High-Level Playing Doesn’t Have to Come With High-Level Anxiety.

A life in music shouldn’t feel like an obstacle course of judgment and self-doubt.

I help high-performing musicians build real self-trust and steady confidence — on stage, in the practice room, and in their lives.

This work doesn’t just reduce anxiety. It changes your relationship to pressure from the inside out.

You have certainly had the most profound impact on my life imaginable. Every element in my life has done a complete 180 in the past year!

Carin Miller

Principal Bassoon, Oregon Symphony

Does any of this feel familiar?

• You care deeply about your playing, yet performing often feels tense and high-stakes. You want another option besides quitting, white-knuckling it, or becoming dependent on beta blockers.

• Sometimes you play beautifully. Other times anxiety, overthinking, or self-doubt takes over and you can’t access the level you know you’re capable of.

• You lie awake after concerts replaying the one passage that didn’t go the way you wanted, even when the performance went well overall.

• You’ve worked incredibly hard to build your career, yet lately you feel burned out, discouraged, or quietly wondering if something important is missing.

• You’re an accomplished professional, but advocating for yourself— with colleagues, conductors, or institutions— feels uncomfortable, and you often end up carrying more than your share.

If this resonates, you’re not broken — and you’re not alone.

Before working with Michael, I was feeling a lot of anxiety, tension, and fear when I had to play something important. I wanted to take auditions, be principal bassoon but I kept thinking, 'You're getting scared all the time. Maybe you can't do that.'

After working with Michael, I don't think that way anymore.

Marlène Ngalissamy

Principal Bassoon, Toronto Symphony

Many musicians assume these struggles are simply part of the profession, something you have to endure, manage, or push through.

In my experience, they’re signals that your internal foundation needs attention.

When that foundation becomes more secure, everything changes: anxiety softens, pressure loosens its grip, and music begins to feel lighter again.

A Personal Note

I’ve spent more than three decades inside the orchestral world, including many years performing in a major symphony orchestra. Like many musicians, I’ve experienced firsthand the intense pressure, self-doubt, and inner criticism that can accompany a life in music as well as the disappointing auditions, unspoken orchestral politics, and relentless inner standards that often come with the profession.

Over time I became deeply curious about why some musicians seem able to play with freedom and confidence while others struggle under the weight of pressure despite enormous talent and preparation.

That curiosity eventually led me to become a professionally certified hypnotherapist, NLP practitioner, and life coach and I've trained extensively in approaches that work directly with the deeper patterns that shape anxiety, confidence, and self-trust.

This combination allows me to meet musicians where they actually are.

My Approach

Most musicians are taught to deal with pressure by controlling their thoughts, pushing themselves harder, or trying to force confidence.

In my experience, that rarely leads to lasting change.

Instead, our work focuses on the deeper patterns that shape how you relate to pressure, judgment, and yourself.

As those patterns shift, musicians often notice:

anxiety no longer dominating their playing
calmer focus and less overthinking
the ability to recover quickly after mistakes
a quieter inner critic
greater ease in difficult professional situations
a growing sense of trust in themselves

These changes tend to carry over not only into playing, but into the rest of life as well.

At its core, this work helps musicians build a steadier internal foundation so anxiety, self-doubt, and burnout no longer run the show.

First we conquered the performance anxiety and confidence issues I was experiencing as a professional musician. Then we moved on to growth and expansion in every other area of my life.

Stephanie Busby

Bassoonist, Boston Ballet

How the Work Unfolds

1. Understanding the Pattern

We begin by exploring the situations that trigger anxiety, pressure, or self-doubt. Together we identify the deeper patterns shaping how you relate to performance, criticism, and yourself.

2. Working with the System

Through guided experiential work, those patterns begin to shift and reorganize. As this happens, anxiety often softens and musicians find it easier to access focus, creativity, and steadiness.

3. Integration

The changes become embodied so they hold up in real-world situations — auditions, rehearsals, performances, professional conversations, and beyond.

Over time, musicians often notice that the same stability they experience in their playing begins to carry into the rest of their lives as well.

Most musicians begin to notice meaningful shifts within the first few sessions.

It was incredibly valuable to explore the different parts of myself without trying to force anything to change.

Now I’m listening to myself much more deeply and building direction from within instead of from what others expect. I feel more self-guided, more integrated, and there has been a very substantial shift.

T.K. DeWitt

Associate Principal Bassoon/Contrabassoon, Kansas City Symphony

This Work Is For Musicians Who:

• are open to honest self-reflection

• want deeper, lasting change rather than quick fixes

• are curious about the patterns shaping their experience

This Work May Not Be the Right Fit If You:

• are looking for a quick confidence trick before an audition

• want technical practice advice or musical coaching

• prefer purely cognitive strategies rather than experiential work

Working with Michael has deeply impacted my performance, my well-being, and helped me to recover from a deep episode of anxiety in a way that felt so genuine and rock solid within myself.

You can't put a price on the place that Michael has helped me find within myself.

David Eby

Cellist, Educator, and Author

How to work with me

Ways We Can Work Together

Each two-hour session provides the unhurried space for deep work, enabling clients to achieve their desired results in less time.

Momentum Package (3 Sessions) — $600

Most clients start here

Special Offer for First-Time Clients: $500 (limited availability)

Ideal for: Foundation Building.

Three strategically spaced sessions help consolidate your first breakthroughs and begin creating new patterns in daily life. This package allows you to:

• reinforce your initial shift so changes stick

• address 2–3 related themes or challenges

• develop new responses that begin integrating into everyday situations

• build momentum that continues beyond our work together

Single Breakthrough Session — $225

For those who prefer to experience a single session first or address a specific issue.

Deep Integration & Expansion (6 Sessions) — $1100

Ideal for: Clients committed to meaningful change across multiple areas of life.

This extended container allows deeper integration and reinforcement of new patterns. Over time, many clients notice the benefits of this work extending into other areas of life as well.

This package provides space to:

• work with more complex or interconnected patterns

• reinforce changes until they feel natural and automatic

• explore multiple themes that strengthen one another

• create a stable foundation for ongoing growth

Many clients choose this option once they begin noticing the ripple effects of the work.

Transformational Journey (12 Sessions) — $2000

Ideal for: Clients ready for the deepest and most comprehensive transformation.

This longer container creates space for profound work with the core patterns shaping your life and career. Over twelve sessions we work toward shifts that extend far beyond a single issue.

This journey is designed to:

• transform your relationship with yourself and your work

• reshape the deeper patterns that have limited you

• create changes that carry across multiple areas of life

• establish lasting stability and self-trust

This is not simply a longer package, but a guided program for systemic life redesign, the kind of transformation that fundamentally changes how you move through the world.

Curious if this work might be right for you?

The best way to find out is to schedule a short clarity call.

During this conversation, we can talk about what you’re experiencing, what you’d like to change, and whether this approach feels like a good fit for you.

There’s no pressure or obligation, just a chance to explore whether this work could support you.

Book a Free Consult

Feeling uncertain about your next step?
Begin with a gentle check-in..
From Chaos to Clarity is a free somatic guide for musicians navigating anxiety, burnout, or overwhelm.