Nurturing the Whole Musician
Mindfulness, Psychology,
and the Mind-Body Connection
Vanessa Cornett-Murtada
2012 MTNA/CFMTA
Wellness Symposium
Holism:
The idea that the universe and especially
living systems should be viewed as wholes,
not as a collection of parts, and that these
systems cannot be fully understood solely
in terms of their component parts.
Nurture:
To supply with nourishment
To educate
To further the development of
I. This is Your Brain on Stage
II. Mindfulness Practice for Musicians
III. Psychologies of Optimal
Performance Experience
[break]
Questions
Mindfulness Exercises for Musicians
Discussion and Questions
MTNA/CFMTA Wellness Symposium June 2012
Mental Wellness for Musicians
Music
Teachers
National
Association

Wellness
Forum

Statement on
Health in
Music Teaching
(2007)

Music teachers need to be health conscious
and to engage in prevention education with
the students in their charge.
Concerns: 1) hearing health, 2) physical
health, 3) psychological health:
The performance of music, especially the
public performance of music, involves a host
of social and emotional factors that are key
to the importance we place on music—and
a potential source of stress in the student.
Mental Wellness for Musicians
National
Conference
on Keyboard
Pedagogy
Committee on
Wellness for
the Pianist
Wellness
Curriculum
Outline
(2007)
Psychological aspects of wellness include:
 Performance
preparation
 Working toward peak performance
 Performance anxiety and management
 Generalized anxiety and/or depression
and management
 Stress management
- Google ―NCKP 2007 Wellness Curriculum‖
- Click first hit: Frances Clark Center 2007 NCKP site
- Click ―Wellness‖
Mental Wellness for Musicians
National
Association
for Music
Education
(MENC)
Music
Educators
Report on
Health Issues
(2008)
Jan. 2008
Question of
the Month:
―What injuries or issues do you currently
see, or have you seen, with your students?‖
 66%
performance anxiety
 46% improper/overuse of the voice
 43% stress
 20% musculoskeletal problems for
instrumentalists (injuries, strains)
 19% musculoskeletal problems for vocalists
(alignment, posture problems)
 16% music-induced hearing loss
Mental Wellness for Musicians
National
Association
of Schools of
Music
(NASM)

June 2010
Statement
NASM
Handbook
2007-2008
Guidelines
2012

―NASM and the Performing Arts Medical
Association (PAMA) have agreed to
cooperate and lead in the development of
studies and projects focused on the health
and wellness of musicians… Hearing issues
will be the first area of emphasis.‖
―Institutions should assist students to acquire
knowledge from qualified professionals and
authoritative medical sources regarding the
maintenance of professional health and the
prevention of performance injuries.‖
Mental Wellness for Musicians
PAMA Mission Statement
Performing
Arts Medical
Association
(PAMA)
artsmed.org
The Performing Arts Medicine Association is committed to:




Promoting the highest quality of care to all performing
artists and bringing to that care an appreciation of the
special needs of performing artists.
Developing educational programs designed to enhance the
understanding and prevention of medical problems related
to the performing arts.
Promoting communication among all those involved in the
health care and well being of performing artists.
Fostering research into the etiology, prevention, treatment,
and rehabilitation of medical problems of performing
artists.
Act I
This
is Your
Brain on
Stage
Act I: This is Your Brain on Stage




Brain anatomy for musicians
Evolution of the human brain
Interesting brain facts
The body‘s acute stress response
 Physical
symptoms
 Psychological symptoms
 Hidden symptoms

States of consciousness
―Reptilian‖ Brain


Cerebellum
Brain stem
Involuntary processes
Survival instincts
Fight-or-flight
500 million years ago
―Old Mammalian‖ Brain




Hippocampus
Hypothalamus
Thalamus
Amygdala
Emotions and
limbic system
―New Mammalian‖ Brain


Cerebrum
Cortex
Conscious thought;
Personality
Interesting Brain Facts
There are one hundred billion neurons in
the brain
 The brain uses 20% of the body‘s blood
supply and 20% of the oxygen we
breathe
 Severely abused or neglected children
have smaller brains

More Interesting Brain Facts
It has been calculated that there are more
possible connections in one human brain
then there are atoms in the entire universe
 The brain continually ―rewires‖ itself
throughout life (“Nerve cells that fire
together wire together”)
 Neural connections can be built up through
repetition, or broken down through neglect
or distraction

