Master Your Stage Fright

Why do we suffer from stage fright? Can we beat it? Or even use it to our advantage? In this new book, author Bohdan Warchal contemplates the reasons for and origins of stage fright.  But above all, he offers a specific strategy that can help us understand stage fright, learn to live with it and even use it to our advantage.

Do you want to be free of the stage fright you feel during public performances?  Don’t rely on medication.  In this book, you’ll find out how to prepare for public performances and how to warm up just before a concert, as well as how to think when you’re actually on stage. Warchal’s writing is based on long years of experience as a performer and pedagogue.  The book is written from the point of view of a violinist, but is also equally useful for other musicians who want to feel only joy on stage.
 

Short extract from the book:

...The next day, after our arrival, the first round began. I remember how we waited our turn backstage. One couldn’t really warm up well there, partly because it could be heard in the hall, and also because there were simply a lot of us. I felt horrible there, worse and worse. Suddenly someone started telling jokes, a group formed and started to laugh merrily. I think it was those who had already played. Moreover, there were also some students there who were responsible for organizational issues. 
     What a relief! I began to listen in and laugh with them. Suddenly I felt like someone had freed me from the torture chamber. I didn’t think about what was coming. I just enjoyed the fact that my thoughts had wandered somewhere completely different. I was convinced it was a good thing. I felt relaxed – it seemed as if my mind needed to be refreshed before what awaited me. 
     The more pleasant this escape became, the bigger the surprise was when they opened the door and I heard my name being called…