The effects of a positive mindset trigger word intervention on the expressive performance of individual junior high singers were tested in this study. Participants ( N = 155) were assigned randomly to a control group or an experimental group. Members of the experimental group participated in a 40-min intervention while members of the control group participated in normal rehearsal. The intervention involved a pre-performance routine of breathing and silently repeating the words bold, confident, and free. It also involved practice activities for applying the technique to performance. Participants were tested individually directly before and after the intervention and 2 weeks later. Results indicated a significant positive effect on Overall Expressive Performance ( p < .001) and on the subcategories Dynamics ( p < .001), Performance Factors ( p < .001), and Timing ( p < .001). There was no significant effect on subcategories Articulation ( p = .195) and Tone ( p = .035). Implications were that (1) use of positive mindset trigger words in a pre-performance routine may bring immediate improvement in expressive performance for junior high age singers, (2) junior high age singers may possess higher levels of expressive performance skill than they or teachers recognize, and (3) review and repetition likely are needed for junior high age students to retain the intervention benefits.

No abstract

Students in performance situations sometimes experience physiological symptoms that inhibit their ability to perform as expressively as they otherwise might possess the understanding and ability to do. As students set out to perform with an expressive mindset, the brain’s limbic system may detect some perceived danger in the situation and cause a shift away from the expressive mindset toward one that protects them from the danger by inhibiting their expressiveness. We call this the “default mindset.” Commonly accepted solutions, such as eating a banana or picturing the audience in their underwear, are inadequate to help young performers deal with the problem. We offer a solution that helps music students overcome this shift; this solution involves establishing an environment of safety, risk-taking, self-awareness, and personal responsibility, and then regularly engaging students in music instruction that purposefully addresses expressive-mindset-building skills.