The Acute Stress Response
Hypothalamus
triggers the
release of:
Epinephrine
(adrenaline)
Norepinephrine
And more!
Physical Results of Fight-or-Flight









Pounding or racing heartbeat
Shallow or quickened breathing
Elevated blood pressure
Cold hands or feet
Fluttery or upset stomach
Dry mouth
Clammy hands
Muscle tension
Trembling limbs
Psychological Results of Fight-or-Flight






Overactive, critical conscious mind (―inner judges‖)
Feelings of detachment or dissociation
Emotional anxiety
Sudden self-doubt
Agitation or indecisiveness
Irrational fears
―I‘ve experienced many
terrible things in my life,
a few of which
actually happened.‖
- Mark Twain
―Hidden‖ Mental Wellness Issues:








General agitation
Indecisiveness
Self-sabotage
Behavioral problems
Excuse making
Negative judgment of others
Self-medication
Procrastination
Brainwaves and States of Consciousness




Beta
Alpha
Theta
Delta
(14-30 Hz)
(8-12 Hz)
(4-8 Hz)
(0.5-4 Hz)
=
=
=
=
wide awake, thinking
conscious but very relaxed
between awake and asleep
asleep, unconscious
Beta (14-30 Hz)



Wide awake, thinking
Associated with concentration, arousal,
alertness, cognition
Higher levels associated with anxiety,
disease, feelings of separation, fight or flight
Alpha (8-13.9 Hz)


Conscious but very relaxed
Associated with relaxed focus, light trance,
superlearning, increased serotonin
production, pre-sleep or pre-waking
drowsiness, meditation, beginning of
access to the subconscious mind
Theta (4-7.9 Hz)


Light or dreaming sleep, REM sleep
Associated with increased creativity, deep
meditation, trance, increased retention of
learned material, vivid emotional
experiences, deep access to the
subconscious mind and potential to change
behavior
Delta (0.5-3.9 Hz)


Deep, dreamless sleep
Associated with deep trance, loss of body
awareness, release of human growth
hormone, access to the unconscious mind
Altered States of Consciousness
Beta
(14-30 Hz) = wide awake, thinking

Alpha
Theta
(8-12 Hz)
(4-8 Hz)

Delta
(0.5-4 Hz) = asleep, unconscious


= conscious but very relaxed
= between awake and asleep
I. Conclusions





Attention to mental wellness is essential to
holistic teaching
Mental wellness includes a variety of
psychological issues beyond performance
anxiety
The musician‘s brain is more complex than
we could ever imagine
The fear center of the brain and the
parts that control rational thinking don‘t
always agree with each other
Musicians sometimes enter an altered
state of consciousness when performing
or practicing
Act II
Mindfulness
Practice for
Musicians
Act II: Mindfulness Practice for Musicians





What is mindfulness?
Eastern contemplative traditions in
Western society
The link between cognitive psychology
and mindfulness
Basic tenets of mindfulness
Effects of regular mindfulness practice
and/or meditation for musicians
Mindfulness:
1.
2.
3.
Literal translation from Sanskrit: Awareness.
Psychological definition: The self-regulation of
non-judgmental attention to the present
moment.
Not to be confused with meditation, which is
the practice of using contemplation to train the
mind for a specific purpose (e.g. to cultivate
mindfulness).
―All forms of anxiety come from the fact
that there is somewhere in our consciousness
the feeling of incomplete knowledge of the
situation. This lack of knowledge leads to a
sense of insecurity and then to anxiety, with
all its degrees of intensity.‖
- D.T. Suzuki, Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis
―Anxiety is the gap
between now and then.‖
- Rick Carson, Taming Your Gremlin
Mindfulness in Western Society



Jon Kabat-Zinn founded the Mindfulness-Based
Stress Reduction (MBSR) program at University of
Massachusetts Medical Center in 1979.
Influence of Buddhist writers and teachers: Thích
Nhât Hanh, Jack Kornfield, etc.
Cognitive-behavioral therapies: Acceptance and
Commitment Therapy (ACT), Mindfulness-Based
Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), etc.
Similar Goals:
Cognitive Therapy and Mindfulness








