Students practise performance skills on virtual audience

London’s Royal College of Music has a developed a performance simulator in collaboration with the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana to give students greater opportunities to practise the art of performing. Designed by Studiohead and Skyline Whitespace, the training facility features convincing back-stage and on-stage areas, as well as an interactive virtual audience and audition panel, projected onto a large screen.

According to RCM professor of performance science Aaron Williamon, the cost of hiring a concert venue means that many music students have few opportunities to develop performing skills. ‘Students learn all too late (or not at all) how to manage the stresses of performing and the demands of their audiences’.

The performance simulator’s two modes – concert and audition – feature realistic audience and jury members, who sometimes respond ‘in a favourable way’ and sometimes ‘a little more aggressively’. The three-person audition panel makes notes, nods and smiles or frowns and shakes heads on different occasions, while the coughing and fidgeting audience can react with everything from polite applause or raucous cheers.

The simulator also features an AV recording system so that the student can watch and evaluate his or her performance.

Watch a video of the simulator below:

Read violinist Nikolaj Znaider's blog on conquering performance nerves.

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