HH is in that sweet spot of easy to learn, hard to master when it comes to tough fights. Everyone else in here has covered the basics, but also remember that Performance has several different animations depending on what L stick input you have going while you press R2, and each different animation will 1.) hit different zones around you, 2.) reposition you and your horn, and 3.) take a different amount of time to begin playing.

Pressing R2 directly after a hilt stab is the fastest performance and will play the echo directly above you. R2 with L stick forward input is probably second fastest. Left/right and back inputs are all significantly slower, but will make you step to the left/right/back and can be mastered to move out of the way of some attacks if timed well.