We want to optimize singing and playing and realize musical potential.
We also want to play with ease, eliminating unnecessary tension, injury, and pain.
Timani lessons are circular:
1. Conversation
2. Observation & playing analysis
3. Anatomical explanation
4. Targeted exercise
5. Playing or singing
6. Review & summary
(Perhaps leading to a new conversation)
The musician's body demands:
1. Repetitive use of muscles; we practice movements (as opposed to notes!)
2. Small muscle endurance; must access parts of the body that give us endurance
3. Support and stability; can't just relax or we'll be asleep
4. Mobility and expressivity; must know where to have support and where to have mobility
5. Healthy breathing mechanics
6. Static positions
7. Extreme coordination in the brain; must train sensory system to feel specific things
Sometimes we don't feel everything we are doing.
In order to know what to look for, we need to learn about the body.
It's not as simple as "relax," or everybody would do that.
The concert artist, if he so chooses, may work as he will,
remaining his own problem, or, perhaps, finding his own solutions:
but the teacher, selling lessons in physiological mechanics
hour after hour, day after day,
should at least know the tools with which he works.
Otto Ortmann (1889-1979)
Some Muscles to study:
Diaphragm - thin internal muscles, primary muscle for breathing, opens up chest cavity
Contracts and flattens w/inhalation; relaxes and becomes dome-like w/exhalation
Intercostals - secondary muscles for breathing,
Located in between ribs, lifting ribs upwards and outwards
Spine - needs both freedom and support
Fascia - part of our connective tissue
Tendons connect muscles to bones; ligaments connect bones to bones.
Extrinsic & intrinsic hand muscles - extrinsic in forearm, intrinsic in hand
No muscles in the finger themselves!
Psoas major - connects deep breathing expansion into lower body
Serratus anterior - attached to ribs, under shoulder blade; holds shoulder, supports breathing
Transversus abdominis - side wall of the abdomen, pulls naval to spine
Psoas major, serratus anterior, & transversus abdominis:
Psoas Major
Serratus Anterior
Transversus Abdominis
Active warm up creates the following physiological changes:
1. Increased speed of nerve signals - nerves from brain to muscles is faster
2. Less resistance in joints - oily lubricant (synovial fluid) is more fluid when warmer
3. Increased oxygen delivery to the muscles - blood vessels expand, blood flows more freely
Warm ups can be:
1. Passive or active - warm with water or use muscles to keep warm
2. General or specific - take a walk to warm up or do finger exercises
3. Mental - remove distractions, try relaxation exercises, breathing, grounding
Warm up exercises prepare your muscles so that you can think less.
Do exercises every day at first; then focus on exercises where you need more awareness.
The goal is to play or sing with the muscles/coordination you learn in this course.
They can be done between practice sessions to remind the muscles what you want them to do.
After this course, the muscles should be present in awareness even when not practicing.
Week 1: MCP Tune-Up & Thumb Drill
Find these places in your hand.
We have many muscles that move our fingers. Pianists tend to overuse the muscles associated with flexion of the the middle knuckle (PIP joints) in a pulling or gripping motion. We tend to underuse the muscles
that activate our bridge, or our metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joints. The PIP joint muscles are extrinsic hand muscles, and the MCP joint muscles are intrinsic hand muscles.
Four main groups of intrinsic hand muscles are:
Interossei muscles - begin between the bones of the hand, bend MCP joints
4 dorsal interossei muscles also help fingers spread apart
3 palmar interossei muscles also help pull fingers back together
Lumbricals - allow fingers to straighten and help bend MCP joints
Hypothenar muscle group - 3 muscles on the outside of the hand to assist 5th finger
Thenar muscle group - 3 muscles on the base of the thumb to assist the thumb
A separate triangular muscle, adductor pollicis, brings thumb back to palm
In this exercise, we'll focus on the lumbricals and interossei muscles, which help us bend our fingers from the bridge. First, find the places marked with black x's above. With the palm of your working hand facing upwards, support or press into each x with your non-working hand as you flex the corresponding straight finger upwards towards the ceiling. You should feel tendons or muscles move in these spots; the 5th finger will be the most difficult to feel. When the thumb is properly engaged, the hand should become very open, like it could hold a ball.
Next, turn your hand so that the palm faces downwards and repeat the exercise, maintaining fairly straight fingers. Motion should originate from the bridge. Repeat exercise on the piano keys, playing several notes using one finger, being very aware of which muscles are activating.
