has been described as a state of arousal and anxiety
occurring before or while a person is performing in front of an audience, engaging in an activity
that touches on his or her self-esteem (Kesselring, 2006). It is experienced not only by college-
level and professional musicians but also by children and adolescents. Indeed, many professional
musicians report of suffering from anxiety at different stages in their careers (Ryan, 1998, 2004,
2005). In music colleges, the number of intervention programmes to manage MPA has increased in
recent years. Some institutions combine courses relating to coping with MPA with new technology
facilities, such as the performance simulator at the Royal College of Music, London, United
Kingdom (Williamon et al., 2014).
Many existing studies on coping with MPA have examined psychological anxiety-coping strate-
gies, including cognitive and behavioural strategies, and their effects on musical performance (Braden
et al., 2015; Kendrick et al., 1982; McGinnis & Milling, 2005; Nagel et al., 1989). Some studies have
examined MPA coping strategies through variable comparisons, revealing that the coping strategies
can be categorised as long term and short term based on musicians’ performance timetables. For
example, Roland (1994) and Fehm and Schmidt (2006) reveal that individual musicians used various
personal strategies to cope with MPA, and the strategies were used differently during different time
periods of performance preparation. Among the existing literature, numerous studies focus on college
musicians (Fehm & Schmidt, 2006; Huang, 2005; Kokotsaki & Davidson, 2003; Williamon et al.,
2014). Yet what has been less examined is how college musicians develop their own strategies to self-
manage MPA and how far these strategies help them in coping with MPA.
As the contributing factors of MPA are varied and individualised, various combinations of MPA
coping strategies need to be used, depending on individual circumstances (Papageorgi et al., 2013;
Sadler & Miller, 2010; Sârbescu & Dorgo, 2014). Therefore, it is important to explore how indi-
vidual college musicians develop the ability to self-manage MPA in order to help them find the
most suitable coping strategies. Noting this research gap, this study intends to investigate the ways
in which MPA is self-managed by college musicians. More specifically, it tries to answer the fol-
lowing questions: What strategies were developed by college musicians to cope with MPA? When
was each coping strategy used? For which types of performance were the strategies used? What
have been the impacts of the strategies? The next section will introduce what a self-management
approach for anxiety is and what it means for the study of coping with MPA.

Adopting a self-management approach in the study of coping

with MPA
Based on theoretical resources of self-management for anxiety, some anxiety-coping strategies
have been developed and tailored for self-help, which could be a way to support the self-manage-
ment of MPA (e.g., McNamara, 2001; Patston, 2014; Sadler & Miller, 2010). In clinical studies,
self-management has been defined as an individual’s ability to manage, with treatment, the physi-
cal and psychological consequences and lifestyle changes inherent in living with a chronic condi-
tion (Mulligan & Newman, 2007). ‘Self-management’ can also be a term used in reference to
Huang and Song 97

Figure 1.  Key concepts underlying psychological theories of self-management.

professionals’ development of interventions to help people self-manage their condition more effec-
tively. The underpinning psychological theories of self-management provide a theoretical frame-
work (see Figure 1) to draw attention to the importance of people’s beliefs about themselves, their
illness and how these affect self-management (Mulligan & Newman, 2007).
As presented in Figure 1, a key concept underlying psychological theories of self-management is
self-regulation, which frequently appears in studies of musical performance (Nielsen, 2001; Varela
et al., 2016). In clinical studies, the definition of self-regulation relates to altering individuals’ views
about their condition and its treatment, which are seen as the drivers of coping and health-related
behaviour (Mulligan & Newman, 2007). In a music educational context, self-regulation is often
associated with Zimmerman’s model, which examines the various possible trajectories of individual
musical development (Varela et al., 2016). Zimmerman (2000) described self-regulated learning as
cyclical since ‘the feedback from the prior performance is used to make adjustments during the cur-
rent effort’ (p. 14). Self-regulatory skills (i.e., activities related to learning itself) in preparation for
a musical performance can be attained through a learner’s own learning process. Applying the con-
cept of self-regulation in coping with MPA, it can be assumed that individuals may discover effec-
tive coping strategies through the learning process of developing their own expertise.
Another key concept underlying psychological theories of self-management is self-efficacy,
which relates to the self-confidence that individuals have in their ability to perform a given behav-
iour (see Figure 1). Individuals with resilient self-efficacy have the ability to rebound quickly from
difficulties; even when they make serious mistakes on stage, they can still continue to perform as
if nothing has happened (Bandura, 1997). Mulligan and Newman (2007) indicate two routes to
build up self-efficacy, namely, skill mastery and modelling social persuasion. Skill mastery
involves goal setting and learning problem-solving skills, as setting specific goals increases the
possibility of success and each success helps to build self-efficacy as well as maintain behaviours.
Modelling social persuasion emphasises learning self-management skills from others in a group
setting. Applying the concept of self-efficacy in coping with MPA, goal setting, contrived perfor-
mance situation and peer learning can be adopted to build up college musician’s self-efficacy to
facilitate their self-management of MPA (Reid & Duke, 2015).
Furthermore, self-monitoring is one of the crucial skills in the acquisition of expertise in the
music-learning process (Hallam & Bautista, 2012). Incorporating psychology into the music curricu-
lum, the use of a ‘performance diary’ (PD) can facilitate students’ thinking about their experiences of
performing and in turn reduce their level of MPA (Kenny, 2011; Patston, 2014). As such, the use of a
self-help booklet reflects one component of cognitive-behavioural therapy in which systematically
98 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

Table 1.  Participants’ background.

