Anyone watched/read TEDtalk/book "Quiet: The Power of Introverts"? I wonder if an introvert can do well as a music performer or not?

I believe so. (I haven't watched the talk or read the book though)

The reason I believe so is that much of stagecraft can be learnt. My horn teacher taught me some things that I was supposed to do when performing, because I got very nervous before my first performance, (here is the list) and it was all acting.

I would not call myself a "great performer" but I think I am as good as a performer as some much more extroverted people I know. I'm definitely an introvert, in fact I'm hiding locked in my room now because I have a houseguest whom I need to get away from.

Yes, I believe so, but I think it can (not must) be harder in certain fields than in others - especially where direct audience interaction is involved. Having said that - certain genres might actually even "reward" a more inward/introspective performance.

I would consider myself an introvert, and that was one (!) of the reasons for me to shift my focus from performing to teaching. I never felt real problems to connect with an audience or the music though, and it certainly didn't prevent me from being reasonably successful as a performer. It was more that I felt being in the centre of attention mentally draining if I couldn't regularly "retreat", and I generally find too many visual & physical stimuli exhausting (even aural ones on occasion, as strange as that may seem for a musician).

What I personally find sad is that we are living in a society geared towards extroversion, where introvert character traits are often perceived as personal "shortcomings". If you don't particularly enjoy (boozy) parties, you're a bore. If you don't enjoy "selling" yourself, something must be wrong with you. If you don't like talking that much because you find it draining, you are arrogant. I personally do believe it is harder these days for an introvert (maybe it always was, don't know), and that many introverts feel they have to put on a fa?ade to fit in.

I agree with you that society is more geared towards extroversion. However, the way I ended up dealing with it was to disregard what other people thought. If people I don't know wish to find me boring and/or arrogant, I no longer care, and I have stopped putting on a facade (can't get my keyboard to do the accented 'c' at this time in the morning)

You're absolutely right. I am just the same - on the whole I no longer care what people think of me (except for family and real friends) - but it is very difficult for younger introverts, especially teenagers, many of whom desperately care what their peers think of them and want nothing more than to fit in.

My elder daughter went to a party last night at a school friend's house. She clearly hadn't enjoyed it much when I picked her up, so when I asked why, she said that she didn't much enjoy parties where people were being stupid because they were drunk. How wise, I thought, congratulating myself on having such a sensible daughter, but given that my daughter - and the friend are only 14 (though nearly 15), I was also extremely depressed.

Back to the original question - I am sure introverts can perform well, but think the instrument you play makes a real difference. My daughter is a much better "performer" on the piano and harp than she is on the violin. I imagine the size of the instrument helps - to some extent she can hide behind them and that gives her confidence. Just the way you sit means that you're not normally expected to look at the audience and communicate directly with them while you're playing. The cello is also quite good for hiding behind, I think. As a violinist, she is much more exposed - even though she'll be playing with an accompanist.

Hardest of all, of course, is singing because there is absolutely nothing to hide behind and you can't even hold anything. Even though you may well have an accompanist, the focus is all on you and I entirely understand Dugazon's finding that mentally draining.

I understand that many actors consider themselves shy and introverted but enjoy being on stage because then they don't have to be themselves. I presume the same must be true of some musicians.

I'm not sure that shyness and self-consciousness are the same as introversion. I tend to draw my energy from other people, which makes me an extrovert, but am both shy in social situations and self-conscious when performing. My husband, on the other hand, is quite introvert, and needs to be his own to recharge his batteries, but he is much more at ease when he does perform.

A lot of classical performers I have met have been introverts, and most of the jazz performers have been extroverts. I don't know if this is a general rule, just something I have observed.

And of course people are never entirely introvert or extrovert, but a combination of the two.

I believe it is easier for an introvert to learn some of the traits of an extrovert than the other way round. I also believe that introverts can be great performers. Perhaps one danger of being an extrovert is that you can be too focused on your enjoyment of the performance, whereas the introvert may internalise the music better, and deliver that to the audience in a quieter way.

Oh, I totally agree!

Introverts enjoy being on their own, that's not the same as being shy in social situations. You can be shy and still absolutely hate being alone - I guess that's more the difference between being alone and feeling lonely, and both don't necessarily have anything to do with being an introvert or extrovert.

I wouldn't say I'm shy, I just prefer activities with an inward focus to social gatherings and a lot of external stimulation. That's why I personally also think that being a musician/artist is something many introverts are actually drawn to, and there's no reason why they shouldn't be reasonably good at it - quite the opposite actually. Artistry requires a lot of introspection in my opinion - something most introverts are usually good at

The problem often arises when an introvert doesn't have the chance to retreat anymore, or not enough for what they need to feel at ease. Whether this is the case for a musician has, imho, nothing to do with the instrument (I played the violin, too, and never felt exposed for instance, but I did on the piano. This had more to do with my shortcomings as a player though ), but with the exact professional situation you find yourself in.

I never was bored on my own, not as a child, not now. This is how I recharge. I also don't worry about that these days and am comfortable with the way I am, but I agree with soccermum that there is a lot of pressure on introvert kids - they are often the ones who don't "fit in": They are deemed shy or weird because they can seem quiet and a bit withdrawn. They are deemed nerdy or geeky because they have hobbies like classical music and prefer reading to going out. They are often (not always!) good at school because they don't need external motivation to work and study - they do it because they enjoy it. All these traits make you a good subject for bullying. I also agree that many introverts are quite skilled at "putting on" extrovert traits to avoid this and "fit in". It feels like acting though - Sherrie Haynie put it quite rightly when she said:



There are quite interesting studies being done on what causes introvert/extrovert traits. The main difference seems to be that extroverts crave sensory stimulation, whilst introverts find that exhausting. This is quite an interesting link.

Aren't more classical performers likely to be introverts anyway? I would have thought that the hours of solitary practice needed to be good enough to be a great performer would be easier for an introvert than an extrovert.

I agree that introversion and shyness aren't the same thing and being introverted doesn't at all mean you can't perform. I am most definitely an introvert and if I was give the option of doing either
a. Standing up in front of 100 strangers to give a planned presentation
or
b. Having to go to an event with 100 strangers in order to mingle, make small talk and socialise.

I would most definitely pick the first option every time and would be confident that I could do it well (and in fact have done it well). The second option would fill me with dread and I would be terrible at it!

In short, yes. I have met professional pianists who are introverted but dazzling when playing the piano.

Although I would tend to put myself as somewhere in between the two personalities, I do tend to be on the quiet side but tended not to care at school (and now) if people found me boring and thought that as long as "I was interested in what I was doing and not bored", that was fine.

I am introverted/shy/self conscious/most related synonyms unless I'm with people I am comfortable around. However, I have never once had performance anxiety, I sort of go into myself and the music and nothing else exists. In a way the piano/music is another persona I'm comfortable around (perhaps?)

In terms of "great" performers, I've heard countless people saying that Argerich was painfully shy.

If you say you're an introvert then I think you're an excellent counterexample, because I have enjoyed everything I've heard you play thus far!