As the title says, can you guys that do gigs share your thoughts on this debilitating affliction? I wont reply to each post because that would be silly but I will read all of your tips and will occasionally chime in.

I will mention that I've played hundreds of gigs in my life but within the "rock band" realm where I'm just a bass player cog in the wheel of 4-5 piece bands and not a focal point (I'm comfy in this realm).

When I become a focal point.....its a different story......

"palms sweaty, knees weak, arms heavy, vomit on his sweater already, moms spaghetti"

help a bother out....
cheers,
kev
(dude/bro)

Two tips:
1. Practice your material to the point where you are completely confident and prepared. If you get it to 120% of what you want it to sound like on stage, then if you lose 20% due to nerves, you still have a great performance.

2. Remember that the audience is on your side. They want to hear your music. That's why they are there. They are pulling for you. Even if you make a few mistakes, just keep playing. Most people won't notice or care.

Been there. Done that. And still done that.

I don't get nervous near as much anymore. If at all. It's a psychology thing, I'm certain.

First, keep doing it. Playing out, solo. Don't stop, no matter how painful.

But second, I highly advise creating and posting iPhone Ditties. Short 30 second or minute long excepts of the songs you perform. Post them all over your social medias, share them to music groups or Chapman Stick groups. Somehow, it works. Did for me.

Good luck! Hope to see something by you in the near future.

Outside of the preparation above, sometimes I need to play something simple, short, basically a short "noodling" session, to get used to the room/amp combination to feel what the dynamics are like. Most often I'm playing through someone else's PA system, which can vary every so often. The Stick is a very dynamic instrument and sometimes a bad room or a poor PA system can be a nasty surprise. Especially true if the room is mostly windows and or mirrors on one or more walls. (Worse case was mirrors on all four walls and the ceiling ). If I'm not comfortable with room dynamics even a song I'm real confident with can be a chore.

If you use a looper, make sure you have a backup version of your song to play should the looper fail. I've had that happen a couple times and no one seemed to notice what happened as I was prepared and pulled off the backup version without skipping a beat.

If you are real nervous before you start playing, try talking a bit with your audience. Most poeple will not know what a Stick is, so tell them what it is and often you will find the audience is pretty supportive and eager to hear what it sounds like.

This is what AI has to say about stage fright.

Overcoming stage fright can be challenging, but it's definitely possible with practice and patience. Here are some strategies that might help:

Prepare thoroughly: The more you know your material, whether it's a speech, a performance, or a presentation, the more confident you'll feel on stage. Practice until you feel comfortable with your content.

Visualization: Imagine yourself performing confidently and successfully on stage. Visualization can help reduce anxiety and increase your confidence.

Deep breathing and relaxation techniques: Practice deep breathing exercises and relaxation techniques to calm your nerves before going on stage. Simple techniques like deep breathing can help reduce anxiety and relax your body.

Positive self-talk: Replace negative thoughts with positive affirmations. Instead of dwelling on what could go wrong, focus on your strengths and remind yourself that you're prepared and capable.

Start small: If possible, start by performing or speaking in front of smaller, more supportive audiences before tackling larger ones. This can help build your confidence gradually.

Focus on the audience: Instead of focusing on yourself and your fear, focus on connecting with your audience. Remember that they want you to succeed and are rooting for you.

Practice mindfulness: Stay present in the moment and focus on what you're doing rather than worrying about what might happen. Mindfulness techniques can help you stay grounded and calm.

Seek support: Talk to friends, family, or a mentor about your stage fright. Sometimes just sharing your feelings can help alleviate some of the anxiety.

Consider professional help: If your stage fright is severe and impacting your ability to perform, consider seeking help from a therapist or counselor who can provide techniques to manage anxiety.

Accept imperfection: Remember that everyone makes mistakes, and it's okay to not be perfect. Accept that you might stumble or forget something, and learn to laugh it off and keep going.

By combining these strategies and being patient with yourself, you can gradually overcome stage fright and become a more confident performer.

Quite awkward to answer a psychological and maybe painful question by some AI inputs, to say the least Anyway.

I think I'm subject to this fear, but probably at a moderate level. My two cents that worked for me :

-Work : work your instrument everydays if you can. Work again. And work a bit more (but sometimes, it's ok to take some holidays from your daily stick routine. You will then come back to your training routine with more eagerness)

- Breathe : take some long breathes before the show, before playing your first chord, and even while playing. I remember my first steps on stages, I was so afraid that I wanted to quit the stage as soon as possible, so I had to hurry up the tune. DON'T.DO.IT. And breathe. As as sidenote, music is about silence to, and rhythmic placements too. So don't be afraid to play less notes as long as the placement is here. There's nothing more satisfying of playing a solid groove and add some well placed notes here and there

- The audience is caring : you have to keep in mind that audience is often caring. Difference between you and possible critics is that it's YOU who are on stage, not them. Sorry for those trivial words, but... who has the balls to come on stage and let the audience watch inside your heart/brain? Exposing your own craft and possibly your fragilities is a great moment and makes you far "superior" than anyone else

- Avoid playing play covers as much as possible : when you are playing covers, you let the audience criticize your performance because it has some reference points, and it's difficult to do better than the original. Unless you think your version is superior or very different from the original tune, I think it's better to develop your own language

- Do some mistakes : sometimes, I literally do some intentional mistakes on stage to put me on a difficult situation and see how I can get out from that situation. I know it sounds a bit weird, but the more mistakes you are doing, the more comfortable you will be to get out from mistakes you will do on future gigs. As a correlation, when you are doing your exercices routine at home, take some time everyday to improvise. I mean, really improvise : put your fingers anywhere on the board, listen to what's coming and try to build up a short and nice sequence from that, while carefully avoiding to play the patterns you know so well

Two great books:
Effortless Mastery
The Inner Game of Music
Highly recommended

SA

This ^^^^ in addition to everything else mentioned so far.

When I was a doing solo classical guitar gigs I always started with a relatively simple piece that I could play in my sleep if needed (or without any warmup or prep). This helps to get the jitters out and acclimate you to the room/environment/audience/etc. Sometimes two or three pieces to really ease you into the performance.

Carcassi 25 etudes and the Anna Magdelena Notebook to the rescue!

Good points all.

Knowing a repertoire (Spelling?) 120%......ya super important for sure, but I makes clams all the time even though I know my stuff, its still tough.

Steve A.......I'll have a look those books for sure.

Mr. Brian B......ya i gotta get out and play thru the nerves......

thx guys, this is a good thread.
cheers,,
kev