Perceived performance anxiety in advanced musicians specializing in different musical genres

Abstract

Most research on musical performance anxiety has focused on musicians coming from a classical background, and performance anxiety experiences of musicians outside the western classical genre remain under-researched. The aim of this study was to investigate perceived performance anxiety experiences in undergraduate and professional musicians and to explore whether musical genre specialization (Western classical, jazz, popular, Scottish traditional) affected musicians’ performance anxiety experiences. The study addressed questions exploring the perceived intensity of performance anxiety, the perceived contributing factors, changes in perceived anxiety levels as performances approached (one hour before, immediately before and during performance) and the perceived impact of performance on the quality of performance. Participants were 244 musicians, 170 undergraduates and 74 portfolio career musicians. Data were collected through a questionnaire survey. Findings suggested that performance anxiety was of concern for a significant majority of undergraduate and professional musicians. Musicians from all participating musical genres shared similar perceptions and concerns. Anxiety appeared to have negative connotations, although it was also reported as beneficial. Solo performance generated more anxiety compared to group performance. Overall, the impact of anxiety on performance was related to its perceived severity during performance, and was mediated by musicians’ performance experience and their general susceptibility to anxiety. The musical genre in which participants specialized affected their perceived anxiety levels. Western classical musicians were generally found to report higher levels of performance anxiety. This study has provided indications that musicians specializing in different musical genres may experience performance anxiety in quantitatively and qualitatively different ways. Further research would benefit from investigating factors contributing to these variations.