Senior Lecturer in Piano, Electronic/Digital Keyboard and Theory at the MUSICON, Bloemfontein (South Africa). Ronella van Rensburg Ronella van Rensburg is a Senior Lecturer in Piano, Electronic/Digital Keyboard and Theory at the MUSICON, Bloemfontein, South Africa. She is currently busy with an interdisciplinary masters degree at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein. Her research is on the possible negative correlation between emotional intelligence and music performance anxiety. Session Information: The Role of Emotional Intelligence in Music Performance Anxiety. Key Concepts: The possibility of using emotional intelligence as a management strategy for a construct like music performance anxiety. Music performance anxiety severely affects the public performance of many musicians - even in the ranks of top professional artists. While an increasing number of scientific studies have focused on this phenomenon and possible correlates, no research is available on the predictive value of emotional intelligence for music performance anxiety. Presentation will consist of the following: Explanation of theories concerning music performance anxiety (focusing on the three-systems model of anxiety). Management strategies concerning music performance anxiety. o Practical application of the measurement of performance anxiety through imaginative role play. Discussion of theories concerning emotional intelligence. Results obtained through empirical research done on a stratified, randomly selected research sample, consisting of 75 female learners (aged 17 - 20, with at least three years of music tuition). Three cultural groups will be represented: White, Black and Asian. If an inverse relationship is found to exist between emotional intelligence and music performance anxiety, this research will bear groundbreaking work in the field of music psychology, opening up a variety of possibilities for further research.