Year level Number of Major Number of Gender Number of

participants participants participants
Year 1 19 Strings 20 Female 46
Year 2 11 Woodwinds 11 Male 7
Year 3 13 Brass 4  
Year 4 10 Percussion 2  
Total 53 Piano 14  
  Composition 1  
  Vocal study 1  

observing one’s thoughts and behaviours can lead to therapeutic change (Sadler & Miller, 2010). In
addition, the benefit of self-recording is that recording a positive behaviour will encourage people to
repeat the same behaviour (McNamara, 2001). The concept of self-monitoring offers a way for per-
formers to organise, examine and self-manage the condition of MPA both mentally and physically.
In this study, the researchers adopt the above theoretical resources of self-management to exam-
ine the ways in which MPA is self-managed by college musicians. Based on a review of strategies
for coping with MPA in the existing literature, the researchers developed self-management material
in the form of a ‘performance diary’ as an optional and assistive tool for research participants in
their preparations for performances. The researchers then examined ‘what’ strategies of MPA self-
management (either included in the performance dairy or not) had been used and ‘when’ they were
used in relation to ‘which’ type of performance in practice. These were explored in six time peri-
ods, including early stage of preparation period, during the week of the performance, on the day,
backstage, onstage, and after the performance and in three types of performance, including a for-
mal school concert, an exam and a graduate recital.

Data and methods

Participants
The participants of this study are undergraduate students in Bachelor of Music (BMus) programme
majoring in music performance in a university music department in Taiwan. This BMus programme
has 107 students across four year-levels and is designed to cultivate competent and successful
professional musicians, fostering their expertise in solo music performance, collaborative musical
arts and music teaching. Being an alumna of this department, the researcher received help from the
head of department and was introduced to the undergraduate students in the department’s new term
assembly, which is compulsory for all students. The researcher took advantage of this opportunity
to inform the students about the study and gave them a consent form. For those who wanted to
participate, they filled in the consent form with their signature, contact details and preferable con-
tact dates and then returned it to the researcher at the end of the meeting.1 In total, 60 students
participated in the study yet 7 of them did not continue through to the end, hence the final number
of participants is 53 (see Table 1).

PD
In this study, a PD was developed as an optional and assistive tool to introduce strategies for and
assist with MPA self-management (see Appendix 1). It contained two parts: the first introduces the
Huang and Song 99

Performance Diary Reading Rate

Chart 1.  Performance diary reading rate.

basic concepts of cognitive-behavioural therapy to help musicians’ understand their current perfor-
mance state through a checklist. The second part offers a brief description of each MPA coping strat-
egy identified by the researcher based on the literature of sport psychology and music psychology.
It emerged that 81% participants have read the PD during their performance preparation period
(see Chart 1). In the meantime, what can be identified is that the participants were using PD in six
different ways (see Table 2). The following case gives an example of how the PD shapes partici-
pants’ self-management of MPA:

I read the diary. I didn’t feel nervous a few days before my concert. My nervous feeling happened when I
was backstage. At that time, I had no idea what I should do except wait. Then, I remembered that I was
participating in a project about anxiety. So, I tried breathing and muscle relaxation as I had practised them
before, when I saw these skills in the diary a few weeks ago. Also, they were the only strategies that I
remembered when I was backstage and the diary wasn’t with me. It was very helpful. (Y1 Ivy)

Data collection
In this study, the researchers follow a qualitative research design and adopt semi-structured inter-
view as data collection method. Guided by the overall research question and key themes in the
literature on MPA and self-management of anxiety, the researchers have designed interview ques-
tions around the following themes: how the participants perceive MPA in general; what MPA cop-
ing strategies they used and in what time periods, types of performance and performance
environments; how they acquire these strategies through self-help; and how they perceive the role
of PD in coping with MPA. As the interviews were semi-structured, some new questions were
added during or after the interviews. As this article presents only part of the findings of the wider
project, which examines not only college musician’s self-management of MPA but also social sup-
port they receive from teachers, peers and accompanists, its findings are mainly generated from
data relevant to the participants’ self-management of MPA.
100 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

Table 2.  Six ways the PD was used in relation to year levels and types of performance.

Types of performance Concert Exam Recital

Year level Y1 Y2 Y3 Y1 Y2 Y3 Y4
1. Not at all 2 4 2 7 6 8 2
2. Read but didn’t use it 3 1 3 1 1 0 1
3. Introduce new strategies 4 1 1 4 0 1 0
4. Reinforce existing strategies 1 1 1 5 2 2 1
5. Both introduce and reinforce 2 1 1 1 0 1 1
6. Planning and monitoring 1 2 3 1 2 1 5
Total number of participants in 13 10 11 19 11 13 10
concert or exam or recital

PD: performance diary.

All the interviews were conducted in Chinese and lasted approximately half an hour. For each
interview, an audio recording was made with the permission of the participant. Verbatim transcrip-
tions were then made using a word processor. We did not translate all the transcriptions into English
at the data analysis stage, as some original meanings in Chinese could be lost if translated. It was
not until the writing up stage that we started to translate particular extracts of Chinese transcripts
when we wanted to quote from them. Back translation was carried out to ensure the accuracy of the
translations. We acknowledge that there might still be some inconsistences between the Chinese
and English versions of raw data. This limitation can hardly be avoided in studies engaged with
multiple languages including Chinese and English.

