One of the things many of my beginning students – whether
young or adult – find frustrating when they are learning the piano is how long
it takes their hands to execute the movements that are required to play well.
They understand the concept of what they are supposed to do, but they can’t
always get their hands to follow their brain’s instructions. They’ve always
thought about playing the piano well (or any music), as something that’s only
related to musical talent. They fail to take into account is the fact that in
addition to being an artistic activity, it is also a physical one, and so in a
way, musicians are athletes.
This is not obvious in the same way it is for a runner or
a swimmer, but musical training still involves perfecting specialized muscle
movements so that they are in peak condition for a performance. Of course there
are differences between, for example, a runner and a pianist, or other
instrumentalists. Most athletes train to strengthen and control their larger
muscles, whereas a pianist mostly uses movements that are much smaller,
utilizing the tendons, joints, and small muscles of the hands. Superior piano playing
does utilize the muscles of the torso, back and arms, but the small movements
are the foundation. We don’t commonly recognize the athletic part, because our perspective
is different: for the runner, we applaud the athleticism; for the pianist we
applaud the art. In other words, we typically don’t watch a musician and
remark, “Look at those amazing biceps!”
It is important, though, for students
to realize and accept the physical component of creating the art, and how it
takes time to develop. As students learn to play, they are forging new
connections between their brain and their fingers. For the beginner, this
physical aspect can be more difficult than you might imagine. Quite often I
have seen a student intend to press
down the fourth finger of the left hand, and instead another finger goes down.
When this happens, the student is surprised, not realizing that you can’t just think instructions at your fingers; they
have to become accustomed to executing the physical movement first. In fact,
sometimes I tell them to do something with their right hand, and they do it
with their left, or vice versa. Then they are embarrassed: of course they know which is left and which is right. They don’t
realize that in developing new finger/hand coordination, sometimes the signals
get scrambled. (When this happens to my younger students, they are unfazed;
they’re used to confusing left and right.) Of course, these problems fade as
the students develop the mental/physical connection required. For some, very
quickly; for others, more slowly.
More advanced students, particularly
professional musicians, must think of this on a larger scale. It is important
that they take into account their own physical fitness as a component of their
art. Like other athletes, they are often plagued by physical injuries resulting
from repetitive training. Tendonitis and carpal tunnel syndrome are common
afflictions, and must be dealt with and overcome, just as a pulled muscle or
other injury would be for a runner or a tennis player.
When I have beginner or intermediate students
who are frustrated because they can’t get their fingers to do what they are
supposed to do, I remind them that part of playing music is developing the
physical aspect of it, and that this takes time. It’s not all about just the
musical talent and the listening skills. This helps them understand why it
takes longer to learn certain passages, and also helps to convince them that
the exercises I assign them are not just useless drills or tedium. They are essential
exercises for their fingers, hands and arms, and help develop hand-eye
coordination and physical strength that are so essential to playing an
instrument well.
When I teach more advanced students
or performing musicians, I remind them to be conscious of how they are using
their bodies so as not to overtax them. There are obvious things like staying
in good health, but also learning not to tense muscles during practice and
performance, and learning certain playing techniques that minimize stress on
the fingers, tendons, and arms. (That’s a whole other article!)
So while we don’t think of musicians
as athletes, understanding the physical component of making music at the piano,
or singing, or any instrument, is an essential part of the process. This is
true for the beginning student all the way up to the very advanced, no matter
what your level of musical talent.