Once you have done this, rest your palms face up in your lap and feel what muscles have been used. If these muscles can be isolated, the wrist will be able to move more freely.
For this and all following Timani exercises, it is important to rest or relax between sides and notice what your body feels like. Be thoughtful, curious, and intentional!
Week 2: Muscles & The Nervous System
3 Types of Muscle Cells:
1. Skeletal muscle cells; these are the only muscle cells we can control
Responsible for breathing, moving, creating pressures and tension in the body
2. Smooth muscle cells
Governed by our autonomic nervous system; we do not choose how they contract
Example - digesting food in the intestines
3. Cardiac muscle cells are in the heart and nowhere else
Skeletal muscle cells are elongated cells; they are not round in shape. They only pull against their length, not their width. Muscle fibers or cells have a specific direction. Once muscle cell can consist of many many units called sarcomeres. The proteins in a sarcomere are myosin, actin, and tintin. When contracted, myosin grabs onto actin, pulling together to make a cross bridge so that the muscle bulges.
The nervous system is the part of the body that comprises the brain, spinal cord, and all of the nerves travelling outside of the skull and spinal column. It coordinates actions and sensory information by transmitting signals to and from different parts of the body. Every skeletal muscle fiber must be innervated by a motor neuron to contract. Motor neurons in the spinal cord have long axons that travel outside of the spine and connect to a muscle bundle. The group of muscle fibers in a muscle and the single motor neuron that innervates them is called a motor unit. Motor units bridge the central nervous system and the skeletal muscles.
3 Types of Contraction:
1. Concentric contraction - muscle produces force while shortening
Example - lifting a cup off a table
2. Eccentric contraction - muscle produces force while lengthening by gradually releasing
Example - placing a cup back down on a table
3. Isometric contraction - muscle generates force without changing its length
Example - holding a cup still in the air
The main muscle performing a movement is an agonist (prime mover). If surrounding muscles are helping the agonist, they're called synergists. These may be more efficient at other movements, but they can help with secondary movement tasks. A muscle that moves opposite to the agonist in the same joint is called the antagonist. Antagonists must relax and allow themselves to lengthen when their agonists contract.
Efferent & Afferent Nerve Signals:
1. Efferent nerve signals are sent from the brain to create muscle contraction
Nerve cells in the brain send electrical signals through the spinal cord
These move down to the body to the muscle cells, telling them to contract
2. Afferent nerve signals gather information about the body
The brain relies on afferent nerve signals to provide information on what we sense
This is how the brain knows our internal states or positions in space and time
The part of the brain that receives sensory signals needs a lot of information to provide accurate information about how and when a muscle should contract. This information is sent to the brain from many different nerve endings.
Sensory Systems:
1. Exteroception - sensing the external world
Seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, tasting, feeling the ground and the instrument
2. Proprioception - the body's GPS for spatial awareness
Orienting ourselves, information about body and instrument positions, and movements
3. Interoception - internal sensations within the body
Sensing arm weight, breath, emotions, tension, relaxation
4. Kinesthesia - sometimes used interchangeably with proprioception
Relates to the sense of movement and conscious body awareness
Can be thought of as a combination of exteroception, proprioception, and interoception
Perception is broader term - what we consciously experience and interpret. The interpretation and organization of sensory stimuli is personal because it draws upon memories. We may interpret the same situation differently than those around us.
Additionally, but less relevant are:
1. Nociception - the sensory perception of pain
2. Chronoception - the perception of time
Week 2: Sitting Shuffle
Sit on a chair or a bench as you normally would. Reach your hands underneath to feel the sitting or sit bones. We want to align ourselves so that the flat part of the bone is supporting us on the chair. Begin by leaning forwards; then lean backwards until you feel the bones sticking out under you, into the chair. Then move forwards again until you feel you are sitting on the flat part of the bones.
From here, we need to explore how to get the weight properly into the chair and feel supported. From this seated position, push the right knee forward until you feel that your weight is coming even more onto your right sit bone. You should also feel the right side of your body lift upwards. Let your body follow this movement. Next, push the left knee forward and feel for the same sensations. Shuffle, alternating the knees as they move forwards; this should feel like cross-country skiing. Can you feel your sit bones better than before?
Your body should feel like it has risen above the sit bones in a supported and relaxed way. You should be able to feel your sit bones a little bit more, and be able to "rest into the skeleton." Play a chord and feel a connection all the way down into the sit bones. It should feel easier to make a bigger or heavier sound. The number one way to offload our arms is to ground ourselves properly.
