The Bulletproof Musician
Ever wonder why you can practice for hours, sound great in the practice room, and still be frustratingly hit or miss on stage? Join performance psychologist and Juilliard alumnus/faculty Noa Kageyama, and explore research-based “practice hacks” for beating anxiety, practicing more effectively, and playing up to your full abilities when it matters most.
Episodes
385 episodes
A Comparison of Three Approaches to Teaching Expressiveness
We learned last week that having more to say expressively with the music we’re playing could increase the likelihood of experiencing more flow states in performance (here, in case you missed it). But this study looked at a bunch of different st...
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Episode 385
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8:12
The Overlooked Skill That Could Make Performing More Enjoyable
You know those really good days on stage? Where you’re totally present and in the moment, at one with your instrument, locked in on the music, not worried at all about what anyone might think, and just have this feeling that everything is going...
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Episode 384
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7:35
How Do Effective Practicers Make the Most of Their Practice Time?
Effective practicers tend to be more motivated, empowered, and persistent, whereas less effective practicers tend to feel more helpless and lower self-efficacy.But what do they actually do differently?One of the big differences be...
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Episode 383
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9:13
Do We Unconsciously Favor Talent Over Effort?
You're probably heard the quote "Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration."But what do you think? Both play some role of course, but which do you think is more important for achieving success - innate abili...
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Episode 382
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11:38
Cellist Yumi Kendall: On Becoming a More Positive (And Effective) Practicer
Cellist Yumi Kendall has been the assistant principal cellist of the Philadelphia Orchestra since 2004, serves on the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music, co-hosts the Tacet No More podcast with bassist Joseph Conyers, and is a gr...
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Episode 381
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49:10
How to Keep Your Inner Critic From Getting the Better of You
We all have a voice in our head, that can sometimes get pretty loud and awfully critical.Ever wonder where this voice and all that negativity comes from? And why it can suddenly become more critical at certain times more than others?...
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Episode 380
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8:14
Pre-Performance Apathy (and the Importance of Mentally Disengaging From Practice)
There's a famous quote attributed to Heifetz (or any number of different folks) - that if I don't practice one day, I know it; two days, the critics know it; three days, the public knows it.So does that mean that we can't afford to take ...
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Episode 379
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7:38
Your Brain Isn’t Built for Consistency - Here’s How to Make That Work for You
Ever wonder why it's so difficult to do the same thing twice, in exactly the same way?Like the same exact crescendo or the same exact speed of vibrato?Do we just need to practice more? Or is there something else involved?...
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Episode 378
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9:08
Mitch Abrams: On Trauma and High-Level Performance
I think the last couple decades have seen a growing change in the music community, where there's a greater openness to talking about nerves and certain mental health struggles. But one area that isn't yet being talked about so much is trauma.
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Episode 377
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1:09:19
Reward vs. Punishment: Which Leads to Faster Learning?
When it comes to motivating students, musicians, or even ourselves, we all wonder: is it better to reward effort — or call out mistakes? It turns out, both approaches can work… but they lead to very different kinds of learning.Get all th...
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Episode 376
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8:36
One Way Parents Can Help Their Kids Be Less Anxious
It's hard to be a parent and not worry about one's kids. Especially when it comes to public performances, competitions, or auditions, whether big or small.But doesn't it feel like sometimes a parents' worry is contagious? Where their str...
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Episode 375
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6:20
A Self-Talk Tweak to Boost the Odds of Achieving Your Goals
My daughter and I have been binge-watching past seasons of The Amazing Race for some months now, and the psychology nerd in me has become increasingly fascinated by one particular aspect of the show.The participants’ self-talk.As ...
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Episode 374
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6:50
Linda Chesis: On Cultivating a More Beautiful Sound and Becoming a Better Practicer
Ever get that overwhelmed feeling in the practice room? Where you know there’s a ton of work to be done, but you’re not quite sure where to start or what exactly to do?Maybe you’re not happy with your sound, or your intonation is sketchy...
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Episode 373
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53:30
Finding Your Optimal Anxiety Level: Why Calm Isn’t Always Better
Even from a young age, I was always confused by the relationship between nerves and performance. There were times, for instance, when I’d be nervous and sound pretty terrible. But then there were other times when I’d be nervous and play better ...
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Episode 372
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10:01
The 70% Rule: Why Practicing Shouldn’t Be Too Easy
Somewhere along the line we learn that mistakes are bad, and perfect is good - but what if this is actually not true when it comes to learning?What if mistakes are actually an essential part of learning? And what if we actually le...
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Episode 371
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7:21
Sight Reading: The Ideal Error Rate for Optimal Learning
When you're practicing sight-reading, how difficult should the music be?Should it be easy enough that you can read it more or less perfectly, without any mistakes?Should it be difficult enough that you're making lots of mistakes, ...
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Episode 370
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6:04
Why Practicing While Distracted Is Actually Very Important
Have you ever found yourself getting irritated or see your performance get derailed by distractions on stage? Maybe it was noises backstage, or movement in the audience, or people coughing and loudly unwrapping candy in the quiet moments?
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Episode 369
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6:42
How to Help Students Remember More From Each Lesson
A one-hour lesson can often go by really quickly, but also be packed with lots and lots to remember.Have you ever found yourself repeating yourself from one week to the next? Having to remind students about things you've already talked a...
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Episode 368
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6:04
How to Increase the Likelihood of Being Accepted by Others
It's human nature to want to be liked and accepted by others. But while some seem to have a knack for it, for many of us, fear of rejection or fear of negative evaluation can get in the way.Whether it's walking into a room for a job inte...
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Episode 367
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8:10
Stumped by a Problem in the Practice Room? Try an “Incubation” Break
Have you ever had one of those "aha" moments when a solution to a problem spontaneously popped into your head?Wouldn't it be nice if we could have those moments more often? Well, a 2012 study suggests that you may be able to ...
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Episode 366
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8:39
Perfect Shmerfect. Could More “Mistakes” Accelerate Learning?
Ever notice how some folks seem to learn faster than others? What’s their secret? Is it just natural ability? Sure, maybe there’s some of that.But could it also be that they’re doing something different in the practice room? Like is ther...
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Episode 365
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7:50
Carolyn Christie: On Overcoming Nerves With Healthier Internal Dialogue - and Phrasing!
Ever notice how mean the voice in your head can become on stage? Where it generates YouTube comment section-like levels of criticism and abuse?Or maybe you haven’t even gotten on stage yet. But as you’re waiting your turn, you overhear t...
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Episode 364
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44:14
Can We Train Ourselves to Worry Less About Others’ Opinions?
I came across a study years ago which found that fear of negative evaluation was one of the key drivers of performance anxiety in musicians. Which of course makes perfect sense, as we're being evaluated all the time. Often, with meaningful cons...
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Episode 363
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9:23
What Causes "Choking" Under Pressure? And What Can We Do About It?
Have you ever had one of those days on stage where you suddenly can't seem to do a thing that normally is never an issue? Or maybe it's one of those days where everything just spontaneously falls apart? And for seemingly no reason at al...
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Episode 362
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10:18
The Truth About Cramming: Why Your Brain Needs Breaks
Taking breaks in the middle of practice or study sessions can be a pain. Often, it's a lot easier and more convenient to just power through and get it over with.But what price do we pay by not spacing out our learning, over multiple day...
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Episode 361
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8:36