Hypnosis, and in particular
self-hypnosis, can be used in a variety of ways by musicians. Typically it can
help in the following.
- Improving
performance
- Motivation
- Lapses
in concentration
- Nervousness
- Self-doubt
and lack of confidence
- Fear
of failure
- Handling
distractions
- Correcting
repetitive mistakes
- Feeling
the music
- Preparing
for examinations
and much more.
Sergei Rachmaninoff and hypnosis
Sergei Rachmaninoff had studied with
Tchaikovsky, and at the age of twenty-four had received some success as a young
composer. His first symphony had its premiership in St Petersburg
but was a major flop. The conductor disliked the piece and under-rehearsed it.
Rachmaninoff’s wife later suggested that the conductor might have been drunk. Sergei
himself rushed form the orchestra hall even before the concert was
finished. As might be expected, the critics were vicious. Thereafter,
Rachmaninoff struggled to compose but without any success, and he went into a
period of deep depression, which lasted about three years. As he says himself,
“All my self-confidence broke down… A paralyzing apathy possessed me. I did
nothing at all and found no pleasure in anything.”
During
this period of depression Rachmaninoff was staying with some of his cousins.
Worried about his health, they suggested he see Dr. Nicolai Dahl, who lived
close by. It was probably the cousin’s friend, Dr. Grauermann, who suggested
Dahl, since they were friends at Moscow
University, where Dahl had studied internal medicine. It was only after leaving university
that Dahl became interested in the therapeutic benefits of hypnosis, which at
the time were being made popular in Paris. Around January 1900, it appears Rachmaninoff agreed without much persuasion to
visit Dr. Dahl – desperate as he was to overcome his melancholia.
Rachmaninoff
visited Dr Dahl daily for about three months, during which time he was given
suggestions about relaxation and self-confidence. There were suggestions to help
him sleep and suggestions to brighten his daily moods. In addition, there were
suggestions to rekindle his enthusiasm to compose. Rachmaninoff had informed
Dahl that he needed to compose a concerto for the pianoforte, which he had
promised the people of
London. Rachmaninoff in his Recollections recounts that he was given daily
suggestions that he would start to compose a concerto and that this would be
done with great ease and that the composition would be of excellent quality. The
result was Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto No.2 in C Minor Opus18, which
was first performed in Moscow
on October 27, 1901, and is probably his best. This piece was dedicated to Dr.
Dahl.
You do not always need hypnosis to
improve your music performance. Here are a few exercises to overcome the problem
of trying too hard and playing music in different ways. Also of help are affirmations,
which need to be short and meaningful.
The above short story about Sergei
Rachmaninoff is a true story. But films provide other useful stories relevant
for musicians. Mr Holland's Opus
is typical.