Data analysis
In this study, the researchers took an inductive approach in the thematic analysis of identifying and
analysing patterns within the data (Braun & Clarke, 2006). The methods I have used in the first cycle
coding mainly include in vivo coding, values coding, process coding, emotion coding, values coding,
narrative coding, attributive coding, descriptive coding and holistic coding (Saldaña, 2013). Guided by
my overall research questions, this process produced individual codes regarding the strategies used in
different time periods under different types of performances. These codes were then generated and
grouped into preliminary categories under two broad themes of cognitive strategies and behavioural
strategies. In the second cycle coding, the preliminary codes were ‘segregated, grouped, regrouped and
relinked in order to consolidate meaning and explanation’ (Grbich, 2007, p. 21). By focusing on a
broader range of themes, the codes were re-categorised by strategies (i.e., ‘mental rehearsal’ and ‘self-
talk’), timeline (i.e., ‘few days’ and ‘backstage’) and context (i.e., ‘peer’ and ‘accompanist’), produc-
ing a complete version of code list (see Table 3). Based on these works, further analysis was done to
interweave empirical data with theoretical resources to generate the findings of this article.
We would recognise the values of both data and theoretical resources as they were woven with
each other throughout the research process. The data analysis can be considered as data driven,
since the formation of each code was rooted in the respondents’ interpretations and perceptions
guided by my research questions. Furthermore, it was the empirical data that directed us to think
about the strategies that the existing literature mentions, to support our examination of this litera-
ture, find a gap in the research and ultimately build a strong argument. Yet this process can also be
considered as theory laden, since the formation of my research questions and interview question
was shaped by the literature on coping with MPA.
Huang and Song 101

Table 3.  The structure of code list.

Themes Categories Codes

Strategies Mental rehearsal, visual rehearsal,
physical activities, absorbing
activities, self-talk, increase
practice hour, dietary.
Timeline Daily basis/no specific time, early
stage, during the week before
performance, on the day of
performance, backstage, onstage
and after performance.
Context Peer, solitary, teacher, parent,
accompanist
Running through the melody in the mind and imagining the
scene, swimming, jogging, taking a stroll, listening to pop
music, playing computer games, telling myself to practise
more, eating a banana.
Often, normally, usually, my daily routine, 2 weeks before,
few days before, 3 days before, on my exam/concert/
recital day, in the morning/afternoon of my exam, 10 min
before, backstage, in the waiting room, walking onstage,
sitting on the chair onstage, while listening to the
introduction from piano, after performance.
Classmates, cohorts, senior students, junior students, friends,
alone, by myself, teacher, parent, pianist, accompanist

Ethical issues
As this study was completed in a UK university and the fieldwork site was in Taiwan, we followed
the ethical guidelines of both the British Educational Research Association: Ethical Guidelines for
Educational Research 2011 and the Academic Ethics Guidelines for Researchers by the Ministry of
Science and Technology 2014 in Taiwan. All participants were fully informed about the study with
a consent form before participating and were able to withdraw from the study at any time. Their
department was fully informed about the study. To protect their identities, the participants’ names
were changed to pseudonyms in this article.

College musicians’ self-management of MPA: nine strategies in

practice
Empirical data analysis reveals that the respondent college musicians have developed at least nine
strategies to self-manage MPA. Some of these strategies were developed through their self-regu-
lated learning and making adjustments to the strategies listed in the PD, while others were devel-
oped originally under their individual conditions. In other words, they are products of musicians’
self-regulated learning process of developing their own expertise. The strategies also build up the
musicians’ self-efficacy to facilitate their self-management of MPA. Before I elaborate on how
each strategy is used in practice, here I outline each strategy in brief:
Self-talk strategy is based on the use of cues that aim to facilitate learning and enhance perfor-
mance through the activation of appropriate responses (Abel & Larkin, 1990; Roland, 1994). There
are two types of self-talk: motivational self-talk (MST) refers to talking to oneself during a task
with motivational internal dialogue while performing, such as telling yourself ‘I am the best!’
instructional self-talk (IST) refers to talking to oneself during a task with step-by-step reminders at
each phase while performing, such as telling yourself to take a deep breath before playing the first
note (Chroni et al., 2007; Zinsser et al., 2001).
Accepting mistakes strategy aims at minimising mistakes by preparing a personal rescue plan
before a performance, focusing on what you are currently playing when the mistake occurs dur-
ing the performance and learning from the mistake after the performance by seeing it as a type
of feedback instead of a failure (Buswell, 2006). As a positive cognitive strategy (Roland, 1994),
accepting mistakes can lead to increased comfort, physical freedom and the eventual control of
a performance.
102 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

