Music Performance Anxiety and Interventions in Conservatory and Liberal Arts Institution Music Students

Music performance anxiety (MPA) is reported in musicians of all experience, levels, and genre. However, solo classical musicians report MPA more often and at higher levels than performers in other genres because of its formal culture and traditional structure. Within solo classical musicians, collegiate training greatly differs between conservatories that award a Bachelor of Music (B.M.) and liberal arts institutions that award a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.). In 2 studies, the proposed research examines the differences in general anxiety, MPA, and private lesson content between these two groups. Participants will be from the two groups of types of collegiate music students. In Study 1, participants will take the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Kenny Music Performance Anxiety Inventory (K-MPAI), and a Personal and Musical Background Questionnaire (PMBQ) at 3 times intervals before a public, solo performance in order to assess general connections between anxiety and MPA. In Study 2, participants will partake in weekly session of 1 of 3 interventions (meditation, journal entry, and biofeedback training) in order to determine an effective method for preventing and coping with MPA. Proposed results suggest higher levels of general anxiety and MPA in conservatory music students and lower levels of MPA in participants who undergo biofeedback training. Individuals who report learning about MPA strategies in their lessons will have lower levels of MPA, suggesting the need to consistently address MPA in classical music pedagogy.