Music Performance Anxiety : Use of Coping Strategies by Tertiary Flute Players

Abstract

This article presents part of a master´s degree research, which focused on investigating causes, symptoms, and strategies used by tertiary flute players to cope with music performance anxiety in the performance of an unaccompanied flute work in recital of evaluative character. However, it will present only the results on strategies of twelve flute students from three music colleges in Brazil to cope with music performance anxiety. Seven of participants were male, and five were female. The procedures of collection and analyses of data occurred as in the study by Siw Nielsen (1999), that is, through the behavioral observation of the participants in the recital, and verbal reports by semi-structured interview. Both procedures were recorded in audio and video. The data were analyzed in four steps, the first and fourth quantitatively, and the others qualitatively. The first step aimed to determine the profile of the participants of this research, and at the ending of crossing of the data the total number of causes, symptoms, and coping strategies. The other steps sought to identify causes, symptoms, and coping strategies through the behavioral observation, and verbal reports analyses. Finally, we performed the crossing of the data for comparison between the two data analyses, and arrived at conclusions about some coping strategies. Thus, the positive self-talk was reported as the main strategy used by tertiary flute players to cope with music performance anxiety in this study.