I’m currently undertaking a PhD in music psychology at the Royal Northern College of Music in the UK, where I am researching effective practice and performance preparation in a research project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Prior to my PhD, I studied a Bachelor of Music (Performance) at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and an MA in Psychology of Music at the University of Sheffield.
Music entered my life when I was 6 years old and for a long time, my dream was to become a concert pianist. But the further I went down the musical path, the harder it got. Apart from the sheer competitiveness and constantly feeling worried that I wasn’t good enough, there were lots of other hurdles, including injuries, severe stress, and mental health issues. I struggled to find any resources or tailored support for musicians about these issues – yet when I talked to other musicians, I found that many of them had experienced similar problems. This plus my love of psychology (which I had studied during my undergraduate years) led me to where I am today.
Outside music and psychology, my hobbies and passions include travelling, food (both cooking and eating), learning new languages, coding, going to the beach, and patting cute dogs!
Find out more about me:
- Personal website
- Find me on ResearchGate
- Follow me on twitter @akiho_suzuki12
About this website
I started this website back in 2019 with these goals in mind:
- Provide information and resources for musicians to help them in their journeys. During my musical studies, there were so many times when I wished that there was some resources available to musicians, but I struggled to find anything…so I’ve decided to start my own project! I aim to keep all information and tips I provide to be backed by research, unless it’s specifically an article with the intention of sharing personal experiences.
- Make information and findings from academic research more accessible. There is often a gap between academic research and the real world. There is so much good stuff being researched, but it doesn’t mean a great deal if it does not get shared with the people in the real world who would benefit from the findings. By picking out the most important and interesting findings and summarising it in short, easy-to-read articles, I hope to bridge this gap. Sources will always be properly referenced, so that you can look up the original articles yourself if you want to.
- Make music performance psychology a widespread, common topic. Unlike in the world of athletics, where sport psychology is an established field and a popular career path, music psychology is a relatively new field. I had never even heard of music psychology until I decided to research practice for my Honours thesis at university. Through my articles, I hope to make this field a more widespread field, and encourage musicians to talk more regularly to each other about the issues like performance anxiety, practice, and injuries.
(Newly added in Oct 2022): I have decided to also write about my experiences doing a PhD in music psychology, to provide some insight to anyone who is interested in studying music psychology and/or is considering an academic career in this field!
Lastly, I want this website to be a totally cost-free resource for everyone. If you want to help out in anyway, either financially or by contributing to the content, please send me an email!