As one who has been performing in piano recitals from a very young age, I’m a firm believer in encouraging all students to have such an experience. In this post, we’ll look at some of the many benefits of students of all ages and levels participating in recitals.
Performing in recitals encourages focusing on a specific goal
While many people are able to be quite content learning new repertoire and enjoying playing music for their own enjoyment, it’s also incredibly helpful to also practice with an eye toward a specific goal. Performing in a recital is a perfect opportunity to spend just a little more time and effort to perfect one’s repertoire to a point in which it can be performed under pressure and at a level suitable to present in a public forum.
Improves poise and self-confidence
Just the experience of performing in a recital is a great way to develop poise and self-confidence. It’s such a wonderful opportunity to push oneself out of the comfort zone and experience growth. A musician who learns to feel comfortable with this from an early age can set themselves up for being able to continue to embrace growth experiences when presented with such opportunities throughout life.
Performing in recitals builds comaraderie
Some of my best memories from childhood are from performing in piano recitals and orchestra festivals. I met so many wonderful musicians from all over the area and got to know many people I otherwise would not have met had I not participated.
Helps develop public speaking skills
Adjacent to the aforementioned poise and self-confidence, if students are encouraged to speak to the audience as part of the presentation of their repertoire, performing in recitals can be an excellent way to develop public speaking skills. Like many others, I’ve always been nervous when the time came for public speaking, but having had the experience of speaking to audiences other the years, I’m now able to embrace the nervousness and harness it to my benefit. I now know what I need to do to prepare for a successful public speaking experience, and knowing what I’ll experience internally helps me to be able to control my reaction to the situation, whether I’m dealing with nerves, loss of train of thought, or distractions.
It’s fun!
Most importantly, performing in recitals is a lot of fun! You get to enjoy the spotlight, even if just for a couple of minutes, and to bask in the support, adoration, and applause of your peers in the audience. Everyone deserves to experience this type of positive reinforcement, and performing in a recital is a perfect opportunity.