Mental rehearsal is a strategy for managing musical practice and anxiety without physical
movement and, for some participants, when they cannot practice with their own instruments.
Visual rehearsal involves the rehearsal of the whole performance and physical movement (Browne
et al., 2010). They are to prepare and programme the brain to send messages to muscles so that a
physical movement can be executed as proficiently and smoothly as possible.
Contrived performance situation strategy aims to stimulate anxious feelings by creating a physi-
cal rehearsal with small audiences of students and musical experts. It prepares musicians for the
actual performance and helps them to reduce MPA in the real performance situation, thereby
enhancing their performance skills (Abel & Larkin, 1990; Aufegger et al., 2017).
Breathing and muscle relaxation strategy should be learned and practised in the correct way in
advance of a performance (Buswell, 2006; Hays, 2002). There are various breathing and relaxation
skills, such as the Alexander Technique (AT), progressive muscular relaxation, cue-controlled relaxa-
tion and guided relaxation. For example, Lawrence (2015) examined the effectiveness of AT sessions
on all kinds of musicians’ performance, anxiety, respiratory function and posture by adopting system-
atic reviews and identified that AT sessions can facilitate musicians’ ability to cope with MPA.
As for physical activities strategy, researchers found that regular and moderate exercise can
control or reduce MPA, since it distracts anxious focus away from the performance and boosts self-
confidence and self-esteem (Rocha et al., 2014; Taylor & Wasley, 2004). In addition, regular exer-
cise (i.e., yoga, tai chi and other aerobic activities) might increase positive mood and reduce
depression (Biddle et al., 2000; Mutrie, 2000).
Absorbing activities can be used as a cognitive distraction technique to shift people’s awareness
from their anxiety to neutral things (Uys & Middleton, 2010). Absorbing activities, such as chat-
ting with friends, shopping, reading books and listening to music, can help musicians to manage
MPA (Fehm & Schmidt, 2006).
As for the diet strategy, researchers have reported eating in response to both positive and nega-
tive emotions, or so-called ‘emotional eating’ (Van Strien et al., 2013). According to Caroline
(2015), foods that boost energy levels, such as bananas, can lift our mood, as the so-called ‘happi-
ness hormone’ serotonin comes into play.
Cognitive restructuring strategy has been found helpful in reducing the level of MPA for adoles-
cent musicians (Osborne & Kenny, 2008). This strategy helps people to think in a more positive
and rational way, and the process involves reassessing and managing the fearful situation more
positively (Newman, 2015).

Self-management strategies through time periods and types of

performance
This section discusses the nine self-management strategies in detail by focusing on ‘when’ a strategy
was used in relation to which type of performance.2 It elaborates on how college musicians use these
strategies at six points in time during their preparation for a performance: at an early stage of perfor-
mance preparation, during the week before the performance, on the day of the performance, backstage,
onstage and after the performance (see Chart 2). It also discusses how these strategies were used in
relation to different types of performance: formal school concert, final exam and recital (see Chart 3).

Self-talk
The strategy of self-talk was mostly used in early stage, backstage, onstage or on a daily basis.
In the early stage of all types of performance, participants adopted only MST by building their
confidence and motivation in order to control anxiety and increase effort, such as ‘I am the
Huang and Song 103

Chart 2.  Frequency of use of strategies in six time periods.

Chart 3.  Frequency of use of strategies in three types of performance.

104 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

best’; ‘don’t be nervous, the exam will end eventually’; and ‘everything will go smoothly’. For
example,

Before I go onstage, I take a deep breath. Then, I watch myself in the mirror and say, ‘you are the best’.
Although I still feel nervous, it can reduce my anxious feelings, for the most part, I believe. (Y2 Jessica)

As for IST, it appeared when the participant was backstage or onstage. The function of this strategy
is to bring the musician’s focus to the present and maintain attentional focus on the present perfor-
mance. For example,

I was very shocked when I played the first wrong note during the exam. Then I realised that I should
re-direct my attention and focus on my current playing. I told myself ‘a single mistake is nothing, I am still
the best’. The rest of the performance was good and it went fine. (Y2 Jessica)

In addition, a strategic shift from IST to MST can be identified when the participants move from
backstage to onstage. For example,

Backstage I talked to myself about what I should do later onstage. When I got onstage, I kept saying
positive words to encourage myself in my mind. (Y3 Melody)

Overall, it seems that participants may seek to build self-confidence and motivation by focusing on
themselves as a long-term strategy, whereas when they get closer to a performance, they may
attempt to focus on the performance itself using IST as a short-term strategy.
Furthermore, adopting self-talk during concert preparation was found to be very different from
the self-talk practised during exam preparation. Participants adopted more MST than IST in exam
preparation, whereas they adopted more IST than MST in concert preparation, since an exam situ-
ation can be more competitive than a concert.

Accepting mistakes
The strategy of accepting mistakes was used in early stage, onstage, after performance situations
or on a daily basis. It appeared more often in exam preparation (adopted by 26 participants) than
other performance types (10 participants adopted in concert preparation) because an exam contains
more elements that participants believe contribute to making mistakes, for instance, anxiety about
marking and judgements. For example,

I created rescue plans in case I made mistakes on stage. My rescue plans were for things including
forgetting notes, playing the wrong note, not playing in time with the accompanist, and experiencing
shortness of breath, which causes a short musical phrase. (Y3 Melody)

Furthermore, in the ‘after the performance’ stage, there are two ways in which most participants
accept their mistakes: one is ‘comparing the previous performance experience’ and the other is
‘ignoring mistakes and moving forward’. For example,

My performance was better than the last time. I only made some small mistakes. (Y1 Ivy)

I made some mistakes during the exam. A performance without mistakes, it is not a real exam, is it? (Y3
Fabia)

This finding matches with Buswell’s (2006) suggestion that musicians should take mistakes as
feedback and move forward after a performance. However, the former way seems to be riskier
Huang and Song 105

than the latter, because if participants think their current performance quality is worse than pre-
vious performances, they may have low satisfaction, negative thoughts and self-doubts about
their performance ability. Therefore, it is important for the musicians to be aware of the risks of
comparisons.