Video Resource 6: Push-Off From the Floor
Stand with a piano bench at your side. Lean towards this side so that the hip moves outwards and back as the weight shifts. Next, place one knee onto a piano bench so that you are standing on the knee. The toes of the opposite foot should maintain contact with the floor to maintain balance. Let the hip move sideways again over the knee in the direction of the bench. Push the knee down into the chair, rising the entire body upwards. As the knee pushes downwards, the hip will come inwards and straighten, and the distance between the lower ribs and pelvis will increase. Relax the knee and let the hip fall outwards again, all while maintaining the body weight in the knee. This trains the gluteus medius, which stabilizes the hip joint. Using this muscle prevents us from hanging out into the joint. The groin, hip, and quad should be free and able to move.
Hips should not push forward; to prevent this, you can move shoulders slightly forward, making sure to bend from the hip rather than curve the spine. When we lean backwards, the diaphragm pushes the internal organs downwards and the 6 pack muscle (rectus abdominis) gets involved. This is not helpful!
Stand on both feet and feel the difference; you should feel more grounded. Repeat on the other side. This exercise trains the brain to know which muscle to use to get push-off from the ground. Violinists must use the ground to push off, as well as the violin, so there are two push-off points.
Without the piano bench, pushing off the floor will give you power that you can use musically. You can shift your weight from one leg to another, pushing off the floor to get power. These grounding exercises are very helpful in freeing the arms and the shoulders.
In people without lower back pain, the transverse abdominis activates 30-40 milliseconds before lifting the arm with the shoulder muscles (deltoids). In people with lower back pain, the transverse abdominis activates up to 90 milliseconds after the arm is lifted. When the transverse abdominis is not doing its job, the diaphragm begins downwards bearing pressure, limiting breathing, collapsing the chest, and moving the head forwards. The transverse abdominis, on the other hand, creates an upward flowing engagement instead. When the transverse abdominis is engaged, the belly button should move towards the spine as a natural effect of grounding.
Week 3: The Chocolate Covered Caramel
The chocolate covered caramel is a model of the body we can use to help organize and understand which muscles we need for free breathing, which muscles we need for playing or singing, and which muscles we can focus on for more relaxation. There are three parts to this model: a soft center (free and unrestricted breathing); a chewy caramel layer (the muscles and tissues that offer stability and support); and an outer chocolate cover (free movement and weight).
The shape of the body is made from the skeleton and the tendons/fascia connecting muscles and attaching to the bones. The fascia can be thought of as a wetsuit around all the organs, muscles, and bones. Most muscles have multiple functions and can do different tasks, but they always perform certain tasks best.
The soft center is free breathing, and we don't want to restrict the movement of the lungs. Both the diaphragm and the intercostals have the primary function of inhalation.
The chewy caramel muscles and tissues are a musician's best friend. They provide stability, support, endurance, timing, musical intention, legato, longer lines, and precision/accuracy. These muscles should not make us stiff, but rather help us to remain balanced and secure, uninfluenced by external forces. They provide endurance and effortlessness.
The chocolate coating are muscles that give a sense of free movement and weight. They also contribute to the sense of relaxation and ease when playing. We want this coating to melt; these are the muscles we want to relax. These are the outer muscles that often restrict our movements, such as the pecs, biceps, and rectus abdominis. If we are not effectively using muscles in the chewy caramel layer, we will overcompensate by overusing less effective muscles in the chocolate coating.
Some important chocolate coating muscles:
Pectoralis Major & Minor
Biceps Brachii
6-Pack, Rectus Abdominis
Levator Scapulae
Rhomboid Major
The Soft Center
Review: diaphragm
Like a thin parachute inside the chest, attached to the front of the spine
Review: intercostals
Located in between the ribs, help to rotate the ribs open up and outwards to the sides
Ribs 1-5 (top) have a pump handle mechanism; they open from front to back
Ribs 6-10 have a bucket handle mechanism; they lift up and out to the sides
The two lowest ribs are floating ribs
External intercostals are inhalation muscles
Internal intercostals are exhalation muscles
During inhalation, the abdomen is pushed down and outwards
During exhalation, the abdomen moves up and into the chest
Review: psoas major
Transfers the movement of the diaphragm down to our lower body
Alignment of the spine and hips are important for breathing
Organs:
We're rarely aware of our organs, but connecting to their weight can feel relaxing.
