Getting to Grips with Performance Anxiety at Chetham's Piano Summer School

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My son, Sam, has been to CIPSS for the last two summers, and loved it. He loves the lessons with the exceptional faculty; he loves meeting new friends who share his love of the piano; and he loves going to the lunchtime concerts, watching brilliant young musicians and daring to hope that maybe, one day, he could do something similar.

Of course, there is often a discrepancy between dreams and reality. Apart from all the other reasons why performing on such a stage would have been out of reach for Sam at that time, he suffered massively from performance anxiety. He was ten years old, went to a small local school and didn't mind playing for his friends and teachers, but if you asked him to perform in front of a larger audience, he refused. He couldn't cope with the nerves and preferred to avoid it.

Rome, as we all know, wasn't built in a day and neither is performance anxiety quickly overcome. However, it did began to change during his first summer school. Sam found the atmosphere at Chetham's to be supportive, rather than competitive, and this helped hugely. He made new friends and a small group of them would take over a practice room in the evenings and take it in turns to play to each other. Sam was aware that many of the children on the summer school were far more experienced pianists than he was, but he felt ok with this and was happy to have their support and encouragement.

During the day at Chetham's, Sam spent time in the performance workshops, receiving guidance from faculty about how to get his piece to performance standard. The workshops were often full, which meant he had to play in front of others, both children and adults. This gentle, supportive introduction marked the beginning of his gradual movement towards overcoming his anxiety around performing. 

On the last morning at CIPSS, all participants take part in a celebratory concert. Sam was incredibly nervous about this and thought about fleeing. As his mother, I wanted to protect him from the anxiety he was feeling and let him flee, but I also felt he needed to do it. He took some deep breaths and did his bit. HIs extreme nervousness meant he made a lot of mistakes, but he got through it, which was about as much as could be expected at that point.

His second experience of Chetham's was similar when it came to performance. However, as I've mentioned in a previous post, Sam's second time at Chetham's was close to miraculous in the way it reignited what had been a waning passion for the piano. Since then, he has made massive progress and his confidence around performing has soared. He has taken part in school concerts happily and he talks a lot about what he plans to play at Chetham's this year. Now, he has his eye firmly fixed on the final concert. He's chosen his piece, he's going to bring it with him so he can work on it with faculty, and he can't wait to take his place at the concert. He feels, for the first time, that he will be able to hold his own on the Chet's stage.

Overcoming performance anxiety has been a gradual process for Sam. Naturally, it has coincided with his increased love of the piano and passion for the pieces he has learnt to play since having his passion reignited last year. These things are all linked, and they all come down to the incredible experiences he has had at the summer school both times he has been. The lessons, the atmosphere and the support from everyone he met have combined to make him a much more confident performer and a more fearless pianist.

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