Mental and visual rehearsal

The strategy of mental and visual rehearsal was used in early stage or on a daily basis. The fol-
lowing is an example of how participants adopt this strategy in the early stage of performance
preparation:

When I over-practise or feel tired, I go home and lie down on the sofa. At that time, I automatically start
to imagine myself performing on stage and playing from memory. I have no idea how it started. But,
anyway, this can help me become familiar with my repertoire and get used to the feeling of performing on
stage. (Y3 Alice)

Participants also practised or thought about finger movements when they could not access their
instrument.

When I can’t get to the piano, I read the score, listen to the CD, and move my fingers, which is to imagine
there is a piano on the stage and I am playing it. (Y2 Gunda)

In addition, mental and visual rehearsal occurs when participants plan to listen to a CD of the rep-
ertoire for which they are preparing. For example, Calvin adopted mental solo practice when he
and his chamber music partners could not rehearse together.

My programme is a string quartet. So, I read the score, which was not only my part, and imagined all of us
on stage. I also hummed the music of the other parts in my mind. Through this practice, I could predict
which parts of the music we would not be playing together or where it would be easy to make mistakes
during the actual rehearsal. Then, I could practice that passage alone in advance. (Y2 Calvin)

When backstage, participants expressed that a ‘quick’ mental rehearsal was used. For example,

When I was backstage, I had a quick rehearsal in my mind, rehearsing the beginning of the music and then
jumping to the last passage. I also told myself don’t be nervous and it will be ok, as I had imagined. (Y2 Aya)

According to the participants, mental and visual rehearsal helped them both in musical and mental
preparation, and also worked in conjunction with MST in order to build up or enhance
self-confidence.

Contrived performance situation

This strategy was adopted by all participants on the day of performance and nearly one-third of
them used it in the early stage of performance preparation. For the participants undertaking
chamber music performances, they reported adopting the strategy of contrived performance situ-
ation as regularly and as early as possible, owing to the need to accommodate different schedules
and timetables:

My partners and I went to the performance venue and created a real performance situation together many
times. We rehearsed walking on stage, bowing to the audience, starting to play, and walking down stage.
We also checked the sound effects and decided the position of each instrument. (Y2 Igor)
106 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

Compared with chamber music performance, participants undertaking solo performances could
adopt contrived performance situations during the week before the performance. Furthermore, they
did so a few times before their performance.

I had a rehearsal with my accompanist at a performance venue a few days before the concert. She is just
like my principal study tutor. She gave me a lot of positive feedback and useful suggestions, which made
me feel confident about the upcoming performance. It is very important for me to contrive a performance
situation in advance with my accompanist. (Y3 Kiki)

However, there was an exception, a composer who adopted a contrived performance situation at an
early stage. The reason is that a composer needs to deal with two different tasks (i.e., solo presenta-
tion and ensemble conducting).
It is important to note that the process of adopting this strategy depends on certain circum-
stances, such as the difficulty of the repertoire and different types of performance and may not
wholly be in the control of the student. For instance, in preparing for exams, the perceived diffi-
culty of the task as well as the competitive environment pushed the students to adopt this strategy
earlier than in concert preparation, with a focus on experiencing the presence of judges in the
performance environment.

Breathing and muscle relaxation

The strategy of breathing and muscle relaxation was adopted by almost all participants on a daily
basis. It is used particularly backstage and in exam preparation situations, in which they felt serious
MPA or could not play their instrument for various reasons. For example,

When I feel nervous backstage, I think about the first musical phrase. Then, I take a deep breath and tell
myself ‘calm down’. (Exam: Y1 Cathy)

I did muscle relaxation in the waiting room. But I don’t like to sit down to do it as the performance diary
mentioned. This is because when I am nervous, I like to walk around. (Y3 Kiki)

Here, Kiki mentioned the PD as where she learned the strategy of muscle relaxation, yet she has also
adjusted the strategy according to her preferences. What can be identified here is the self-regulated
learning process towards the self-management of MPA with individual’s ‘own expertise’.
However, for most participants, they had not practised the strategies before and did not neces-
sarily learn them in the correct way. As Hays (2002) points out, even if many performers know
about such techniques, they may not have learned how to use them, or they may not truly have
understood their usefulness or applicability. These strategies need to be practised in advance and
learned in the correct way.

Physical activities
This strategy was used in early stage, during the week and on the day of performance. The physical
activities recorded in this study include jogging, basketball, badminton, table tennis, qigong, swim-
ming and taking a stroll, with Jogging being the most popular exercise. Participants reported that
when they felt under pressure after a long day of practicing during their performance preparation
period, they undertook a physical activity to ‘distract anxious focus away’ temporarily and to relax.
For example,
Huang and Song 107

I go shopping and jogging as a way to relax. Through these activities, I can stop thinking about exams and
feel relaxed. (Exam: Y3 Gary)

I feel very relaxed when I take exercise. I forget all the stressful stuff at that moment! (Y3 Dora)

What my participants reported resonates with the findings of Taylor (2003) and Taylor and Wasley
(2004). In addition, physical activities can be used to assist the participants with ‘organising life’
before a performance to control their MPA. For example,

I do regular exercises, which can help me organise my practice and regulate my daily life. (Y1 Gina)

This finding resonates with that of Rocha et al. (2014).

