Creating an Expressive Performance Mindset

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.