Tips for Overcoming Stage Fright?

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Hi Bassbuzz Community,

I just started playing bass in a band. Practice is going well, but I get really nervous during live shows at stage. My hands shake and I forget parts of songs. I hesitate alot. Even I know that I can play better. It’s really frustrating.

Do you have any tips to help with stage fright ? What works for you to stay calm during performances ?

I checked this article on internet https://www.schoolofrock.com/resources/music-industry/how-to-overcome-stage-fright-flutter but I want to know more suggestions on it.

I’d love to hear your advice.

Thanks,
Marcos

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Overcoming stage fright comes with doing it more often and, frankly, not focusing on that you’re playing in front of people.

Instead, you’re missing the fact that everyone is there to have a good time, and not on you, specifically.

In other words, the crowd wants to groove and they’re happy a band is there to make it happen. They are on your side.

So relax. Concentrate on your drummer first, and on your other band members second. Do this and not only will you relax but so will the audience.

Again, everyone is on your side. Join them and have fun. That’s all that really matters to everyone within hearing distance.

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Whatever you do don’t picture anyone naked, it’s the fastest way to go from bad to worse. :rofl:

In all seriousness, practice. you need to practice and rehearse tons of time if the band is new to the material. Things will go wrong and when they do your muscle memory takes over and you are on autopilot.

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Tom Morello gives good advice about 7 minutes in. Worth a listen

Moametal from Babymetal also gives advice. She says Practice, practice, practice. So that no matter how nervous you are, your muscles will start doing the work without your thinking about it.

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Tip #1: don’t get too wasted before the show. It may seem like a good idea at the time. It’s not.
Tip #2: Realize that things are going to go wrong and just accept it. You can’t prevent unanticipated mistakes, so just learn to roll with them.
Tip #3: Don’t even acknowledge mistakes, just keep going. This is even more important for mistakes others make.
Tip #4: If you are having serious nervous issues, turn and face something other than the crowd for a bit, if possible. Even a small break away can help. Act like you are rocking out with the drummer or something. At worst you will look enigmatic.

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This is really timely for me - first open mic with the band on Thursday evening and a 30 minute slot at a local street party on Saturday afternoon.

It’s all new, but it’s isn’t…

We have rehearsed. And we’ve rehearsed again - I’ve posted a couple of songs from the rehearsals on the ‘covers’ thread. At the last rehearsal, I recorded the entire set on my iPhone. I’ve then created tracks that we can each upload to Moises, so that we can practice our parts in the glorious isolation of how home practice environments this week. This has been really valuable, for one of the songs, I’ve only just realised what the guitarist is doing at the end of each chorus! Admittedly, the song is a latecomer to the list, but at least I am now practicing ‘our’ version, rather than the YouTube version!!:rofl:

So practice, practice, practice … this is what my pro-guitarist buddy says to me, Dude, do you know how much practice and rehearsal time we put in?

I’m also lucky, in that I have to stand in front of people for my job. I present, I pitch. Same rules apply, know your material, think of the questions, plan the presentation, know that it could go wrong and how to deal with it. Often, when something does go wrong, you’re really the only one who knows. Roll with it. Same with the music. I posted a video on Saturday - the guitarist hits a bum note - we looked at each other and smiled DON’T DO THAT!!! Just think of the bum note as jazz :rofl: and keep on playing!

One of the mind tricks I use all the time is to think about the period after whatever it is that I have to do. I used to do this for exams, and I do this for key business presentations. How will I feel in 30 minutes / 1 hour / 2 hours time? Relieved? Elated? Running a victory lap? That’s how I’m gonna feel!! I focus on that feeling!!

Oh, one other thing I’ve found that helps is to think about how you look. In the business context, I always wear a new shirt for a key presentation or meeting. I know it’s daft, but that new shirt is like my battle armour - looking good, feeling good … time to put on a show!!! So for this Thursday, I have new shoes, new jeans and a new T-shirt! And the bass will have new batteries! Yes, two, it’s an 18 volt’er :sunglasses:

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Eat a banana before going on stage. Seriously. May sound silly, but it helps.

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A banana?