Absorbing activities
The strategy of absorbing activities, such as chatting with friends, reading, watching TV or a
movie, playing video games, listening to pop songs, taking a bath or reading books, was used
throughout different time periods and types of performance. Among these absorbing activities,
‘chatting with friends’ is mentioned most frequently. While Fehm and Schmidt (2006) report that
most participants use chatting as a long-term strategy instead of a routine part of coping with MPA,
my data show that participants can use it on both a long-term (i.e., early stage) and short-term (i.e.,
backstage) basis. For example,

When I feel stressed, I go to the pub and have a drink with friends. The main purpose to go to a bar is to
chat with friends in a relaxing place, not just to have alcoholic drinks. (Y1 Abigail)

A few minutes before the concert started, I saw my best friend in the aisle. I was very nervous, so I just
kept talking to her. It made me feel happy and calm at that moment. (Y2 Findy)

The purposes of chatting are twofold: using it as a cognitive distraction technique and as a way of
sharing nervous feelings with others. For example,

I like to reduce my nerves through chatting with friends. I often share my thoughts and feelings with
classmates, who are also going to perform soon. (Recital: Y4 Bea)

Interestingly, my data show that pop music is used by classical musicians as a way to relax. As
explained by a Year 3 student, Lily, the melody of pop music and its lyrics let her temporarily forget
about the classical music performed in exam pieces.

Diet
Dietary strategies, such as small dietary changes or eating a specific food, had been used by a small
number of participants to help alleviate their symptoms of MPA, either mentally or physically. For
example,

When I feel nervous in the waiting room, I eat cookies and take a deep breath. Through moving my mouth,
I feel temporarily relaxed. It doesn’t necessarily have to be cookies. (Y4 Flora)

When I feel stressed a few days before my concert performance, I drink some hot water. It is sort of a habit,
or warms my body, probably. I have had this habit since high school. (Y1 Linda)
108 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

What can be identified from the data are two positive effects of adopting the dietary strategy: dis-
tracting from anxiety (i.e., moving one’s mouth in order to take the mind off worrying about the
approaching performance) and improving mood through eating specific foods (i.e., hot water,
bananas or chocolate). However, it is important to note that individuals can overeat in response to
stress or emotional arousal (Ostrovsky et al., 2013). For example,

I do not know how to deal with anxiety. I believe eating more food can make you feel better. I always feel
very nice when I eat until I feel very full. (Y2 Jessica)

Overeating may cause health issues, such as being overweight or even obese. It could be a potential
negative by-product of self-managing MPA.

Cognitive restructuring
Cognitive restructuring strategy was adopted by participants at no specific time period when pre-
paring for different types of performance. For example,

I adjust my emotional state a few days prior to performance. My stress and pressure decrease after these
adjustments and they disappear automatically when the performance has finished. (Y3 Fabia)

This strategy can also be found in relation to the exam preparation period, when a participant dealt
with the presence of judges in the performance environment. The following example shows how
negative thoughts can be changed into positive thoughts under this strategy:

I was afraid of the judges staring, as I thought they did this because of my bad performance or my mistakes.
But now I have changed my thought, which is to take the exam as my concert and the judges as my
audience. I don’t have to think about their judgements. I only have to think that I came here to show my
ability to them, and they did not come here to find my mistakes. (Y3 Quintina)

Quintina’s initial imagining of the judges’ reactions shows her flawed thinking and unrealistic
thoughts, which could have a detrimental effect on her performance. When she realised that what
she was afraid of (i.e., judges staring her) was unhelpful, she then attempted to turn the negative
thoughts into positive ones, such as thinking that the judges are audience members who are not
there to find mistakes.

Discussion
Empirical data analysis identifies nine self-management MPA strategies and reveals ‘when’ a strat-
egy was used in relation to which type of performance. As presented in Chart 2, in the early stage,
the top two strategies are mental and visual rehearsal and self-talk. As the participants have suffi-
cient time for performance preparation, they focus on musical preparedness more than distractions
from anxiety in this stage. During the week of performance, the top two strategies are absorbing
activities and physical activities. As the performance time gets closer, participants seek out help
from these strategies to increase self-efficacy and distract their anxious thoughts and feelings away
temporarily. On the day of performance, the most popular strategy is contrived performance situa-
tion, which is adopted to manage both MPA and musical preparedness. Backstage, the strategies of
breathing and muscle relaxation, self-talk and absorbing activities are used. Since the performance
is about to start and the participants cannot play their instrument backstage, they use these strategies
to cope with shortness of breath and muscle tremors, to increase self-confidence, and to distract
Huang and Song 109

