ARE YOU THIS PREPARED?!!

It is every musician’s nightmare to go blank during a performance or simply prepare the wrong piece. Just to think about it almost seems like something out of a horror film, but it does happen. It could be miscommunication throughout the chain of command or simply lack of preparation on the performer’s part.

Performers experience this all this time but on a smaller scale. Missed notes, incorrect phrasing, mispronounced text, demolished diction, early or late entrances, and more. But to prepare for an entirely different piece altogether is something many would just fall apart due to pure shock and disbelief or fear. However, in the video below, renowned pianist Maria João Pires experienced this in a grand way. Watch the expressions of horror and dismay when Pires realizes that the orchestra is playing an entirely different concerto than what she prepared for. Communication was certainly lacking here but NOT how she presented herself. This is astounding!!

This excerpt only goes to 3:37 but this is a powerful example of how amazingly music can permeate throughout your being IF you put it there. This is a level to which I am striving and have yet to get there but as Pires demonstrated it CAN happen.

Conductor Riccardo Chailly said, “She was shocked because she was expecting us to play another concerto. So when I started the first bar of the d minor Concerto, she kind of jumped! And Panicked! Like, like, like an electric shock, I think. She couldn’t [even] see that in her playing. Then we talked for a moment and she told me, ‘I was expecting to play a different piece I will do what I can do if I remember.’ And the miracle is, that she has such a memory that within a minute she could switch to another concerto without making a mistake.”

Pay attention to 2:17- 2:48, how she is bringing everything up from within to perform. If it wasn’t in there, it was not going to come out. This can only be with a level of preparation that leaves no room for mistakes, blips, slips, etc. The beauty in this is in the power of the relationship between music and performer that has been cultivated through hours upon hours of preparation and study. This music is certainly part of her. If it were not, this would have been a disastrous performance.

The effects of no sleep are dangerous

Busy rehearsal schedules, lots of practice and more practice (at least we hope), homework, late nights after a performance then early mornings for work or school, time spent with family or the significant other. No wonder you’re tired! I’m sure there are quite a few things that find their way into your daily schedule that were not mentioned but you know what, a schedule like this is certainly the cause for the little to no sleep you are receiving. As a musician, what’s worse is this has a direct affect on your voice. This post will focus more on vocalist but a few reasons for why little or no sleep is not good for anyone will be shared.

How I find out for myself?

While attending Converse College (great school for music), I was also pursuing a second Master’s degree program, running a business, working a full time job, in a relationship, working as a church section leader and soloist and teaching Kindermusik. Obviously, I wasn’t getting any sleep. The only time I did manage to receive more is when I rearranged my schedule by missing the first class of the day or going to work a little later. Big mistake! Sleep was not my first concern and it should have been. My vocal studies and the efficiency of the work I did in all other areas of life were affected.

Well, as you can expect my body decided to cope with the unfortunate situation about a year later. The doctor informed me I developed acute stress and insomnia. My brain just decided not to shut down, since I was forcing my body to stay up anyway. Devastating on the voice!!

Here are a few things that lack of sleep generally causes:

Lack of focus - You are drastically impaired because the body isn’t rested. You are less alert, forgetful, the ability to think and concentrate proficiently is impaired, which means the ability to retain information is low. Your ability to interpret and asset is also impaired. Even your ability to determine how much sleep you need is off. You begin to think you’re used to the amount of sleep you’re receiving. 

“Studies show that over time, people who are getting six hours of sleep, instead of seven or eight, begin to feel that they’ve adapted to that sleep deprivation -- they’ve gotten used to it,” (Gehrman, 2010). “But if you look at how they actually do on tests of mental alertness and performance, they continue to go downhill. So there’s a point in sleep deprivation when we lose touch with how impaired we are.”

Asleep while driving - I was asleep behind the wheel for over a mile on an extremely curvy road. Someone was watching over me for sure.

Wrinkles anyone – Bags under your eyes, puffy skin. Lack of sleep releases more cortisol (stress) than collagen (protein). Stress causes wrinkles, collagen gets rid of them.

Accidents – While working and certainly driving will occur. You are more likely to make mistakes due to an attention deficit.

Quite a few health problems – Irregular heartbeats, stress, anxiety, heart attacks, heart failure, more prone to heart disease and developing insomnia, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes.

No sex drive – Yes no sleep causes issues with sex. There is little drive and or interest in sex because you’re tired, have no energy and the body is tense. Also, no sleep affects the amount of testosterone released at night.

Depression – No sleep is taxing on the body. This wear and tear of the body causes depression, which makes it even more difficult for you to sleep.

Weight gain – No sleep causes stress right (we’ve mentioned this before). Stress is a direct result of weight gain. That’s one of the reasons why lots of people use exercise as a stress reliever, myself included.

How does this relate to music, the voice?

When you lack sleep, certainly the above mentioned occur. In addition to them, the length of your tessitura is more than cut in half due to stress. The vocal folds become swollen and will even burn as if you are having a sore throat or something such as laryngitis. The thoracic area is unstable because of no sleep. The shoulders and neck area become intensified with stress, which will cause more strain on the laryngeal pharynx. Your onset and offset will require a tremendous amount of effort because of support issues. It’s not pleasant in the slightest.

Not only that, your breath is off. You need breath to give life to the voice. Without it you cannot sing. You cannot phrase. You cannot properly control the dynamics required in beautiful singing. Most people tell themselves, “Oh, I’m just not warmed up enough.” No, there is not enough sleep for your body to operate correctly.  Get sleep. It will save you a world of heartache and keep you healthy.

                                                                                                                               

Resources

Phil Gehrman, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry and clinical director, Behavioral Sleep Medicine Program, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.