Rethinking performance anxiety: An exploration of students’ experiences during music study

This exploratory study considers the role that the educator has in relation to music performance anxiety. Findings show that most music students report through their lived experiences that they experience performance anxiety to some degree, and further, students desire an acknowledgement of their MPA so they can receive instructional and proactive guidance on how to manage performance anxiety in their own music curriculums and careers. The research presented here considers the extent to which performance pedagogy in music schools lack practice/performance habits affecting the student’s self-esteem and musical identity. This research was conducted in two phases. The first consisted of a brief questionnaire presented to graduate and undergraduate music students at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to measure their experience of music performance anxiety (MPA). This was followed by a detailed interview which aimed to better understand the lived experiences of music students dealing with MPA. The responses draw attention to a desire for more access to positive academic practices and teaching environments that currently hinder performance, as well as methods that create a healthier relationship with performance. Results from this study suggest that the relationship between pedagogy and MPA is deserving of additional scholarship. Music institutions may benefit by aligning their curricula with emerging scholarship on MPA. This paper raises awareness on such issues and presents a positive and effective approach to music pedagogy that can be taught and evaluated in accordance with a healthier, more successful approach to performance.

Name thesis:degree_name

A.Mus.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Music

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2023

Author dc:creator

• Segredo, Suzanne J

Contributors dc:contributor

• Faribanks, Stephen
• Dee, John
• Silvers, Michael
• Moorhouse, Linda R

• Music Performance Anxiety
• Pedagogy
• Phenomenology
• Flow
• Evaluation
• Management
• Education

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2023 Suzanne Segredo

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/121973

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F121973