from anxiety. When onstage, the participants use accepting mistakes as well as self-talk and absorb-
ing activities. The reason is that they need to focus on the music they are playing onstage, and these
strategies can bring their attention back to the present moment of the performance when they have
made a mistake. After the performance, the participants adopt accepting mistakes to compare with
previous performance experiences and ignoring mistakes in order to move forward. Furthermore, as
some strategies are relatively easier to adopt (i.e., at any time and in any place) and can help facili-
tate physical, musical and mental preparation, they are used on a daily basis/at no specific time.
As presented in Chart 3, in concert preparation, the top two strategies are related to managing
performance environment, such as getting familiar with the stage (through mental and visual
rehearsal) and getting used to the presence of an audience (through contrived performance situa-
tion). In preparing for exams, the strategies used are similar to preparing for the concert, except for
accepting mistakes, since the participants believe evaluation is a key aspect of the exam, which
involves allocating marks and correcting mistakes. In preparation for recitals, the strategies used
are similar to those for concerts, since the performance environment of a recital includes the pres-
ence of an audience, which is similar to that of concert.
Data analysis also reveals that providing information about psychological strategies through a PD
can help participants become aware of MPA and develop their metacognition of MPA coping strategies
based on the coping strategies they already learned from other resources. However, it should be noted
that not all teachers are aware of their important role in helping students self-manage MPA. Even if
they are, some of them prefer to share their own ‘personal tips’, which might not have scientific bases.
If that is the case, the PD can fill this gap and help students develop MPA coping strategies that suit
their own needs and circumstances. In addition, it would be helpful to develop a booklet for music
teachers to assist students in dealing with MPA and to embed the strategies in a positive and supportive
climate with support from both teachers and parents (Daubney & Daubney, 2017; Ryan, 2004).
Finally, along with identifying the nine strategies, some questions have been raised about the
usefulness of and improvements that could be made to these strategies. First, regarding the use of
accepting mistakes, further research could explore how to use musical skills (i.e., identifying the
most difficult passage and practising it) and various psychological strategies (i.e., self-talk) before
and during a performance to prevent and minimise potential mistakes. Second, regarding the use
of absorbing activities, further research could examine the effects of different music genres (such
as pop music) on classical musicians’ ability to cope with MPA. Third, further research could
examine the effects of dietary strategies on musicians’ physical health conditions, since a strong
correlation between social and performance anxiety and eating disorders (such as binge eating) or
emotional eating has been confirmed by many studies (Van Strien et al., 2013).

Conclusion
This article develops a self-management approach to explore college musicians’ MPA coping strate-
gies. It identifies nine strategies that college musicians developed through self-regulated learning to
manage MPA in different time periods, types of performance and performance environments
(i.e., presence of audience or judges). The strategies include self-talk, accepting mistakes, mental
and visual rehearsal, contrived performance situation, breathing and muscle relaxation, physical
activities, absorbing activities, diet, and cognitive restructuring. These strategies are discussed
through a specific timeline leading up to a performance, from 4 weeks before right up to the actual
performance itself, in relation to three types of performance (concert, exam and recital). Empirical
data analysis also reveals that providing information about psychological strategies through a PD
could help musicians become aware of MPA and develop their metacognition of coping strategies.
This article highlights the applications of self-management of MPA for college musicians,
teachers and institutions:
110 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

College musicians
•• Setting a long-term practice plan: establishing a plan in the early stage of the performance
preparation period that lasts until the performance is finished by incorporating both musical
skills and psychological strategies.
•• Seeking peer support: helping with MPA self-management (i.e., sharing life experiences and
empathy through ‘chatting’ and supporting each other through practice sessions by adopting
contrived performance situations).

Teachers
•• Providing information about MPA: information about broader aspects of music study and
performance, such as issues regarding MPA, rehearsal techniques, diet, exercise and prac-
tice plans.
•• Organising small group class: creating contrived performance situations to facilitate the
students’ self-management of MPA.

Institutions
•• Offering MPA-management contents in all aspects of music courses: MPA-related seminars,
workshops or courses to increase students’ awareness of this issue.
•• Offering resources for students and teachers: providing suitable MPA coping resources,
such as Performance Anxiety: A Practical Guide for Music Teachers (Daubney & Daubney,
2017) or a PD, as used in this research.

Admittedly, this study has not investigated MPA-management issues from the teachers’ or the
institution’s perspectives, which could provide a wider picture of MPA self-management. In addi-
tion, the data were collected from only three types of performance, which can limit its finding on
how MPA coping strategies are used in other types of performance, such as auditions. Finally, the
participants are all undergraduate students, so the study lacks the perspectives and insights of post-
graduate students. Nevertheless, the limitations in this current study provide a starting point for
future research.

Acknowledgement
We would like to express our appreciation to Dr Jennie Henley, Professor Graham Welch, Professor Andrea
Creech, Dr John Habron and three anonymous reviewers for their valuable and constructive comments on the
drafts of this paper. We would also like to give our special thanks to the participants who have contributed to
this research.

Declaration of conflicting interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publi-
cation of this article.

Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publica-
tion of this article: This work was supported by the Guangdong Planning Office of Philosophy and Social
Science [grant number GD20YTQ01].
Huang and Song 111

ORCID iD
Bei Song https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0870-2552

Notes
1. When I recruited participants, I did not target anxious musicians or base recruitment on prior knowledge
of musical performance anxiety (MPA) conditions. It turned out that all the participants have more or less
some MPA issues and have used strategies to cope with it.
2. It is worth noting that some strategies, such as breathing and muscle relaxation, physical and absorbing
activities, and cognitive restructuring, were only mentioned in relation to a specific time period (i.e.,
early stage) or with no specific time period, such as ‘I adopt breathing skills when I feel nervous at any
time’.

