Mental Training for Musicians Part III: Deep Mental Work for the Stage
- Dr. Teresa Wenhart
- Dec 4
- 4 min read
You’re perfectly prepared — and yet your mind still sabotages you right before going on stage? In the third part of the series “Mental Training for Musicians,” we explore the hidden programs behind stage fright and self-doubt. Instead of quick, short-term tips, you’ll learn how to use somatic reframing and biographical trace reading to change deeply rooted patterns and expand your mental range.
You’re standing backstage before your performance — your hands perfectly warmed up, every passage secure — and yet your mind feels like a minefield. Welcome to the complex world of musician psychology, where technical perfection and mental reality often speak two completely different languages.
Many strategies in mental and performance training focus on breathing techniques, positive imagery, and affirmations. These can certainly be helpful in difficult moments, but they only scratch the surface. During stressful periods of life, the underlying issues often return uncontrollably. Long-term, sustainable progress begins where things get uncomfortable: in confronting your unconscious patterns, beliefs, and the question of why your brain sometimes interprets music as a threat.
Advanced Mental Training for Musicians
1. The “Inner Orchestra” Mapping: When Your Psyche Plays Chamber Music
Sometimes, different voices compete within us: the inner critic, the creative player, the cautious doubter, the enthusiastic explorer. Instead of suppressing them, it’s worthwhile to perceive them like instruments in an orchestra and consciously explore their roles. This creates an inner harmony that makes you more stable and flexible on stage.
👉 You can find the detailed exercise here: Inner Orchestra Mapping: When Your Psyche Plays Chamber Music
2. Somatic Reframing: From Panic to Power
What it’s really about: Nervousness and positive excitement (anticipation) are physiologically almost identical — the difference lies in interpretation. A common example is the excitement experienced when falling in love.
How it works:
When stage fright arises, don’t say “I’m nervous,” say “I’m excited.”
Consciously feel the physical sensations: heartbeat, tingling, energy.
Imagine this as your personal performance mode — like athletes just before a competition.
Develop a physical “power move”: raise your arms, broaden your chest, take deep breaths.
Tell yourself: “My body is preparing me for peak performance.”
Practice this reinterpretation even in relaxed moments while playing.
The brain learns to interpret the same signals differently. Adrenaline transforms from a threat signal (“stress hormone”) into a signal of readiness and power (“performance hormone”).
3. Biographical Trace Reading: Your Musical Imprint History
What it’s really about: Understanding where your specific patterns come from — and consciously rewriting them.
How it works:
Travel back to your earliest musical experiences: When did you first perform in front of an audience?
Identify formative moments: feedback from teachers, reactions from your family, first performances, difficult social situations in chamber music or orchestra.
Recognize recurring themes: “I must be perfect,” “Others are judging me,” “If I’m not good enough, I don’t belong.” (See also: The Greatest Hits of Inner Critics in Musicians – and How to Quiet Them)
Write down these experiences and ask yourself: Are these conclusions still valid today?
Develop new, adult narratives, e.g., “Back then I was a child dependent on approval. Today I play music out of love for it.”
Engage in imaginary conversations with your younger musical self.
Many of our current difficulties are based on old survival strategies that often no longer serve us as adults.
👉 See also: Schemata in Musicians: Reflecting Psychological Patterns and Strengthening Self-Competence
The Behavioral Psychology Behind It
In modern psychology and neuroscience, we understand “symptoms” as adaptive responses to external situations, shaped in the brain by earlier experiences (e.g., social environment, music lessons, performance experiences). Stage fright is not an illness or weakness — it is a highly developed warning system activated in moments of social uncertainty.
It becomes problematic when these automatic programs no longer match the current reality. Peak performance is not achieved by denying doubts, but by integrating all parts of your personality. Nervousness, perfectionism, self-criticism — what often feels disruptive — are actually important sources of information about your psychological system.
The methods described here help to loosen rigid patterns and build alternative neural networks. But change requires time and repetition. Every small interruption of automatic response patterns is already an act of neuroplasticity.
See also: Schemaarbeit
Integration: The Path to Authentic Performance
Artistic maturity is not achieved by eliminating “difficult” parts of yourself, but by consciously integrating them. Research on emotional intelligence shows that the best performers are not those who have no doubts, but those who can handle them constructively.
When you learn to reinterpret bodily reactions and consciously rewrite biographical traces, you begin to transform your musician self on a deeper level. You integrate different aspects of your personality in a helpful way into your unique self. Musical skills remain the foundation — but true freedom of expression arises when internal programs are rewired.
This approach not only gives you greater ease in dealing with yourself, but also more authenticity and presence on stage. At the same time, it fosters self-awareness, supports you in both professional and personal relationships, and strengthens the foundation for successful projects. Often, a domino effect occurs: more clarity leads to better communication, better communication deepens relationships — and this stability opens up new artistic and personal possibilities.
Read More:
Interview with the German Orchestra Association Unisono (german): https://uni-sono.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/2024-11-28-Huebsch-im-Interview-mit-HIldebrandt-und-Wenhardt-2024.pdf
Sources:
Wenhart, T. & Hildebrandt, H. (2025). Music Students' Psychological Profiles: Unveiling Three Coping Clusters Using Schema Mode Inventory. (accepted, in press)
Wenhart T. Mental Stark, psychisch gesund - Konzeption von Schema-Workshops für Musiker:innen und Musiklehrkräfte. 2024 DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.21773.51686
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