<p>I have a state solo competition tomorrow, so I’m ritualistically beginning to clean my mouthpiece today.</p>
<p>I’m curious at all of those on here, before you auditioned/performed did/do you have some sort of superstitous ritual that you do?</p>
<p>(Just to lighten the atmospere a bit)</p>
<p>Musicallylatin,
While D2 is still developing her rituals, D1 has been a competetive athlete (fencer) for years. We had motivational CDs that we played driving to the competitions (songs from A Knight’s Tale, Princess Bride, Mulan). She just got her Senior’s Honor Thesis approved: Anglo Saxon Warfare. Beware the rituals - they just might stick ;)</p>
<p>And, since D1 was a devout student of Latin, I wish I still had some clever quotes for you, but I’ll simply say “Kick Butt tomorrow! Good Luck”</p>
<p>Isn’t Latin just amazing?</p>
<p>I’m still developing this ritual. The past few years I haven’t had one. Now I soak my mouthpiece in lemon juice and then boil it. I’m starting the night before in case I wake up late this time! </p>
<p>My band director shivers at the thought of my boiling it, but I have to have it clean and germless. I only boil it for competitons. :D</p>
<p>Whatever works–! You have to feel prepared in so many different ways!</p>
<p>We aren’t superstitious, but having certain routines helps to put a little bit of control back in the performer in what can be such a random and intimidating process.</p>
<p>Shoes. It’s all about the shoes.</p>
<p>D has nothing concrete, thankfully and has nerves of steel- have never once seen her worried about a performance or audition. However, she played soccer for many years and the coach at at her school had the weirdest routing imaginable; since the school has no buses, parents are pressed into service to drive. Coach made cassettes/CDs of a “team tape” which had to begin playing as you left the parking lot and had to be replayed all the way to each game(that got old really quickly when the other team was 2 hours away!!). Can you imagine being trapped listening to " Eye of the Tiger" over and over again??!!!</p>
<p>Stradmom, That’s so funny you should say that. My D works hard at making sure she has the right shoes on for competition and she looks at everybody else’s shoes while they’re standing in the hallways. I think it all stemmed from an early NATS when all three judges wrote something about her “awesome” shoes in their comments. Her style is a simple black dress and killer shoes. That’s her confidence booster.</p>
<p>We always used to play “Bad to the Bone” for my daughter on the way to soccer games (until she switched to rec, and doesn’t need to be nearly as Bad).</p>
<p>I don’t think it would qualify as a ritual, but my D is pretty adept at transferring her stress to Emom.</p>
<p>It’s funny you guys mentioned shoes. </p>
<p>I was talking to my band director who says he’d polish his shoes.</p>
<p>Here are some of the things my S does - not superstitious, just ritual:
<p>And what I do:
<p>And I always tell my D to “break a string” and my S to “break a lip.”</p>
<p>^ Ha. </p>
<p>I finally found a tuba necklace this summer. I’m still excited. I wear it all the time.</p>
<p>binx…that is so precious a tradition!!!</p>
<p>My D has the peculiar need to belt out Broadway tunes on the way to classical singing competitions…needless to say, her father drives her.</p>
<p>Trombone S would polish his horn to the max the night before. </p>
<p>We also had sort of a pre/post ritual that proved enjoyable and pleasantly distracting. </p>
<p>Well beforehand, we’d research local eateries and discuss at length where to dine after the audition, since both S’s and myself were typically starving at that point. </p>
<p>It gave us something to look forward to and usually acted as a kind of “insurance” that at least in one regard, the day would end well.</p>
<p>^ I like that idea. My parents aren’t too involved in my music, but I know my accompanist really well (I stick with her for everything.), and she takes me out for food afterwards. It’s a great way to release nerves from the day.</p>
<p>i steam my face at least 2 hours before any recital/competition b/c i am a singer.</p>
<p>my good friend is a pianist at julliard, and she washes her hands with very warm water and then cools it off with cold water quickly.</p>