Fall down as you come onstage. That’s an oddtrick. Not recommended. But it saved the pianist Vladimir Feltsman when he wasa teenager back in Moscow. The veteran cellist Mstislav Rostropovich trippedhim purposely to cure him of pre-performance panic,2 Mr. Feltsmansaid, “ All my fright was gone. I already fell. What else could happen?”
Today, music schools are addressing the problem ofanxiety in classes that deal with performance techniques and careerpreparation. There are a variety of strategies that musicians can learn tofight stage fright and its symptoms: icy fingers, shaky limbs, racing heart,blank mind.3
Teachers and psychologists offer wide-rangingadvice, from basics like learning pieces inside out,4 to mentaldiscipline, such as visualizing a performance and taking steps to relax. Don’tdeny that you’re jittery,they urge; some excitement is natural, even necessary for dynamicplaying. And play in public often, simply for the experience.
Psychotherapist Diane Nichols suggests somestrategies for the moments before performance, “Take two deep abdominalbreaths, open up your shoulders, then smile,’’ she says. “And not one of these‘please don’t kill me’ smiles. Then choose three friendly faces in theaudience, people you would communicate with and make music to, and make eyecontact with them.” She doesn’t want performers to think of the audience as ajudge.
Extreme demands by mentors or parents are often atthe root of stage fright,says Dorothy Delay, a well-known violin teacher. She tells otherteachers to demand only what their students are able to achieve.
When Lynn Harrell was 20,he became the principal cellist ofthe Cleverland Orchestra, and he suffered extreme stage fright. “There weretimes when I got so nervous I was sure the audience could see my chestresponding to the throbbing. It was just total panic. I came to a point where Ithought,‘ If I have to go through this to play music, I think I’m going to lookfor another job.”5 Recovery, he said, involved developinghumility-recognizing that whatever his talent, he was fallible,and that an imperfect concert wasnot a disaster.6
It is not only young artists who suffer, ofcourse. The legendary pianist Vladimir Horowitz’s nerves were famous. The greattenor Franco Corelli is another example. “They had to push him on stage,”Soprano Renata Scotto recalled.
Actually,success can make things worse. “In the beginning of your career,when you’re scared to death, nobody knows who you are, and they don’t have anyexpectations,” Soprano June Anderson said. “There’s less to lose. Later on, whenyou’re known, people are coming to see you, and they have certain expectations.You have a lot to lose.”
Anderson added,“I never stop being nervous until I’ve sung my last note.”
詞匯:
veteran/ ?vet?r?n / adj.經(jīng)驗豐富的
jittery/ ?d??t?ri / adj.緊張不安的
mentor/ ?men?t?: / n.指導(dǎo)者
soprano/ s??prprɑ:n?? / n.女高音;女高音歌手
cellist/?t?el?st / n.大提琴演奏家
abdominal/ æb?dɑm?n?l / adj.腹部的
fallible/ ?fæl?b?l / adj.易犯錯誤的
tenor/'ten?/ n.男高音
注釋:
1.Stage Fright:舞臺恐懼
2.The veteran cellist MstislavRostropovich tripped him purposely to cure him of pre-performance panic…資深大提琴家MstislavRostropovich故意把Vladimir Feltsman絆倒,因而治愈了他的上臺前的恐懼癥。cure somebody ofsomething (illness, problem):醫(yī)治好病(解決問題)
3.… its symptoms:icy fingers, shakylimbs, racing heart, blank mind:舞臺恐懼的癥狀有手冰涼、身體顫抖、心跳加快和大腦一片空白。
4.Teachers and psychologists offerwide-ranging advice, from basics like learning pieces inside out :老師和心理學(xué)家提出了方方面面的建議,一些基礎(chǔ)知識,比如將演奏曲目爛熟于心…… inside out: in great detail詳細(xì)地,從里到外地
5.I came to a point where I thought,“If I have to gothrough this to play music, I think I’m going to look for another job. ”我曾經(jīng)一度認(rèn)為,如果搞音樂就必須經(jīng)過克服舞臺恐懼這一關(guān)的話,這項工作不能做。
6.Recovery, he said, involveddeveloping humility-recognizing that whatever his talent, he was fallible, andthat an imperfect concert was not a disaster.不舞臺恐懼意味著提高謙卑感,即認(rèn)識到不管你多有才,你也會出錯,一個有瑕疵的音樂會也絕對不是世界末日。
練習(xí):
1.Falling down onstage was not a good way forVladimir Feltsman to deal with his stage fright.
A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned
2.There are many signs of stage fright.
A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned
3.Teachers and psychologists cannot help peoplewith extreme -stage fright.
A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned
4.To perform well on stage, you need to havesome feelings of excitement.
A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned
5.If you have stage fright, it's helpful tohave friendly audience.
A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned
6.Often people have stage fright becauseparents or teachers expect too much of them.
A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned
7.Famous musicians never suffer from stagefright.
A Right B Wrong C Not mentioned
答案與題解:
1.B 本文第一段講的是鋼琴家Vladimir Feltsman被MstislavRostropovich絆倒后,他的舞臺恐懼被治愈了的故事。
2.A 第二段的最后一句點出舞臺恐懼的諸多癥狀為手冰涼、身體顫抖、心跳加快和大腦一片空白。
3.B 本文的第三、四、五、六段都在講老師和心理學(xué)家為舞臺恐懼者提供全方位的建議。
4.A 依據(jù)第三段的倒數(shù)第二句:some excitement is natural, even necessary for dynamic playing.(表演中激情是自然甚至是必要的)
5.C 第四段提到克服舞臺恐懼的方法之一是:在觀眾中選擇三位友好的面孔,與他們用眼光交流。所以克服舞臺恐懼要靠自己而不是指望所有的觀眾都友好。
6.A 第五段講了舞臺恐懼的根源在于指導(dǎo)者或父母對表演者要求太高。extreme demands就是expecttoo much of them的意思。
7.B 第七段講的是:不只年輕藝術(shù)家有舞臺恐懼癥,鋼琴家Vladimir Horowitz和男高音Franco Corelli亦不能幸免。Never一詞不恰當(dāng)。
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