Tuning into our liver, heart, or lungs can give a sense of playing from a deeper place.
The Chewy Caramel Layer (Often Underused)
Review: serratus anterior
Located under shoulder blade.
Attached from ribs 1-9, assists in rotating the ribs out to the side during inhalation
Moves and stabilizes shoulder blade, which helps keep shoulder and chest open
Should bear most of the weight of the arm, offloading muscles on top of the shoulders
Review: transversus abdominis
Sometimes called a corset due to shape and function
One of four large abdominal muscles, most important for musicians
Gives stability in lower back
If we push the belly outwards, there is a stability created by the diaphragm
However, this stability restricts free breathing
The tranversus abdominis should maintain intra-abdominal pressures instead.
We can access the tranversus abdominis by pulling the belly button slightly inwards
These deeper muscles tend to deactivate when we have lack of sleep, too much stress, etc.
When properly activated, the transversus abdominis can help support arms, neck, and shoulders
Review: intrinsic hand muscles
Intrinsic muscles in the hand mostly move the bridge joint
We want to use these instead of overusing the extrinsic muscles in the arm
Skeleton:
By balancing posture, we can release tension in compensatory muscles
Fascia:
Transmits forces from one part of the body to the rest
Chocolate Coating Muscles (Often Overused)
Review: pectoralis minor
Small chest muscle, attaches from shoulder blade to the front of our bodies on ribs 3-5
When we pull our shoulders downwards, this muscle activates
But we want this muscle to lift the ribs rather than pull them down
If overactivated, can block free breathing
Even worse, can cause problems in nerves connected to hands and fingers
Review: pectoralis major
Sits on top of pectoralis minor
Attaches to top of arm bone, moves the arm closer to the body
Can overactivate when playing large chords at the piano
Review: biceps
Flexes the elbow joint, flexes the shoulder joint, and supinates the lower arm
Tends to be overused
Review: rectus abdominis
This activates every time we lean backwards
The upper part attaches to the ribs; lower part attaches to the pubic bone
Can interfere with a healthy breathing pattern
Review: levator scapula & rhomboideus major
Fibers from both attach on the inner edge of the shoulder blade
Levator scapula brings the top of the shoulder blade closer to the neck vertebrae
Rhomboideus major brings the shoulder blades closer to the spine
Together, these create a downward rotation of the shoulder blade
The lower tip of the shoulder blade comes upwards toward our sides
The shoulder blade rotation lowers the outer part of the shoulder
These overwork when the serratus anterior isn't used for enough stability
Review: extrinsic hand muscles
Flexor Digitorum Superficialis
Close Up
Flexor digitorum superficialis - an extrinsic hand muscle of the fingers
One side attaches in the hand and the other in the lower arm and elbow
This flexes the middle knuckles (PIP joints) to to give us a strong grip
Often overused
Week 3: Back Armline Push-Off
We must learn how to extend downwards into the key so that the forces going into the key return back into the arm. Often, pianists press downwards into the key, pushing the entire body downwards, which disrupts an upright posture.
In a seated position, use your non-working hand to grab the chest muscle in the front of the armpit. With the working hand, extend fingers straight out with the thumb facing upwards, and press downwards into the knee. This will push the shoulder and the body upwards. The opposite of this is pushing the body down with pecs muscle engaged, dragging the shoulder downwards with it. You are looking to release the chest muscle and lift the body with the tricep muscles instead. Once you can feel that the chest muscle is not engaged, feel the tricep activate as you push your body upwards.
Check - both the chest muscles and biceps should not be working very hard.
Triceps Brachii
Repeat this process with the piano lid instead of the knee, opening the hand into a curved position with the palm facing downwards. As you use the tricep instead of the chest, the elbow will extend open, and the shoulder will rise slightly. Practice with chords. The tricep is your "chord friend"!!
Remember that to play strongly, you must go into the key faster, and to play more softly, you go into the key more slowly.
Video Resource 4: The Tent
Place your entire forearm on the lap. Keeping the wrist touching the lap, pull your hand in such a way that the bridge pops out like a mountain peak and the middle and outermost knuckle joints (PIP & DIP) stay fairly straight. With the opposite hand, feel the top of the working forearm to monitor that there isn't too much tension. Try playing chords with this "tent" position, keeping the wrist low and extending the elbow using the tricep. This is a way to play chords with as little energy possible in such a way that the fingertip goes more directly to the bottom of the key, making it easier to maintain precise timing.
