Beta Blockers for Nervousness?

Gandalfe

Gandalfe

Striving to play the changes in a melodic way.
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"...That's why Sarah Tuck, a veteran flutist with the San Diego Symphony, takes them to stave off the jitters that musicians refer to as "rubber fingers."

"When your heart is racing and your hands are shaking and you have difficulty breathing, it is difficult to perform," said Tuck, 41, who discovered them when she began performing professionally 15 years ago.

A survey she conducted a decade ago revealed one-quarter of flutists used the pills before some or all of their performances or in high-pressure situations like auditions. She believes use is now more widespread and estimates that three-quarters of musicians she knows use the drugs at least occasionally..."

http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-braindoping20dec20,0,5741092,full.story
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

I know that there was a time when they were talked about by some golfers. I think there's a number of better ways to relax before a concert that don't involve using drugs . . . prescribed or otherwise.
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

Performance enhancing drugs for musicians? Where's Sen. Mitchell when you need him?

Seriously, that is one aspect to think about. Orchestral playing is very cutthroat. You're a pretty darn decent player, but you get too stressed out when you play in front of people. You really need the job and that other flautist that auditioned last week is pretty good. Hey. I wonder if I pop some pills ....
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

Funny, I don't get performance anxiety before before a show, it's after :?
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

After a performance, I used to go out for donuts. Mmmm. Donuts.

It helped that I lived around the corner from a donut shop.

However, they're $5 a dozen, now. That's excessive, I think.

Oh. Because I brought up the subject and because KCP's here, why do Canadians have donuts + anything? I swear I've seen places like, "Joe's Auto Parts and Donut Shoppe".

(Yes, I'm angling for the 'board's first TopicShift?.)
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

pete said:
Oh. Because I brought up the subject and because KCP's here, why do Canadians have donuts + anything? I swear I've seen places like, "Joe's Auto Parts and Donut Shoppe".
Click to expand...

Really? Sorry I can't answer that. Remeber that I just live in that Province which is very much like Asterix the Gaul's village where everybody speaks different, thinks different, eats different.

Ask Merlin. :)
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

Hey, I lived in Plattsburgh, NY. That's essentially "Quebec, South".
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

I used to get nervous after a performance like kcp.

BUT, if i wasn't properly preparred I could get nervous before an audition etc .. but I liked to be prepared.

nowadays, I really don't get nervous but then I dont' put myself into situations where I have to live off of a performance career.

I think CDNs and donuts + auto shop was created when Hortons took the country by storm
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

I think that Steve bring-up a good point when saying it has a lot to do with proper preperation. All the bands I have been a part of so far (except for the 2nd sax quartet) I am/have been the band leader of. When that's the case, I think that you don't really have the choice to prepare. Not just for yourself but for the whole group, and you know musicians can sometimes be forgetful... So I guess that I got sort of a trainning for preparing for even the most unpredictable last minute "problem".

That, and I think that because I have been a street musician for many years, that it must have contributed in a way, to erase anxiety performance. From playing on the streets, I have learned rather quickly that most people don't hear a thing, that they can't tell the difference between a good or a bad musician. So, when I'm about to get on stage, the thought of what people may think of my performance is the last thing on my mind.

I thought that "Quebec South" was Fort Lauderdale FL :cool:
 
preparation is key i think for alot of things, but not all.

the last bigBand concert I did not only was i sightreading half of the music but i was adlibbing chordal solos- i usually start with chordal progressions then continue with theme variations - but i had to adlib an alto solo (on tenor) because the alto player didn't want to play it - asked me before we started the piece.

sometimes it's hard to be prepared but just concentrating on what at hand needs to be accomplished is enough to not get nervous. during some pieces i take a break to figure out what i'm going to adlib before we get to that section.

i love playing, but with my family time etc I just don't have the time to commit all the time, so I prefer to "sub" until my kids grow up some more. So it's been interesting subbing in a variety of bands. Good thing though, i'm usually on the top of a lot of ppls lists for a sub.

but once again, I don't have to make a living off of it. that would add other pressures to the performance.
 
Re: Beta Blockers for Nerviousness?

SteveSklar said:
I used to get nervous after a performance like kcp.

BUT, if i wasn't properly preparred I could get nervous before an audition etc .. but I liked to be prepared.

nowadays, I really don't get nervous but then I dont' put myself into situations where I have to live off of a performance career.

I think CDNs and donuts + auto shop was created when Hortons took the country by storm
Click to expand...

I'm in Niagara. There are a lot of donut shops and there are a lot of old people. There are a lot of old people in donut shops. The auto shop is next door.The old people don't go there,they stay in the donut shops.
 
I have been taking proponolol (a beta blocker) for about a year now, as a general anxiety preventative. I have noticed a big difference in my anxiety level during rehearsals and gigs. I used to be one of those guys who would make a small mistake and let it snowball into 7 or more larger mistakes. With the proponolol, I still make the initial small mistake, but I seem to let it roll off and the snowball effect seems minimal. My confidence is higher when I go into a gig. My hope is that at some point, I can build on the confidence, take a away the meds and have the same positive outcome.
 
Should I take drugs for my nervousness before a gig?

This is a very loaded question.

No pun intended.......


My answer, based on my own experience is no. Nervousness is always a part of going onstage or on the bandstand for me. I try to use it as fuel. It seems to energize my treatment of the music, and my relationship to my instrument. And it seems to help crystalize my thinking. So I see that my job as a professional musician is to master, or at least manage, all of the aspects of musical performance. And fear is one of those aspects. So I must deal with nerves by being as well prepared as I possibly can for any performance, and by not being afraid to take risks on the bandstand. The more you perform in public, the more you should be getting used to identifying what is making you nervous. Is it the fact that you didn't have enough time to become comfortable with the material that you are playing tonight? Then you may have to rely on your experience and training. Is it because of the fact that your idol, who you've been listening to for years, has just walked in and has taken a seat in the front row? Well, now you've got to play through your nervousness, suck it up. But this is valuable experience for the next time that this happens.

So I believe that every time that I perform in public, and that includes rehearsals and auditions, I should be building experience, physical and mental strength, that is going to help me as I move ahead in my life as a performer. All will not be victories. There's going to be some embarassing moments, they're a part of having to work in the public eye. But I've learned to pick myself up, to learn from these mistakes and move on. As time goes on, I become more polished and things become easier to deal with.

So if I use drugs to deal with nerves, what am I developing? A bigger dependency on drugs as the years go by? A way to make remote the music and the audience that are a part of my performance?

The nerves usually wear off after a minute anyhow......
 
kcp said:
Really? Sorry I can't answer that. Remeber that I just live in that Province which is very much like Asterix the Gaul's village where everybody speaks different, thinks different, eats different.

Ask Merlin. :)
Click to expand...

Dunno how I missed this before.

Yeah, they do think different there. How do you think poutine happened?
 
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