第十四篇：Stage Fright

Fall down as you come onstage. That's an odd trick. Not recommended. But it saved the pianist Vladimir Feltsman when he was a teenager back in Moscow. The veteran cellist Mstislav

Rostropovich tripped him purposely to cure him of pre-performance panic,Mr. Feltsman said, "All

my fright was gone. I already fell. What else could happen?"

Today, music schools are addressing the problem of anxiety in classes that deal with

performance techniques and career preparation. There are a variety of strategies that musicians can learn to fight stage fright and its symptoms:icy fingers, shaky limbs ,racing heart,blank mind.

Teachers and psychologists offer wide-ranging advice, from basics like learning pieces inside out, to mental discipline, such as visualizing a performance and taking steps to relax. Don't deny that you're jittery ,they urge; some excitement is natural, even necessary for dynamic playing. And play in public often, simply for the experience.

Psychotherapist Diane Nichols suggests' some strategies for the moments before performance, "Take two deep abdominal breaths, open up your shoulders, then smile," she says. "And not one of these 'please don't kill me' smiles. Then choose three friendly faces in the audience, people you would communicate with and make music to, and make eye contact with them. " She doesn't want performers to think of the audience as a judge.

Extreme demands by mentors or parents are often at the root of stage fright, says Dorothy

Delay, a well-known violin teacher. She tells other teachers to demand only what their students are able to achieve. .

When Lynn Harrell was 20, he became the principal cellist of the Cleverland Orchestra, and he suffered extreme stage fright. "There were times when I got so nervous I was sure the audience could see my chest responding to the throbbing. It was just total panic. I came to a point where I thought, ' If I have to go through this to play music, I think I' m going to look for another job. Recovery, he said, involved developing humility-recognizing that whatever his talent, he was fallible, and that an imperfect concert was not a disaster. 6

It is not only young artists who suffer, of course. The legendary pianist Vladimir Horowitz's

nerves were famous. The great tenor Franco Corelli is another example. "They had to push him on stage," Soprano Renata Scotto recalled.

Actually, success can make things worse. "In the beginning of your career,when you're scared to death, nobody knows who you are, and they don't have any expectations," Soprano June Anderson said. "There's less to lose. Later on, when you're known, p.eople are coming to see you, and they have certain expectations. You have a lot to lose. "

Anderson added, "I never stop being nervous until I've sung my last note. "

注釋：

1.Stage Fright：怯場

2.The veteran cellist Mstislav Rostropovich tripped him purposely to cure him of pre—performance panic.資深大提琴家Mstislav Rostropovich故意把Vladimir Feltsman絆倒，

因而治愈了他的上臺前的恐懼癥。cure somebody of something(illness，problem)：醫(yī)治好病(解決問題)。

3.…its symptoms：icy fingers，shaky limbs，racing heart，blank mind：怯場的癥狀有：手指冰涼、四肢發(fā)抖、心跳加速、大腦一片空白。

4.Teachers and psychologists offer wide? ranging advice，from basics like learning pieces inside out…：老師和心理學家提出了方方面面的建議，從基礎(chǔ)的做法，比如，將演奏曲目爛熟于

心……inside out：in great detail(詳細的，從里到外的)

5.I came to a point where I thought，‘If I have to go through this to play music，I think l’m goingto look for anotherjob.’我曾經(jīng)一度認為，如果演出要經(jīng)歷這種慌亂，我寧可另找一份工作。

6.Recovery，he said，involved developing humility——recognizing that whatever his talent，he wasfallible，and that an imperfect concert was not a disaster.要克服怯場，就要學會謙虛，即認識到 不論自己有多大的才能，都可能犯錯誤;一場音樂會即使有不完美的地方，也不是要命的事情。

練習：

1. Falling down onstage was not a good way for Vladimir Feltsman to deal with his stage fright.

A Right

B Wrong

C Not mentioned

2. There are many signs of stage fright.

A Right

B Wrong

C Not mentioned

3. Teachers and psychologists cannot help people with extreme stage fright.

A Right

B Wrong

C Not mentioned

4. To perform well on stage, you need to have some feelings of excitement.

A Right

B Wrong

C Not mentioned

5. If you have stage fright, it's helpful to have friendly audience.

A Right

B Wrong

C Not mentioned

6. Often people have stage fright because parents or teachers expect too much of them.

A Right

B Wrong

C Not mentioned

7. Famous musicians never suffer from stage fright.

A Right

B Wrong

C Not mentioned

答案與題解：

1.B本文第一段講的是鋼琴家Vladimir Feltsman被Mstislav Rostropovich絆倒后，他的怯場被治愈了的經(jīng)歷。

2.A第二段的最后一句點出怯場的諸多癥狀：手指冰涼、四肢發(fā)抖、心跳加速、大腦一片空白。

3.B 本文的第三、第四、第五和第六段都在講老師和心理學家為怯場者提供全方位的建議。

4.A依據(jù)第三段的倒數(shù)第二句：some excitement is natural，even necessary for dynamic playing.

(適度的興奮對于精彩演出是正常甚至是必要的)

5.c第四段提到克服怯場的方法之一是：在觀眾中選擇三名比較友善的人，與他們做眼神交流。所以克服怯場要靠自己而不是指望所有的觀眾都友好。

6.A第五段講了怯場的根源在于導師或父母對表演者要求太高。Extreme demands就是expect too much of them的意思。

7.B第七段講的是：不只年輕藝術(shù)家會怯場，鋼琴家Vladimir Horowitz和男高音Franco Corelli亦不能幸免。Never一詞不恰當。

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