The Bulletproof Musician

Whether it's picking a tempo that's too fast, or rushing a shift, it's easy for things to feel sped up on concert days when the adrenaline kicks in, and the butterflies are fluttering about. Is there any way to be a little more centered on stage, and feel more at ease? Rather than hurried and rushed? Today's studies provide a few clues about what we can do in advance, to slow t...

In last week's episode , we looked at a study which illustrated how our own beliefs and expectations about ourselves can affect our performance. It turns out that our beliefs and expectations - and subsequently, performance - can also be shaped by our teachers/coaches. So...as teachers, how can we ensure that our natural snap judgments, beliefs, and expectations don't impede our students...

Even from a very early age, I remember being told to imagine things going well. The idea, was that if I could imagine a positive outcome, I'd be more likely to expect good things, which would help me perform better. Is this just something that people say? Or do our expectations really have a meaningful effect on how we perform? A classic 1972 study illustrates the effect that positive or nega...

It's probably fairly common for our minds to go on autopilot when we're brushing our teeth, mowing the lawn, or folding laundry. And that's probably not all that big of a problem. But have you ever found your mind going on autopilot in a performance, when you're playing something you've played for years, and it's begun to feel a little too familiar...or even a bit sta...

My daughter loved playing card games as a young child. And what was fun about playing with her was how completely transparent she was. Anytime she got a good hand, or picked up a special card, the glee was written all over her face. Her eyes lit up, and I knew something unfortunate was about to happen to me. 😆 This sort of emotional expressivity is an important part of communicating from the stag...

How frequently do you take breaks during practice? Ever wonder how long your breaks should be? Or for that matter, how long your practice sessions should be? If you've ever wondered if there's such a thing as an optimal practice-to-rest ratio that maximizes productivity and effective practice, there's some data out there which provides some clues. But the question is...will the data...

Whether it's writing a paper, studying for finals, or preparing for a recital or audition, have you ever find yourself cramming at the last minute, wishing you had a time machine and could go back and give yourself more time to prepare? Well, a 2002 study provides some clues on how to set better deadlines - and also, how to make self-imposed deadlines work better, if you haven't had much...

We're often told to listen to recordings of music that we're working on. And we often tell our students to do so as well, but is there any research which suggests that this benefits the learning process in any way? A 2012 study takes a look at this question, and compares both active and passive listening to see what sorts of benefits there might (or might not) be: Get all the nerdy detai...

Ever have one of those days in the practice room, where as soon as you fix one issue, another problem pops up? And just when you think you have that problem solved, the original thing "breaks" again? And when you try to think about both of those things, a third issue emerges? This practice room whack-a-mole problem can be kind of frustrating. But it speaks to how difficult it can be to k...

Do you tend to play with your eyes open? Or do you sometimes close them? Ever wonder if there might be any performance benefit to performing with eyes closed? Turns out there might be - in certain circumstances. Get all the nerdy details here: Is It Better to Perform With Eyes Open or Closed? More from The Bulletproof Musician Get the free weekly newsletter , for more nerdy details and bonus subsc...

I remember my teacher saying to me quite early on in my studies, that her job was not to tell me what to do, but to teach me how to teach myself. I think we all have that goal in our teaching, but like many things, this is often easier said than done. I mean, how exactly do we teach someone how to teach themself? In a 2011 study, researchers recruited six music teachers and 45 students, and evalua...

You know how people say that little kids don’t have a filter? How they just blurt out whatever thoughts pop into their minds? Well, the voice in our head can kind of be like that unfiltered 1st grader. Because we often say some rather unkind and borderline abusive things to ourselves quite automatically. We might not truly believe the mean and discouraging thoughts we think to ourselves - at least...

For most of my life, even through college and grad school, regular ol' repetition was probably my most-utilized learning strategy whether I was studying for a test or practicing for my next lesson or performance. If you've gone through stages like this, you probably remember that this approach is not particularly enjoyable, and is also quite time-consuming. And pretty demotivating too, w...

We all procrastinate on things from time to time. And sometimes we pay the price for doing things at the last minute. But then there are times when it actually seems to work out pretty well! So is procrastination all bad? Or could there be a productive and unproductive sort of procrastination? Well, the research seems to suggest that the answer could be...yes? Get all the nerdy details and find ou...

This episode is sponsored by Musician's Maintenance - safe, simple, maintenance exercises that specifically address the muscle groups that matter most for musicians. * * * When I was first starting out on the violin, I remember there were more fun games and practice challenges involved in my daily practice. Like free improvisation. Or playing with various weights and stuffed animals clipped t...

In the age-old debate about nature vs. nurture, I know the correct answer for most things is that it's a blend of both. But sight-reading, at least for me, always felt like one of those things which leaned more on the nature side than nurture. Some folks just seem to have a knack for it, while I always struggled. But what does the research say? Could I have gotten better at sight reading if I...

This episode is sponsored by Musician's Maintenance - safe, simple, maintenance exercises that specifically address the muscle groups that matter most for musicians. * * * I think we’ve all had teachers tell us that the technical and expressive aspects of music-making are inextricably connected, and that we shouldn’t just work on technique, and expect to add the expressive details later. But...

Everyone seems to be pretty good about staying hydrated nowadays with the popularity of reusable water bottles and a growing number of public water refilling stations in schools, airports, etc. But how much of a difference does hydration make when it comes to practicing and performing more effectively? How exactly might we benefit from being better hydrated? How dehydrated would we need to be to s...

This episode is sponsored by Musician's Maintenance - safe, simple, maintenance exercises that specifically address the muscle groups that matter most for musicians. * * * Ever have one of those days where it feels like the more you practice, the worse you sound? Or perhaps you've had a lesson with a student, where the more you try to help, the more frustrated and overwhelmed they seem t...

As you might imagine, there are a ton of research papers out there. Some are exceedingly useful. Others are interesting, but of questionable usefulness (like the one which explores the physics of buttered toast tending to land butter-side down). And then there are those which might seem silly at first, but make you think, and end up being quite useful (like the one which found that cows which have...

This episode is sponsored by Musician's Maintenance - safe, simple, maintenance exercises that specifically address the muscle groups that matter most for musicians. * * * When you think of your favorite musicians or performers, how much fun do you think they’re having on stage? And how much fun do you think they have in the practice room? Wait...fun in the practice room is allowed? 🤨 I rece...

Whether it's our children, our students, or our pets, I think it's pretty natural and automatic to want to offer praise for a job well done. We're happy for them, and pleased to see them do well. But what happens when they fall short in some way? Whether it's a subpar performance, a mediocre grade, or a mistake on the carpet, does our praise help to offset the pain (or shame) o...

This episode is sponsored by Musician's Maintenance - safe, simple, maintenance exercises that specifically address the muscle groups that matter most for musicians. * * * Much like hair, there are good practice days, and there are not-so-good practice days. 🤣 The bad practice days can be filled with frustration, irritation, and maybe even a hint of shame. They can make you lose hope, questi...

When it comes to improving technical aspects of your playing, it's easy to assume that this is mostly a physical issue. Where the solution is to do more practice, and more "correct" repetitions. But what if part of the problem was mental? A 2009 golf study (and many others both before and since!) suggest that what we're thinking about when we're playing can affect our accu...

This episode is sponsored by Musician's Maintenance - safe, simple, maintenance exercises that specifically address the muscle groups that matter most to musicians. * * * I think we've all been told that we should look at the conductor or at our musical colleagues in chamber music settings. But how important is this really? Isn't it enough to have good ears, and simply listen really...