3 takeaways
Takeaway #1: Sleep!
It seems that we have in this study yet another reason to make sleep a priority – and not just the night before, but in general. That way, we can avoid putting too much pressure on that one night of sleep, when we’ve been accumulating a sleep debt all along.
Takeaway #2: Deep acting?
This notion of deep acting is intriguing, and I imagine it plays a role in charisma in music performance too. It’s not something I ever did intentionally, but have you ever sought to engage in “deep acting” as a way of adding to the audience’s experience of your music? Though it’s important to note here that simply “feeling the music” is no guarantee that we are playing in a way that actually engenders an emotional experience in our listener – and in some cases can lead to our feeling inspired, but our audience not so much (as violinist Pam Frank explains here; and as cellist Frans Helmerson once spoke of).
Takeaway #3: Don’t take the audience reaction personally
It doesn’t matter how well-prepared you are, how beautiful your sound is, how interesting your ideas are, or how cool your shirt is.
A notable portion of your audience just won’t find you as charismatic, inspiring, and moving as others will. So don’t let that get to you. Especially if you catch a few of them nodding off. Maybe a short power nap during the slow movement is just what they need to be totally inspired by the last movement!
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