| What's the difference between your state of mind when you are practicing a piece for auditions and actually playing the audition?
When you practice you give yourself numerous "outs" and second and third shots at material and you have the opportunity to explain away imperfections in your presentation that make perfect sense to you.
At auditions you have one shot, maybe two if everything else you play goes well. During practice your imperfections are minimized, during a performance they are maximized. Neither perception has anything to do with reality.
The answer to doing well at auditions has everything to do with the quality of your fundamentals. You can play in tune 99% of the time or you can't. You can play a beautiful pianissimo 99% of the time or you can't. You can hit a high C in tune with proper intonation and security or you can't. You can't go into an audition wondering if you're going to be able to play something. You have to believe you can play it better than anyone else on that day.
If you go into an audition with doubt in your mind about your fundamentals you'll have every reason to be nervous.
Fundamentals, fundamentals, fundamentals. Solid fundamentals gives you the freedom to be a good musician in any circumstance. Nerves are slavemasters. Free yourself by claiming mastery over your sound, technique, intonation, rhythm, and phrasing.
ML |