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Yes, a banana. They are known to reduce stress and anxiety. Lots of scientific info to support this, such as:

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A banana, it is then :slight_smile:

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image

Monkey on the left: “Oh! I have just become aware of the transience of all existence”
Monkey on the right: “Evolution is an @sshole … banana?”

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Evolution is freakin’ awesome! Banana?

:rofl:

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Hi @marcs,

The article by school of rock seems well-written and has lots of tips you can try. I would also like to +1 @howard’s Tip #2: Failure is okay!

As a trainer for presenting, I’ll state the obvious: it is normal to be nervous on stage - it’s a freaking weird situation! Normal conversations happen between two, maybe three people. Not 20, 100 or 1000s. You are reacting in a totally normal way.

Also, I’d recommend you start with some self-observance, for example with a stress scale. This helps you counteract your rising stress level.

Green zone

  1. relaxed appearance
  2. steady performance (be it speaking or playing)
  3. able to smile, or control your facial features (bass face :wink: )
  4. eye contact with your audience

Yellow zone
5. Shaky voice or fingers
6. hectic activity (rushing when you play, pacing around without wanting to)
7. sweating increasingly, feeling hot/hot-headed

Orange zone
8. stuttering, minor motor mistakes (like misplaying stuff you can play when calm)
9. unusual nervous tics
10. avoiding eye contact, impulses to leave the spot light
11. forgetfulness, brief black outs

Red zone
12. making excuses or stopping performance
13. being sad or angry
14. crying
15. panicking, aggressive behaviour
16. running away

Depending on where you are on that list, you can anticipate the next level without becoming anxious. For example, if you know that you will start sweating, you can live with it more easily.

In my opinion, avoiding stress is impossible without lots and lots of training. Instant-fixes like deep breathing will be short-lived, as effective as they may be.

How to fix stress responses
For effective behavioural change, you need:

  1. simple, repeatable routines
  2. constructive feedback
  3. repetition
  4. perspective

For (1), I do a sound check and chat with people as much as possible. I like to feel there are people who support me. That’s my routine before every show.

  1. You could talk to someone about how nervous you look, or if anything unusual was noticeable. People often don’t even notice what I think about.

  2. Remember the good stuff, forgive yourself for the bad stuff.

  3. Record your feelings today and look back next month, year… You’d be surprised how much you’ve grown and that steels your nerves for the next show.

Hope that helps! Feel free to pm me. Send us a vid of your show. :hugs:

Cheers,
Antonio

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For me, muscle memory is the key. I managed to practice stuff on bass to the point that now my fingers know the songs better than my brain… which never happened when (trying to) playing guitar. I love bass :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

Otherwise lots of good advice, but everybody reacts to stress differently so there is no alternative to your own experience.

(Mostly as a note for myself: stay away from alcohol, even just a little. No good :sweat_smile:)

Have fun!

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I took that to a logical conclusion 4.5 years ago… haven’t touched a drop since :innocent:

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Oh, don’t have so much restraint… I only meant before or while playing :rofl:

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The bummer is it always feels like a good idea at the time :rofl:

Or in my case felt, it’s been a long time since I played live.

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WhatsApp Image 2024-06-17 at 21.41.06
WhatsApp Image 2024-06-17 at 21.41.061600×1066 251 KB

Also, I didn’t mention or imply to refrain from any other substances :crazy_face: :skull_and_crossbones:

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They even wrote a song about it @Mike_NL

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I can’t come up with a single thing that hasn’t already been covered but to me the best advice is to over prepare yourself for the gig on your own outside of band rehearsal.

Like pro football players who spend hours watching videos of themselves and their opponent do as much of that as you can. Record yourself doing it if possible.

The more over prepared you are the more your confidence will grow and the less nervous you’ll become. Then when it’s showtime just get into it and feel the band playing around you.

There’s nothing wrong with being a little nervous. It keeps you on your toes. And stop worrying about mistakes. They happen even to guys like me who’ve been gigging for over 50 years.

To be honest, when I haven’t played out in awhile or played some jams I’m always a little edgy to begin with too. That why I say just relax and get into the music. Your fears will disappear.