Active reflection
Self examination
Self acceptance
Detached curiosity
Awareness of the present moment
Understanding of human vulnerability
Psychological health
Emotional wellbeing
Mindfulness Meditation
When used for stress management, most Western
practices are based on Buddhist vipassanā (―insight‖)
meditation
 Moment-to-moment
awareness
 Paying attention to thoughts and events that would
usually go unnoticed
 Becoming a detached observer of one‘s own mental
activity
 Having no goal except to be oneself
The






st
21 -Century
Student
Chronically overstimulated
Part of a culture of continuous multitasking
Rewarded primarily for analytical and verbal
left-brain functions
Often distracted
Overextended
Exhausted
―When there is silence,
one finds the anchor
of the universe
within oneself.‖
- Tao Te Ching
Some Basic Tenets of Mindfulness
Non-judging
 Acceptance
 Patience
 Beginner‘s mind
 Trust
 Non-striving
 Letting go

Effects of Regular Mindfulness Practice
A decrease in blood pressure
 Diminished respiratory rate
 Lower pulse rate
 Diminished oxygen consumption
 Increase in alpha brain wave states
 Improved sense of well-being

Effects of Mindfulness Meditation
on Performing Musicians

Mindfulness meditation holds promise for music
students suffering from performance anxiety


Chang et. al. (2003), DeFelice (2004), Lin et. al. (2009)
There may be a connection between meditation
practice and performance quality

Oyan (2006)
Contemplative Traditions in Other Contexts

Taking breaks in a natural environment
improves attention capture and the ability to
concentrate.
 Berman


et. al. (2008)
Mindfulness improves memory span. Students
who took a memory test as part of an
experiment improved their scores dramatically
after a one-hour walk in the campus arboretum.
Viewing images of a natural environment had
the same effect on memory.
Other Benefits of Meditation

Studies suggest that some training in meditative
techniques can lead to improvements in stress
level and cognitive control.
 Shapiro

et. al. (2006)
In a study of Chinese students, meditation
training led to improvement in memory function
as well as reduced anxiety, stress, depression,
anger, fatigue, and cortisol (stress hormone)
levels.
 Tang
(2007)
More to Consider
According to attention restoration theory,
sustained mental effort produces fatigue and
leads to a reduction in systemic glucose.
Attention state training techniques (such as
meditation) serve to replenish glucose supply
which improves performance.
 Kaplan
(1995)
About Awareness
―What a liberation to
realize that the ‗voice
in my head‘ is not who I
am. Who am I, then?
The one who sees that.‖
- Eckhart Tolle
II. Conclusions



The ancient practice of mindfulness is
steadily becoming a widely-used
practice in Western society
Music performance shares many of the
same elements as mindfulness practice
Recent studies suggest that mindfulness
meditation has a positive effect on:





Musical performance quality
Stress and anxiety levels
Cognitive control and memory function
Concentration
Performance anxiety management
Act III
Psychologies
of Optimal
Performance
Experience
Act III: Psychologies of
Optimal Performance Experience




Types of performance
experience
The physiology and psychology
of ―flow‖
Altered states of consciousness
for the performing musician
Creative visualization, induced
altered states, and controlled
flow experiences
Types of Performance Experiences
Suboptimal experience
Optimal experience
Peak experience
Suboptimal Performance Experiences
Triggering of the body‘s conditioned stress
response, the ―fight or flight‖ response
 An overactive, distracting, critical conscious
mind (the ―inner judges‖)
 A feeling of detachment or dissociation from
the music or audience

Optimal Performance Experiences







Technical security
Confidence
Fearlessness
Comfort on stage and with the instrument
Control without hypervigilance
Energy and enthusiasm
Communicative bond between the self and the music
and/or the audience
Phrases Describing Optimal Experiences





―I was completely in the zone.‖
―This time I just felt on when I performed.‖
―I felt like an open channel.‖
―I was one with the music [or the audience].‖
―I felt like I was in a state of flow.‖
During an Optimal Experience:

The body may experience:
A drop in blood pressure
 Slower pulse rate
 Slower, more regular breathing


The mind may experience:
Slower brainwave activity
 Subdued critical conscious mind
 More active subconscious mind
 Altered states of consciousness
 Interpretations of adrenaline as enthusiasm, not anxiety

Flow
―Contrary to what we usually believe, the best
moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive,
relaxing times – although such experiences can also
be enjoyable, if we have worked hard to attain
them. The best moments usually occur when a
person‘s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a
voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult
and worthwhile. Optimal experience is thus
something that we make happen.‖
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Flow
Flow
Optimal experience depends on the ability to control
what happens in consciousness moment by moment…
This simple truth – that the control of consciousness
determines the quality of life – has been known… for
as long as human records exist.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Flow
Flow
Since what we experience is reality, as far as we are
concerned, we can transform reality to the extent
that we influence what happens in consciousness.
Ibid.
Stress Levels and Cognition
optimal
cognition
decreased
appetite
low
motivation
impaired
memory and
cognition
minimal
effects
Less Stress
More Stress
Flow Channel
Altered States of Consciousness
Beta
(14-30 Hz) = wide awake, thinking