Week 4: Fascia
Musicians need exact muscular use, while simultaneously requiring the support of the whole body for every movement. Fascia is the wetsuit that connects everything; we can think of a person as one fascia with 600 pockets of contractile fibers. It surrounds muscles, bones, nerves, blood vessels, and internal organs. This means that engaging in movement pulls on an entire system. Sometimes fascia grows in large sheaths; for example, the rectus abdominis sits in a sheath of fascia. Similarly, the thumb and the fifth finger are connected by a sheath of fascia (palmar fascia) that slides over the tendons of the finger flexors.
To get a better idea of how fascia functions, we can compare it to the structure of an orange. If the rind of an orange is like our skin, the pith underneath represents superficial fascia, and the structures that create the orange slices represent deep fascia.
In Timani, we can also compare the function of fascia to the frame of a trampoline, with each hook on the outer perimeter of the net representing a muscle. We want to connect the outer perimeter of the trampoline to its frame, and if we don't connect all the hooks, it won't work optimally. This is similar to having too little tension in some parts of the body, which forces neighboring areas to have more tension than necessary.
Functions of Fascia:
Support & protection - provides a protective layer for muscles, organs, and other structures
Movement & flexibility - enables smooth movement by reducing friction between tissues
Force transmission - helps distribute mechanical forces generated by muscles across the body
Structural integrity - maintains the alignment and positioning of body parts
Types of Fascia:
Superficial fascia
Found just beneath the skin; contains fat and connective tissue
Helps insulate the body and provides a cushion for the skin
Deep fascia - this is the type of fascia that we focus on in this course
Denser, fibrous tissue, encases/separates/connects muscles, bones, and organs
Helps to transmit forces across the body and maintain posture
Visceral fascia
Surrounds internal organs, providing support and holding them in place
Some fascia structures are:
Tendons - muscle fibers gradually turn into tendons and attach to bones
Ligaments - located around the joints, keeping them together
Joint capsules - also hold joints together, protect joints, and hold synovial fluid
Fascia can become stiff, inflamed, or restricted from injury, overuse, poor posture, or dehydration.
This leads to pain, decreased flexibility, and mobility issues.
For fascia to stay healthy, it needs stress reduction/relaxation, hydration, and movement; it is healthy to move the body in new ways that aren't our habitual motions. Movement not only strengthens muscles; it strengthens fascia as well. Healthy fascia has a web-like structure that makes it more elastic. On its own, it's primarily made of collagen fibers, which are as flexible as stainless steel. Bouncy exercises help to create young and active fascia patterns. Both tendons and muscles are strengthened through resistance stretching. It is also true that strength training increases flexibility. Strength training can also provide more stability when fascia is too lax.
Mechanotransduction is the body adapting to what we do or don't do. This is something that is happening constantly because our cells are renewing constantly. Our fibroblasts are building and building and reacting to whatever we are doing. We are looking to develop elasticity and firmness with a lack of tension.
Week 4: Self Bottle Exercise
Pianists must have strong and flexible hands, supple wrists, and heavy arms, all at the same time. This exercise helps to coordinate these components.
Grab a water bottle with your thumb pointing upwards. The bridge should be engaged, while the PIP and DIP joints stay fairly straight. The base of the palm should be close to the bottle. This will ensure that the intrinsic hand muscles are squeezing the bottle.
From this position, rest the elbow of the gripping hand on a table, closed piano fallboard, or your knee. With the non-gripping hand, grab the top of the bottle and move it towards and away from your face, as the gripping wrist remains free and flexible, moving from side to side. The gripping hand should not be creating any of this movement, but only holding on.
Once that is established, increase the range of motion in the elbow. Repeat the exercise with larger motions so that the elbow opens and closes. The moving hand will be carrying the weight of both the gripping hand and its arm. Try this for about 30 seconds. Relax both hands and notice how they feel. Change hands and repeat.
Video Resource 3: Wall Push-Off
Facing a wall, stand slightly further than arms-length distance away. Fall towards the wall, catching yourself with your hands on the wall and bouncing back to your original position as effortlessly as possible. Elbows should maintain a fairly extended position so that the motion is more of a bounce than a push-up. Between the bounces, let the arms release. They should swing downwards and then back up. This should feel easy, playful, and child-like.
