Mental Skills for Musicians: Managing Music Performance Anxiety and Enhancing Performance

The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of a short-term mental skills intervention on reducing music performance anxiety and enhancing performance. Thirty-three musicians, including students, amateurs, and professionals, volunteered to participate (ages 19 to 66 years, mean = 42.09, standard deviation = 15.18). Participants were randomly assigned to a treatment group (cognitive restructuring; N = 15) or a wait-list control group (N = 18). A provisionally registered psychologist taught participants mental skills strategies in three 1-hr, psychoeducational workshops. Self-report, behavioral, and physiological indicators of anxiety and performance quality were collected pretest and posttest. Self-report measures were also taken for the treatment group at a 1-month follow-up. We hypothesized anxiety reduction and performance enhancement in the treatment group from pre- to posttest, and that the benefits of treatment would be maintained or strengthened at the 1-month follow-up. Results revealed a significant reduction in self-reported anxiety, a significant increase in performance quality in the treatment group, and a significant decrease in performance quality in the wait-list control group. The follow-up assessment revealed a significant decrease in self-reported anxiety. No other significant differences were observed.