Alpha
Theta
(8-12 Hz)
(4-8 Hz)

Delta
(0.5-4 Hz) = asleep, unconscious


= conscious but very relaxed
= between awake and asleep
Examples of Altered States








Daydreaming
Watching TV or a
movie
Reading a book
Highway driving
Meditation
Playing video games
Progressive relaxation
Guided imagery








Biofeedback
Massage therapy
Yoga
Biochemical shifts (drugs)
Hypnosis
Sleeping
Dreaming
Creative visualization
Inducing Altered States








Deep, diaphragmatic breathing exercises
Progressive muscle relaxation exercises
Mindfulness during repetitive exercise or activities
Repetitions of phrases or personal affirmations
Gentle, meditative exercise such as yoga or T‘ai chi
Meditation or prayer
Hypnotherapy
Creative visualization or mental imagery
Creative Visualization




Visualization: A state of intense, concentrated focus
with little or no regard to any external stimulation
The mind can successfully concentrate on positive
suggestions made to it
The essence of creative visualization: To focus your
imagination on an objective with the intention of
achieving that objective
That which preoccupies our thoughts tends to
become our reality
Creative Visualization



The brain and the nervous system cannot distinguish
between an event that was keenly imagined and
one that actually occurred
When a person is clearly visualizing a movement or
athletic routine, all the nerves involved in making the
muscles move are stimulated significantly
Visualization enhances performance
Success With Visualization

Children are very open to, and successful with,
guided imagery
 Ages



14-20 are peak years for success with hypnosis
Both men and women are equally successful
People with higher I.Q.s and a strong ability to
concentrate tend to have a higher degree of success
Right-brain dominant (creative) people tend to be
slightly more successful with creative imagery
Vanessa‘s Five Steps to a
Successful Creative Visualization

Cultivate a sense of relaxation
Breathing exercises
 Muscle relaxation
 Mindfulness meditation





Create a transitional ―safe place‖ in the mind, and
imagine yourself there
Place yourself in an optimal performance experience
Return to your transitional ―safe place‖
Slowly bring your awareness back to the present
A Simulated Performance Experience

Standing backstage or in the green room
Physically feel your body‘s symptoms
 See all of your surroundings, including your attire
 Hear your audience


Walking out on stage, bowing
Feel the stage lights
 See the audience


Performing


Cultivate an optimal performing experience: feel connected,
at ease, confident, technically and musically secure
Applause at the end; walking off stage
Feeling of excitement and satisfaction
 Reinforce personal affirmations

Imagery Suggestions for Musicians





Transformation of anxious energy into enthusiasm
and vitality
Cultivating feelings of safety and security
Releasing the need to ―prove‖ oneself on stage
Releasing specific physical tensions or other
symptoms
Releasing irrational thoughts and negative self-talk;
cultivating positive expectations
Imagery Suggestions for Musicians






Focusing on communication rather than on physical
technique
Staying focused and ―in the zone‖
Cultivating a conditioned response of feeling
relaxed and confident
Releasing negative past experiences or traumas
Returning power and control to the self
Separating self-value from performance quality
Possible Effects of Visualization




Conscious and conditioned control of the various
brainwave states
Alleviation of performance anxiety
Ability to remain ―in the zone‖ during performance
Cultivation of a powerful tool to quiet the body and
mind, transform stress, anxiety, low motivation,
fears, distorted self-image, and to enhance
performance overall
Act III: Conclusions




Optimal (flow) experiences require
a balance of skill and challenge
Flow depends on the ability to
control consciousness
Visualization is an effective way of
simulating a flow experience and
inducing an altered state of
consciousness
Altered states can become
conditioned responses of the mind
INTERMISSION
Nurturing the Whole Musician
Questions So Far
The Mind-Body Connection
in Practice:
♦ Mindfulness Exercises for Musicians
♦ Breathwork to Induce Altered States
♦ Visualization and Self-Hypnosis
♦ Questions and Discussion
Nurturing the Whole Musician
Mindfulness, Psychology,
and the Mind-Body Connection
Vanessa Cornett-Murtada
2012 MTNA/CFMTA
Wellness Symposium