introduction
From the inside, music performance anxiety and related feelings may seem overwhelming. It might be helpful for you to know that it has been studied and understood pretty well. A lot of this knowledge, however, is only available in science journals or textbooks. My aim in this section of the webpage is to bring the main concepts of the workings of a human (especially, a musician) brain to you in concise articles, written with a musician in mind, to help you understand your anxiety.
Feel free to search for specific information or move directly to the tools that can help you manage. Otherwise, if you’re up for some reading, scroll ahead!
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other resources
Thankfully, more and more resources are available online on the topic of musician’s mental health and neuroscience. Please find some recommendations below.
dianna t. kenny
Books and articles of Dianna Kenny are the milestone of modern music performance anxiety research. Many of them are written with general audience in mind, which makes them accessible and understandable. She also developed measuring scales such as Kenny Music Performance Anxiety Inventory, that are widely used worldwide.
Kenny explores the underlying psychological factors that contribute to music performance anxiety. She also presents ways of assessing and treating music performance anxiety, emphasizing that treatment needs to be individualized according to each musician’s unique life history. This is essential reading for music psychologists, music therapists, musicians, music teachers, and psychotherapists who work with anxious musicians.
