I performed a short set at Martuni’s again last Monday. I learned a lot from the show, about myself, about what I am capable of, and what I need to work on. I got a very positive response from the audience there that night, but I was unhappy with my performance to a point where I felt pretty drained after. My voice teacher (also my accompanist) gave me some very good advice: at the end of the day performance opportunities won’t come up as often as you’d like, so enjoy it. Turn of the chatter of self-loathing in your head.
As I’m looking to get out to other venues and perform longer shows, this is definitely something I need to work on. After decades of having performed on stage, I still haven’t managed to overcome my stage fright. I love to sing and write songs and I really love sharing that passion with other people. I need to make that my focus, as opposed to getting stuck on needing my voice to match a perfect ideal I have in my mind.