Proposal: a Presentation for Sydney Guitar Society 2025

In-person live delivery
Presentation Length - 50 mins + 10 min question time

Discover the Mysteries of the Musical Mind

I’d like to offer society members a unique presentation designed specifically for adult guitar players who want to understand how the unconscious mind works in learning, practising and performing. I will explain the logic behind intentionally adopting strategies which will ensure learning is well-directed from the outset, so it penetrates deep into the unconscious mind. The integration of the mental, physical and emotional components of playing music results in stronger interpretations, more reliability and rewarding experiences for players and listeners.

My presentation is geared around the principles of Hypnotherapy and Neuro-Linguistic-Programming (NLP), mapping them across for utilisation in the musical arena. Potentially it offers transformative insights for amateur players to adopt as they optimise their learning and performance processes. This introductory presentation will also deliver some very useful information for advanced students and teachers.

Why This Presentation is Perfect for Guitarists

Classical guitarists face a distinctive set of challenges, such as perfecting prescriptive and intricate finger techniques as well as dealing with performance anxiety. This session is designed to provide them with information on the roles of the unconscious and conscious minds in a working partnership. Participants will gain some practical strategies to address common obstacles effectively. By the end of this experience, they will be curious and feeling motivated to elevate their level of playing.

Accessing the Unconscious Mind

To do all this, attendees will learn about the language of the unconscious mind and the power of language - both internal and external, spoken and non-verbal. Learning, practising and performing can be revolutionised by opening deliberate communication channels with one’s unconscious mind. To this end, I will give a brief introduction to self-hypnosis. Attendees will also experience the mind-body interplay through a few short practical imagination exercises during the presentation.

Areas of Learning:

Understanding the NLP Model of Communication

  • Harmonizing the Two Minds: Discover much more than just how the conscious mind processes technique while the unconscious mind fuels creativity and intuition.

  • Getting in the Zone: Tap into the “learning state”. Learn how peripheral focus techniques enable the mind’s capacity to be open and receptive to new information.

  • Visual and Emotional Language: Learn how the unconscious mind uses images and feelings to store and recall music - how it can be used to learn faster, retain information input and play more expressively.

  • Symbolism and Metaphor in Music: Explore how deliberately formulating mental associations and synaesthesia enriches musical understanding and fuels the powers of interpretation.

Communicating Through Music

  • Non-Verbal Connection: Guitar music is a non-verbal expression. Discover how your body language, subtle cues, and stage presence influence how you play, and therefore how effectively your performance connects with listeners.

  • Clarify your intentions: A note on how the law of Cause & Effect delivers outcomes generated by even our tiniest habits.

  • Reframing Challenges: Learn to reframe mental responses to performance anxiety before the physical responses kick in and overtake the body reactively with stage fright, loss of control, hesitation, stumbles etc.

Becoming a More Efficient Learner

  • Practice Strategies: Learn techniques to make practice sessions time efficient, productive and rewarding.

  • Cooperate with your neurology: understand how mechanical input information becomes the output in playing.

  • Motivation and Goals: Learn about setting smart goals, building step-wise on small successes to keep you inspired and focused.

  • Anchoring Success: Create mental and emotional “anchors” to access your peak performance states.

Conquering Stage Fright and Self-Doubt

Many guitarists struggle with stage fright, self-doubt, or feelings of inadequacy. This session will give you practical tools to break free from past traumatic memories and any manufactured failure fantasies:

  • Transforming Performance Anxiety: Understand and learn how to manage those unconscious fight, flight, freeze, or fawn responses under stress, so you play confidently, both at home and on stage.

  • Mental Rehearsal Techniques: Learn about associated state and dissociated state rehearsal techniques for upcoming performances. This ensures that your internal intentions are clear and will have you feeling both relaxed and ready.

  • Peripheral Listening: Expand your auditory awareness to include ambient and incidental noise, thus improving your choice responses to intrusions. This skill engenders the desirable state of collected calm. It is mandatory for ensemble work and a necessity for practising with a metronome.

In summary

My proposed presentation briefly introduces ways that we can utilise some of the powerful untapped territory within the human mind.

I would like it to be known that any attendees wanting to penetrate further into the field may consider enrolling in workshops and comprehensive trainings to become proficient in administering a range of NLP techniques, and performing hypnosis with others.

I also offer Full-Day Immersions in Hypnotherapy to groups of four, for the secular/non-musical population.

In the meantime, anyone who is seeking personal assistance for resolving issues and making change, can arrange private sessions with me.

Thank you for considering this presentation, and I trust you’ll agree that this is a very important area of musicianship and self-care.

If you have any questions please click the CONTACT button below, or email me at amandala4@gmail.com