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Just wondered if anyone had any thoughts on the below video . In particular when he mentions at about 7 mins about using the left hand to hold the violin up. Thought that was a big no no!
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@Katie L -
I really like this video!
I think it's hard finding the right balance with everything, but each of us has to find our own. I don't want to be gripping my viola with my chin - removing my chin rest has helped me, but it wasn't the 1st adjustment I explored.
...I remember thinking how great it would be if playing the violin would help my arm muscles, joints & circulation - 3.5 years later, I still don't feel like I have enough muscles in my left arm! (lol)
For all you Tech Geeks, there's actually an Instructable to Build an EMG Audio Amplifier! and one to Make Muscle MIDI Music! (using your muscles)!
- Emily
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Emily I need to re watch this video as there is so much good info. I have always struggled with posture and my thumb wants to naturally go underneath the neck ! Some videos say yes do that, some say no don’t ! For me it’s about spreading the weight of it all and having it in mind to distribute it between the left hand and chin / jaw makes sense to me ( I think that what he said ) will definitely re watch !
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Also like the bit about using the weight .. will definitely try .
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@Katie L -
Think I should've asked... are you currently feeling pain in your neck?
Just wondered why you'd want to change anything - thought you've been doing really well! 😶
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I’m not actually sure what’s going on Emily. So I was doing ok like you said but then started to get a bit of neck ache after practing. So i changed my shoulder rest to Kun (I know a bit dramatic) and still got the neck ache but I did prefer the Kun. But after watching the above video and trying to distribute the weight etc I didn’t get any aches! Thank you for asking 😀 I will slog on !
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Hope you have it figured out!
At approx 5:30 in the OP video he talks about the muscles in the upper arm being more suited to holding the violin... wish mine were, I know I'm using them - they're always sore!
Then again, my instruments are on the heavy side... I probably just need to practice more. 😒
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I struggled to find a good way to hold the fiddle without suffering neck or back pain. Shoulder rests just did not work for me, and I disliked the idea of having to deal with extra gear. I tried various chinrests and finally settled on Fiddlerman’s “Comfort” chinrest. For some reason it fits the shape of my body.
I’m sure that my left hand is supporting the fiddle in a way that some folks would think improper, but it’s not a problem for me. I’m working on 3rd position now, and there doesn’t seem to be any issue with shifting.
Addionally, exercise and stretching helped quite a bit. There are a variety of exercises on the Internet and it was just a matter of trying to determine which exercises worked best for me. I settled for waving my arms around in different directions to warm everything up, and then stretching muscles in neck, back, arms, wrists, and fingers.
This all took some time to finally get it all worked out. It may be that some time was required to develop appropriate strength in back, neck, arms, etc.
All of the videos above were interesting, thanks for posting. Miss Moonshine has a video playing Porter’s Reel with that crazy strap. She’s also a great buck dancer!
Strabo
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this has probably been posted before but there is a really good bit at 12 mins. Then at the end when they talk about the shoulder rest. She manages to raise her chin rest with cork I think that’s what I need !!! Maybe…
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@Katie L -
I have seen this in another thread - think it's always good to reassess our set-up from time to time.
I like where she points out having too high a shoulder rest messes up the bowing arm.
I've been trying to play with my Viola a bit more to the left - resting my jaw more than my chin, removing my chin rest made this more comfortable (I do not have a long neck).
Wish my tailpiece was a bit flatter, though - I'm trying to resist my urge to take my Foredom & a grinding bit to it. I might just be looking for a new tailpiece, because I never need to use the fine tuners with the geared pegs, anyway.
Hope I can settle on all this soon - need to feel I'm moving forward, instead of backwards!
- Emily
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Emily I know what you mean! I feel like I go round in circles with my set up. However I think every time I reassess I do make a bit of progress. I think my strategy is to do the arm thing with the weight and make sure I use my arm and not the shoulder muscles when holding the violin. Also be aware of holding the neck at times in my hand and to avoid clamping. I also like the bit about the corner of the jaw I feel like this keeps the violin in place. And the part about looking straight ahead ! Such a good vid. Anyway good luck 🤞 oh and happy new year !!
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