These are actually very quick movements, training the opening of the elbow, activating the tricep, releasing the shoulders, and training the bounce properties of the fascia. This is particularly helpful for piano octaves and chords, or for when string players need to play rapid passages with fast moving bow arms.
Week 5: The Sensory Nervous System
Exteroception - the ability to sense stimuli from the external environment
If our fingertip touches something, different nerve endings tell our brain how intense the pressure is, if something is moving across the skin, and what the temperature of the external object is. In addition to touching an instrument, musicians must also be able to feel themselves in contact with the chair or the floor. Exteroception is used any time we use our eyes to look at the conductor, the score, or the piano, or any time we hear anything. Tasting and smelling are less important to us as musicians.
Proprioception - the ability to sense position and movement in space
This helps us maintain balance, position, and smooth movements of the body. Proprioception relies on sensory receptors in muscles, tendons, and joints that monitor muscle contractions, monitor joint positions, and detect movement. It's essential for smooth and precise movements that take place without relying on visual cues. Proprioception is used any time a person plays the piano without looking at the hands.
Interoception - the ability to sense internal states and conditions within the body
This provides an awareness of physiological processes like hunger, thirst, heart rate, and breathing. It also provides sensations of emotions and musical expression, such as the difference we feel when playing pieces by different composers. The mechanism relies on sensory signals from internal organs and tissues such as fascia. Examples include the idea that the arm is heavy, the weight behind the fingertips, feeling our heartbeats, feeling breath, and feeling tension/relaxation. We need interoception in order to sense the differences in our bodies before and after Timani exercises.
Perception - the process of interpreting sensory information (all our sensory input) to understand the external or internal stimuli based on our previous experiences. Perception is both selective and personal. It is critical for decision making, awareness, and interacting with the world. Examples include recognizing a friend's face or interpreting a loud noise as thunder. For musicians, examples include perceiving a performance or a certain type of music as pleasant or unpleasant, recognizing a piece of music or a genre, or sensing when the body is aligned and playing freely. Throughout the study of Timani, the perceptions of our bodies might change, which creates more options.
In summary, the body has sensory nerves in the skin, around the muscle cells, and in the eyes, ears, tongue, nose, and fascia, that inform the brain what's going on inside and outside the body. These sensations are interpreted based on previous experience and create our perception of our internal and external sense of reality. A clear perception of the body is important for creating accuracy of movements. What we don't feel, we cannot change or control. Playing an instrument requires a high degree of movement accuracy, and therefore a clear perception of the body. While most sensory information happens in the subconscious brain, we can enhance awareness skills through the appropriate exercises for our personal needs and our instrument.
Week 5: Bouncy With Fingers
Before we continue, let's take a look at the bones and joints of the hand.
The group of 8 bones towards the base of the hand are called the carpals. They connect to 5 metacarpals, which connect to 5 proximal phalanges. The proximal phalanges of the 4 long fingers connect to the middle phalanges and then the distal phalanges. The proximal phalanx of the thumb connects to the distal phalanx.
Hand Bones & Joints
What I have been calling the bridge are the four adjacent metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joints. What I have been calling the outermost knuckle joints are the distal interphalangeal (DIP) joints, and the joints in between are the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints. The top joint of the thumb is the interphalangeal (IP) joint, and the lowest is the carpometacarpal (CMC) joint.
This exercise makes it more comfortable to come into the bottom of the key, release the arm, and become more flexible in the wrist. Place the fingertips of the four long fingers onto an elevated surface, like the top of an open fallboard. With firm DIP joints, hang your arm from the fingertips. Slowly, from the DIP joints, pull your heavy and relaxed arm upwards. The arm follows the fingertips.
Once you can do this, use the same muscles to bounce up and down. Check that all the knuckle joints are rounded, especially the bridge, and ensure that the full arm weight is released.
After this exercise, try playing octaves, repetitive chords, or scales.
Video Resource 4: DIP Tune-Up
With your non-working hand, stabilize a PIP of your working hand by placing the 2nd and 3rd fingers behind the joint and the thumb in front. Once the PIP is successfully braced, activate the corresponding DIP joint twice, as close as you can get to 90°. Go firmly all the way down, and come back up slowly. Repeat on all 8 long fingers. This can be helpful because we tend overactivate the PIP joints.
Week 6: Applying Anatomy to Musicianship
Practicing your instrument is a neurological process that involves your brain and body.
1. Practice safety
Consciously practice reducing stress
Keep a solution oriented attitude
