Posted by Hmm on May 24, 2001 at 07:56:19:
In Reply to: Drug testing at Auditions? posted by Neil MacQuarrie on May 22, 2001 at 11:23:25:
Some performances leave you under a lot more stress than others. I hardly ever get nervous before or during a concert performance, especially not if I'm in an orchestra or ensemble. I just sit there, do my thing, enjoy the ride and try to make some music on the way. Just consider this: in a concert, the audience are (usually) paying to listen too music and enjoy themselves. Why should one get nervous because of that?
Now to my point. Auditions aren't like concert performances. For example, there are things one could allow oneself to do in a concert that would be unthinkable in an audition, even though it might enhance the performance. But the main point is that you are playing notes out of their musical context for people who are not there to enjoy themselves, but to assess and to get rid of enough people so thei can find THE man/woman without fussing too much with the rest of them. THAT gives me the shiver seriously and sometimes makes me play way below par, which is NOT what you want in souch a situation. You just have to find something that helps you play your best there and then so you can enjoy a long career doing what you love and enjoy it (possibly even drug-free). Some people eat stupid amounts of bananas just before their time, some take drugs. So what?