Book Description

For a long time, music performance anxiety (MPA) has been regarded as a relatively negative psychological phenomenon. In efforts to control the physical responses to performance anxiety, musicians explore a variety of de-arousal interventions to cope with the problem. A common assumption is that the lower a musician's performance anxiety level, the greater likelihood that he or she will achieve peak performance. However, research in sports psychology suggests that anxiety reduction may not be the most appropriate strategy for intervention (Chamberlain, 2007). In the 1980s, Yuri L. Hanin introduced the theory of the Individual Zone of Optimal Functioning (IZOF), which proposed that an athlete's performance is successful when his or her pre-competition anxiety is within or near the optimal zone (Hanin, 2000). Moreover, as the subjective experience of anxiety varies from person to person, the optimal zone differs from person to person as well. We know that musicians and athletes are similar in their psychosomatic state before and during competitive performances in many ways. The findings in sports psychology raise doubts about the relationship between anxiety and music performance. Solo pianists in particular report suffering from MPA (Yoshie, Kudo, Murakoshi & Ohtsuki, 2009), and this may be because they are challenged by factors such as length of pieces, memorization, loneliness and extremely long practice hours. Therefore, this study seeks to verify and discuss three main issues of MPA in piano performance. First, do pianists even have IZOF? Second, can the IZOF model help to predict the results of pianists' upcoming performances? Third, what is the relationship between anxiety intensity and optimal performance? In the first phase of the retrospective study, inventory CSAI-2 was used to define the individual zone for each subject (S=30). The second phase was a prospective test. By predicting upcoming performance outcomes, we are able to examine the hypothesis that the IZOF model can be fully applied in piano performance anxiety-related analysis. With this study as a theoretical foundation for applying IZOF in MPA management, more efficient and personalized interventions can be designed to help pianists and other musicians feel more secure and positive about music performance.