Acceptance and Commitment Training for Music Performance Anxiety 3 Part Course
Tuesday 23rd February 2021, 5:00 PM - Tuesday 2nd March 2021 7:00 PM (London Time)
In this 3-part course, you will learn how to detect symptoms of music performance anxiety (MPA) among your students and whether those symptoms are problematic or not. You will also learn about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), an evidence-based psychotherapy that aims to promote mindfulness and acceptance of one’s MPA symptoms, while also enhancing performance skills by increasing actions consistent with a musician’s values. ACT can be used in a non-clinical setting by practitioners other than psychotherapists, and when applied non-clinically it is called Acceptance and Commitment Training or Coaching. Newer research suggests ACT coaching may be a promising intervention for treating MPA by music teachers with no formal training or education in psychotherapy. You will learn ACT techniques that are safe for use in non-clinical settings to help your students effectively manage their MPA.
Part 1: Defining and Detecting Problematic Levels of MPA
February 23, 2021 — 5-7pm (UK time)
- MPA definition
- MPA’s four symptom categories
- Detecting problematic levels of MPA
Part 2: ACT Skills for Effectively Managing MPA & Increasing Artistic Presence
February 25, 2021 — 5-7pm (UK time)
- Mindfulness
- Acceptance
- Defusion
Part 3: ACT Skills for Taking MPA Less Personally & Enhancing Overall Performances
March 2, 2021 — 5-7pm (UK time)
- Cultivating a More Flexible Sense of Self & Musician Identity
- Identifying One’s Performance or Practice Values
- Committed Action
Dr David Juncos
David Juncos, PsyD, is a clinical psychologist, lecturer, performance coach, author, and music performance researcher based in Philadelphia, PA. He has 20 years of experience in treating a variety of clinical problems, including anxiety, mood, and substance use disorders.
Sorry, this is an archived short course...
We have plenty of upcoming short courses coming soon. See details of some of them below or look at the full list of short courses.
Thursday 19th February 2026
8:30 AM - 10:30 AM
(London Time)
It’s not a virus! Reconceptualizing and De-pathologizing Music Performance Anxiety
Rebecca Herman
Performance Anxiety is one of the most widespread and debilitating challenges facing musicians across all ages, nationalities and musical genres. Despite decades of research and the development of numerous interventions, we do not yet have an established way of supporting performers experiencing performance anxiety. Aimed at performers, teachers, researchers and students, this presentation will first summarise the current state of play in performance anxiety research, before exploring alternative ways to think about performance anxiety, drawing on new research outside of performance psychology...
Thursday 19th February 2026
1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Thursday 26th February 2026
1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
(London Time)
Performing Pain: Vocal Health in Emotional Roles!
Louisa Morgan
How connected are acted emotions to our real-life emotions? Are they expressed differently? Do they feel different in the body? This 2-part course with Louisa Morgan looks at the potential impact of acted emotion on vocal health, why we should consider it as voice practitioners, and how to care for our performers needing to work with it.
Tuesday 24th February 2026
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
Incorporating CBT principles within vocal health and voice care
Dr Luke Aldridge-Waddon
Join Dr Luke Waddon as he introduces the principles and techniques within cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) in relation to the voice and voice care. He will discuss psychological factors relevant to the development and maintenance of voice disorders and how these might be approached from a cognitive-behavioural perspective. He will describe theoretical concepts and therapeutic components often used within CBT and consider how these might be applied when working with voice users.