Experience and performance type modify anticipatory stress in musicians

Abstract

We examined the anticipatory stress response in musicians before a day of rehearsal and a concert and examined if experience levels modulated physiological and perception of stress responses. Twenty members of a professional orchestra had their heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP), and galvanic skin response/conductance (GSR) measured as well as self-assessment of their anxiety surrounding their performance. HR was significantly elevated prior to a concert (87 bpm) compared with a rehearsal (80 bpm), whereas no differences were observed for BP. GSR responses prior to a concert were significantly elevated in less experienced musicians compared with their more experienced peers and a significant inverse correlation was also found between years of experience and GSR responses. Similarly, musicians with greater experience reported on average less perceived somatic anxiety during the concert and a significant inverse correlation was found between years of experience and perceived somatic anxiety. These results suggest that the type of performance and the experience level of the musician modulates anticipatory stress responses. Further understanding of the role of anticipatory stress in musicians could have a number of practical benefits.