Find it hard to play in front of others?

Do you find yourself able to play well alone or at home, and can't when someone is listening to you? It's an seemingly common reaction, and a LOT of students have this happen. They can play all right by themselves, but they freeze up in front of their teachers or their family! It's sort of like the advanced player who suddenly panics while being the center of attention in a contest. I've done that myself. It was very frustrating.

The fact is that most students CAN play better than they manage to do in front of the teacher. Anyone who has been teaching for a while will probably be aware of this. Here's the most common reason.

All through schooling you were constantly exposed to the idea that if your answers and performances aren't *perfect* to the teacher's standards you are going to be hurt in one way or another. A grade of less than 100% is the most common way, or being embarrassed or in some cases physically hurt. Only perfect is good enough.

Since it is pretty likely you are not going to be playing as perfectly as whomever you saw on TV or heard on a CD recently, there is the distinct imagined possibiliy of being hurt somehow by the teacher.

The natural reaction to anticipating being hurt is to tense up. If you tense up, you won't play as well as when you feel safer. Simple.

A primary need of a good teacher is to convince the student he is really supportive of their goals and aspirations especially if they are higher than the teacher's level of achievement, and to create a safe environment in the lesson. This is what all great teachers do.

Keep on Pickin'

Angie

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