Meditation as a tool for music performance anxiety: Prevalence, evaluation of specific meditation practices, and experiences among music students and professionals

Music performance anxiety (MPA) is a pervasive and potentially debilitating experience for many musicians. Among the strategies employed to address it, meditation has recently emerged as a promising approach, with a number of studies highlighting its perceived positive effects. Nevertheless, a comprehensive examination of the distinct practices, particularly in terms of their impact on MPA, remains elusive. This doctoral research seeks to address this gap by exploring the use of specific meditation practices as a tool to manage MPA through three interrelated empirical studies, from the perspective of experts - performance coaches, psychologists and teachers - who incorporate meditation in their work with musicians experiencing MPA, and from the perspective of practicing musicians. Study 1 investigates the perspectives of 16 experts regarding the most frequently employed meditative practices and their observed impact on MPA. Study 2 investigates the current dissemination of meditation as a tool for addressing MPA among musicians, as well as the prevalence of MPA itself, providing an update on the most recent studies conducted. Study 3 examines the impact of a selection of meditative practices, as identified in Study 1, from the perspective of music students and professional musicians. The latter group’s experience with meditative practice was explored in a short course of mindfulness for musicians. Findings reveal which practices are commonly employed and perceived as suitable for the observed impact on the manifestations of MPA, like body-centred or affect-centred meditations. The experiences of experts and MPA sufferers are consistent in their view of the perceived impact of these meditative practices on MPA and wellbeing. Nevertheless, meditation, although generally perceived as beneficial, appears to be an uncommon practice among musicians. It is therefore suggested that greater integration of meditative practices into educational and professional settings would be valuable for music students and professional musicians.