ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychol.
Sec. Performance Science
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1570280
This article is part of the Research TopicMusic Performance Anxiety - Volume IIView all 14 articles
Acceptance and management of stage fright among musicians: a manual of practical strategies
Provisionally accepted
Eva Gunilla Bojner Horwitz1,2*
Pauliina Valtasaari3- 1Karolinska Institutet (KI), Solna, Sweden
- 2Royal College of Music in Stockholm, Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
- 3Helsinki philharmonic orchestra, culture and leisure, Helsinki, Finland
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It has been suggested that stage fright may be musicians' greatest psychological stressor. This study aims to develop various mental and physical practices that form an easy-to-use 'manual' for musicians with stage fright by using stick figures and concise, short, instructive texts. The recommended practices were developed based on discussions between expert researchers working with musicians' stage fright. The manual was tested on a musician to manage unpleasant thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations caused by stage fright. Eighteen steps, rooted in self-awareness and mindfulness, gave the musician a tool to embrace stage fright as a steppingstone to greater selfexpression and artistry. The manual with the eighteen stick figures will be further evaluated and tested in a controlled bigger sample. The discussions revealed that by observing and accepting one's feelings without judgment and catastrophizing, it is possible to learn to understand the needs of the body and to respond compassionately. A manual of eighteen easy-to-use practical strategies could be one way to deal with stage fright.
Keywords: acceptance, manual, musicians, performance, stage fright, Stick Figures
Received: 03 Feb 2025; Accepted: 02 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Bojner Horwitz and Valtasaari. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Eva Gunilla Bojner Horwitz, Karolinska Institutet (KI), Solna, Sweden
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