I will never throw tomatoes, no matter how bad anyone is, so I'm one less person out there you have to worry about being attacked by, jose_luis! I can't control my vibrato sometimes when I sing and that gets embarassing. How do you focus: more on the notes or on the words? I seem to only be able to think of one thing at a time, or I mess up.

If you think it's bad shaking in front of an audience, what about shaking when you're rehearsing for a concert?!?! I was in the all-star band on Saturday, and this is what happened to me. But, I'm always this sort of person, always nervous about something, unless, of course, it's something that I'm deeply passionate about. We rehearsed at least three times for an hour at a time during the day for the concert we were to put on at 4 o'clock. Our pieces weren't hard, but the bad part was having to get together with a group of different schools and piece together what we had learned of the music in one day for a concert! Each school was given the music a few weeks ahead of time, so I knew my part fairly well. We even had a guest conductor! He was outrageously funny, and extremely helpful. At the beginning of the day, though, I was shaking like an aspen leaf. His personality helped calm my nerves, and by 4 o'clock, our concert was under-way, and put on pretty well. We noticably got lost (from my point of view) at "Matchmaker" from Fiddler on the Roof, (but I don't think the audience noticed). It's always the opposite for me, it seems - I'm nervous right before the concert, but when I get on stage, it's something else. It's giving part of yourself to the audience, so to speak. They want to be entertained, and as said before, it's pretty low of someone to be counting mistakes (unless it's a judging!). Just be yourself and follow what you think is right and everything will fall into place.

Celebrian, I was just joking, of course. When singing, unless it is very difficult part (it would be out of my present skill, anyway) I have not so much concern about the notes. A good exception is in duets and attacks after long silences or after another singer (usually a soprano, in my case)sings her part and it comes my turn again. Modulations inside a piece are also a difficulty, unless the accompaniment is helping (and makes no mistakes!)
Some notes I find very difficult to get, but still, can.
But the words, that is my nightmare. I have lots of difficulties in memorizing them and even when I do, I have the risk to repeat a wrong part or "invent" on the way. This is the result of my nerves, I guess. An added difficulty is that most (i.e., all) of the songs we are working on are in a foreign language (English, Italian and even German). So, although it is not elegant but probably still acceptable for a student, I prefer to have the score in front, even with public. What stresses me most of all is high notes (say, G and over). I know I can sing those if the technique is correct. But still I feel unsure when they "approach". I believe this is part of the learning, anyway.

What Grieg.-Bizet is telling in his last post could be the normal experience, from beginners to at least some professionals: Nerves before the concert and then forget about them and give out what the public is awaiting and the performer is capable. Happy to hear his concert was OK and made everybody happy.

I knew you were joking, jose_luis! ^_^ Of course you would do fine! Just being supportive, hehe....

I believe that focusing in only one thing at a time is the natural state of the (lazy?) mind. But we can learn to focus on several.
Pianist do with two staffs, twohands, two keys and often 2 quite different parts to play; orchestra directors can do the same for about 16 staffs at a time.
But the learning curve seems to be long and slow, at least for me.
When I play flute, when paying attention to breath points or other details (expressions, dynamics, etc.) I sometimes make mistakes I would not make if I was focusing just on the notes. The developing of this ability is something we have all to go through, I guess.

Are you serious, Toni? Oh, my goodness.... Well, that is one way to really BREAK your concentration! ^_^ I found that the imagining people in their underwear thing doesn't help at all. I really don't want to think about my director or the audience members with no clothes on... *shudder*

Right now, I'm working on my conducting styles and I find it so much easier to perform on flute than conduct in front of an audience. I think it's because I have more than just one or two things running through my head (like when I play the flute) and I actually have to multitask and pull off a show at the same time. I love it, it's challenging and fun, but I've found it's a skill that takes time to develop!

I imagine myself in my underwear...

Oh, dear... Hehe. I've gotta see that someday, just to say I have! What sort of concert was this, Toni? Was he kicked out? That would be hilarious if he stayed the entire concert.

(Does that really help you, Patrick? ^_^)

Well, next time I perform somewhere, I'm going to have this conversation running through my head and I'll be you I'll collapse laughing and have to be escorted off stage! Underwear.... *snort in laugher*

<Added>

What I meant about the last part was not "I'll be you I'll collapse laughing," ect... Jeeze...

What I really meant was I'll be laughing and have to be escorted off stage. See, just the thought of all of it flusters me! Imagine how badly I would mess up if it was music and not words here!

oooops, I meant to say that I imagine myself in someone elses underwear...and black socks of course...

What kind of underwear Patrick? haha!! Oh, and why black sox? I would have thought purple would have suited you better.

I think i will use spray on sox

Gelisa, what happened with your audition on "Tuesday"? Was it OK? What about your shaking? did you get the chair you were expecting?

We are curious....

Well I got through the audition without any nervousness but the audition itself did not go very well for me. I played my scales but one of them I played it chromaticly going down. Sight Reading was okay, I just need more experience and practice. I still haven't found out what chair I got.

wow join the club!! i get nervous for no apparent reason on stage, sometimes so much nervousness will deprive me of the ability to perform as well as when i rehearse...so here's the thing, at my school concert, we usually let the concert band perform first, and even sitting among the audience doesnt help suppressin my shakiness. (sign)

Gelisa, in spite of the problem with the scale, not being too much nervous was a great accomplishment and good news. Good luck with that chair!.