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What kind of physical and/or emotional reaction do you have to listening or playing music. I have had cold sweats, goose pimples, rapid heart beat, weakness and the shakes on the physical side. The emotional gamut runs from a general feeling of pleasure, calm, or excitment to a quasi out of body experience. The strongest reactions seem to come from singing huge choir pieces and the least from listening to CD's. I have never had an experience playing solo. These experiences are not often or regular, maybe two dozen times in my life, starting at age 3. I would be interested in hearing about your experiences.

Frissons are quite common for me while listening to music.

I once had an "intense" emotional reaction after hearing Beethoven 1 for the first time live. I blame it mostly on veridical recall, because it was the first symphony I had ever played (back when I was a violinist) in 8th grade.

While playing or practicing, I get into a zone that is hard to explain. Kind of like a runners euphoria. My lips give out before I want to stop.

I have never had a physical reaction but always have an emotional memory trip when I hear Mahler 1 or The Rite of Spring.
They were the first pieces I ever played with an orchestra. I was 15 years old it took two residential courses to prepare and at the first performance of The Rite of Spring the conductor Hugh Maguire held a pause turned to the audience to request no more flash photography restarted the orchestra before he found his place in the score and was hopelessly lost until the 11/4 came up and the bass drummer rescued him.
To this day my go to test piece for a tuba is the Mahler 1 solo

Three pieces can make me shiver again and again: Saint-Saens #3 4th movement; Wagner Das liebesmahl der apostel; and any decent arrangement of America the beautiful. And usually Rachmaninov vespers. None of them tuba music

I get into my 'tuba zone' when I play solos like 'The Warrior Cones Out to Play'

My legs start shaking and I feel short of breath from being nervous (both of which are not good when playing a sousaphone)
I seem to go in to autopilot and I seem to play the notes (with some improv) without thinking about it.
and, apparently, I dance a lot--which is something I would NEVER do otherwise.

When I play concerts, and it's a piece I like or something with a nice tuba part, I tend to sway back and fourth, and make weird faces.

The audience and all of my surrounding also seem to fade away, although I still know they're there.

hrender wrote:I get them both playing and listening, for what it's worth. I have memories of the hair standing up on the back of my next while playing Reed's Russian Christmas Music or Chance's Incantation and Dance. Kabalevsky's Overture to Colas Breugnon ain't too bad, either.

Same here.

hrender wrote:I get them both playing and listening, for what it's worth. I have memories of the hair standing up on the back of my next while playing Reed's Russian Christmas Music or Chance's Incantation and Dance. Kabalevsky's Overture to Colas Breugnon ain't too bad, either.

One of my fondest musical memories is playing Russian Christmas Music at an honor band my sophomore year of high school. The band was conducted by Arnald Gabriel. The Arnald Gabriel. He had nothing on his podium; every score was memorized. During rehearsal of a Sousa march he mentioned something to the clarinets about specific notes in a specific measure. When they remained confused, he asked to see their part. He realized we were playing some watered-down arrangement of the march and immediately contacted the Air Force, who faxed us the original. I believe he said "I knew something just didn't sound right."

But anyway, the concert that night with Colonel Gabriel, performing Russian Christmas Music, was incredible. My hair stood up on the back of my neck by the end, I played my *** off, and I might have gotten a bit teary-eyed. I could barely stand when the colonel acknowledged the band. Powerful stuff. I only wish I had been a bit more keen on who this conductor was and wish I had been able to appreciate him a little bit more back then; he truly is an amazing musician and I was very lucky to be under his baton.

edit: for those interested, a nice photo collection of his career: http://colgabriel.com/photos.html" target="_blank

Maybe I shouldn't say it about somebody else, an old friend of mine, but doubt he will mind.

I recall a time at Interlochen long ago when a now very famous euphonium / trombone player was actually moved to tears during a performance. I think it said something about his deep musicality and wonder if any true musician would never be so moved.

I still occasionally play an old Illinois All State band recording with Brian Bowman on euphonium and remember with a great feeling how marvelous he sounded, even as a high school student.

Upon hearing Vaughan Williams's Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, played in London by the New Philharmonia Orchestra, I had trouble maintaining my composure. That piece of music has always affected me, but the setting took me over the top. I had to bum a Kleenex from my wife.

I have frequently gotten the shakes while playing, but that's more nerves than music-driven emotion, and it happens while performing, where the emotion happens more while listening. I have been deeply moved by music too many times to count. Particularly goosebumps. As I get older, emotions are less easy to ignore.

Rick "who has also napped through more orchestra performances than strictly seemly" Denney

I've never been happier/felt more musically fulfilled while playing than while playing Eb bass in brass band- one of a section on Enigma and a few pieces and the only Eb next to 2 hosses on Bb on Light Cavalry, Festival Overture,......

What has affected me the most to listen to? Bach Toccata and Fugue in D minor by the German Brass on that awesome dvd- that sh!t hits HARD. Playing along with St Louis (on CD ) on Prok. 5 was also giant-smile-creating.


My biggest reactions to music overall are on dixieland stuff- fast/active/hyper/acid stuff; this is life roaring out to me. I am humming out super-improv-dixie like 18 hours a day. If only I could play such!

goodgigs wrote:There have bin a lot of times when I was uplifted by the music the band was playing and also sometimes brought nearly to tears.
But the best feeling that comes to mind was from an announcer and a drum roll off ! We were in the "Shortest Parade in the World".
After missing the year before the announcer took it upon himself to acknowledge us by saying that we were just back from representing
the central coast in Washington DC, where We had played in the national Fourth of July parade and also played at the Whitehouse.
"You don't get any better then this; The Watsonville Band !" BOOM BOOM - BOOM BOOM roll roll BOOM BOOM !
Absolutely PERFECTLY timed as if in a movie ! The roll off completed his sentece, and we were still marching like the year before.

arpthark - I'm proud to say that I not only played with Colonel Gabriel, a tiny piece of my forehead is visible above the trombone
in the picture of him with the Pope. (completely unrecognizable)

I did that DC parade too (in a different year) and my biggest recollection was that it was WAY TOO HOT! We didn't get to play at the White house, but we were sort of kicked out of the Lincoln Memorial and decided that the Jefferson would have been about the same experience, so we bagged it. If we could have been booked for a set at the Folk Life Festival on the Mall it would have been great, but that would be too officially complicated, according to our tour directors. (If we just showed up and played a set there it would have been a good experience - we maybe probably wouldn't be thrown in jail. ) Playing music in D.C. is a problem!

I can't imagine life without the visceral reaction I get from music. What a barren existence that would be. And I can't imagine making music or listening to it without the powerful rush I get from either. I'm addicted - no question.

The poll went about as I had expected. The comments, however, show a strong disparity between the pros and the rest of us. Of course the numbers are not enough to validify Shaw's observation.

For those of you who are not aware here is the late ASO music director, Robert Shaw's quote. "Music, like sex, is far too important to be left to the professionals."