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Author biographies
Wei-Lin Huang (PhD, Royal College of Music) is Lecturer in Music Education in the School of Education at
South China Normal University. She is an Adjunct Research Fellow in Institute for Advanced Study of
Educational Development in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, SCNU. Her current research
focuses on music performance anxiety and pre-service generalist teacher music education. Email: wei-lin.
huang@m.scnu.edu.cn
Bei Song is Professor of Harbin Conservatory of Music. Her current research focuses on psychology of music
and music education.
114 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

Appendix 1
Performance diary (extract)
Huang and Song 115

Do you know what musical performance anxiety is? Musical performance anxiety (MPA) is often
known as stage fright and is a common problem for musicians. A certain tension of MPA can bring
positive effects on musical performance and enhance performance quality. However, excessive
anxiety may influence musicians’ daily life or even interrupt their professional development. MPA
occurs not only onstage but also during offstage playing, such as practicing instruments or during
instrumental tuition.

MPA experiences from world-famous musicians.  Andrea Bocelli, a world-famous tenor, in an interview
with New York Parade magazine, said, ‘I’ve had considerable performance experience. I’m not that
shy. Not in life – only on stage. I’ve often felt stage fright’. The British pianist and conductor, Benja-
min Britten, and the violinist Yehudi Menuhin, mentioned often suffering serious physical symptoms
from MPA before a performance. The famous American pianist Vladimir Horowitz often needs
someone to push him on stage owing to experiencing serious MPA. Professor Aaron Williamon from
the Royal College of Music found that a young cellist showed 170 heartbeats per minute throughout
their solo performance. He said that this rate is equivalent to an athlete participating in a middle- and
long-distance race, but the athlete’s race is only a few minutes, and the cellist lasted an hour!

Coping with MPA? What is cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT)?  CBT is aimed at changing negative
thinking patterns and problematic behaviour into positive ones. Do you know the inseparable rela-
tionship between ‘thoughts’, ‘actions’ and ‘feelings’ (see figure below)?

Thoughts
(the way you think)

Actions/performance Feelings
(what you do) (how you feel) think)

What is ideal performing state (IPS)?  According to O’Connor, who is a music psychologist, IPS is
when an individual feels that he or she has a high level of confidence, a deep calmness and suffi-
cient abilities, as well as the courage to face the challenges ahead.
116 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

Figure of O’Connor IPS:

A deep
A deep satisfaction in
calmness performing the
activity

high
confidence A slowing or
disappearanc
IPS e of time

How to achieve IPS?  Creating an IPS: there are three conditions that need to be considered: musical
skills, cognitive strategies and behavioural strategies. This diary provides 12 strategies in which 1
to 6 strategies are cognitive strategies and 7 to 12 strategies are behavioural strategies (see p. 4). As
to musical skills, it means individual’s proficiency at playing an instrument.

Figure of IPS three conditions

Muscial Cognitive Behavioral

IPS
skills strategies strategies

Selected 12 MPA coping strategies.  Over the coming weeks when preparing for your performance,
you can try the following strategies to manage your anxious feelings. You may use the strategies in
any order but do try each one at least once.

1. Current Performing State (CPS) Checklist

2. Self-talk
3. Mental rehearsal
4. Visual rehearsal
5. Accepting mistakes
6. Cognitive restructuring
7. Breathing
8. Muscle relaxation
9. Distraction (Physical and absorbing activities)
10. Contrived performance situation
11. Following pre-performance routine
12. Tapering off practice

The more you use the strategies, the more it will help!
Self-talk.  Performance anxiety not only happens to musicians but also to athletes. Do you know how
sport coaches train sprinters to cope with anxiety? The most popular strategy is self-talk. There are two
types of self-talk: (1) instructional self-talk that you need to talk yourself through a task with step-by-
step reminders at each phase while performing. For example, adjust breathing before playing the first
Huang and Song 117

tone. The clue word can be written down, ‘breathe’, to remind you. (2). Motivational self-talk that uses
motivational words to encourage yourself, such as ‘I can do it as I did before, as usual’. The words used
vary from person to person, as long as you can make a good reminder, that is a successful self-talk.

Instructional self-talk
What should I do when preparing performing on stage? Please write it down step-by-step in order
to remind yourself not to forget what to do when feeling anxious.

Message
1  
2  
3  
4  
5  

Motivational self-talk

Message
1  
2  
3  
4  
5  

Think good, feel good!

Mental rehearsal + visual rehearsal.  These two strategies can help you to commit repertoire to mem-
ory or become more familiar with your task. You can also adopt them when you are unable to play
physically, such as on the train or in student accommodation where not allowed to play in your
room. They can make your practice more efficient. Don’t forget appropriate practice can enhance
your performance skills but over practice may cause physical injuries, such as muscle pain.

There are only six steps to achieve it!

1. Close your eyes and create an image of the performance setting/situation that you are going
to be performing in, including the audience or judges.
2. Please take a deep breath with the nose slowly, hold it and count for 3 s in your mind, then
slowly exhale through the nose.
3. Imagine yourself approaching your instrument and warming it up backstage.
4. Imagine yourself holding the instrument and walking on stage. (Try to describe what you
see, hear, feel and smell).
118 International Journal of Music Education 39(2)

5. Please do Step 2 again. Then, imagine yourself begin to play/sing your piece of music. (Try
to observe yourself and notice what you feel, see and hear.)
6. Imagine yourself performing it perfectly and getting positive feedback from your
audience.

*Why not try it when you feel serious MPA while you are at the actual performance by following
Steps 4 to 6.

The more you do it,

the more it will become easier.