I’m presenting here my MA dissertation from when I was studying at the music department of the City University in London. It is quite dated, written in 1991, and some of the wonderful people I mention there have passed into the afterlife. No doubt much has happened in this field since I wrote it, but the general principles here discussed still hold. The dissertation has been floating around on the internet all these years, and people occasionally refer to it, some even finding it helpful. So I think it should have a place on my website.

 

CITY UNIVERSITY

MUSIC DEPARTMENT

 

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PLAYING THE PIANO: PLAYING

WITH FIRE?

A STUDY OF THE OCCUPATIONAL HAZARDS

OF PIANO PLAYING

 

BY JÓNAS SEN

 

A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MA IN MUSIC

 

SEPTEMBER 1991

 

——————————————————

 

ABSTRACT: The present dissertation is a study of injuries and other

occupational disorders related to piano playing. The symptoms of these

ailments will be described and the causes investigated. Pianists´ problems

often appear simple but, as I will try to show, they may have complex

ramifications and be of different origins. Various therapies; treatment of

the body and treatment of the mind will therefore be explored. Many case

histories will be presented; of these, the problems and recovery of three

pianists whom I interviewed personally will play the leading part and will

be discussed in some depth throughout the thesis.

 

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Contents:

 

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Casualties of the Keyboard

Treating the Body

Treating the Mind

Conclusion

Notes

Bibliography

 

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Acknowledgements

 

First of all I would like to thank my tutor, Dr. Malcolm Troup, for his

stimulating ideas which have had a great deal of influence on the present

work.

 

Secondly, I am very grateful to Mrs. Carola Grindea, the chairman of ISSTIP

and the director of the Performing Arts Clinic at the London College of

Music, for suggesting the idea for this dissertation and for offering help

and assistance whenever I needed.

 

Special thanks go to Dr. Ian James, the chairman of the British Association

of Performing Arts Medicine, for his kindness and valuable information.

 

Lastly, Halldór Haraldsson, ARAM and head of the Piano Department at the

Reykjavík Conservatory deserves my gratitude for his help and inspiration

throughout the year.

 

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INTRODUCTION

 

Performing Arts Medicine is a new name. It is so new that a lot of people

do not know what it stands for. Recently, I wrote to a fairly well known

author, who is considered something of an expert on a certain type of

healing (1). After complimenting her on a book she had written, I asked for

an interview. I have had to speak to several people; therapists, doctors,

teachers, in the process of my investigations, since books on the subject

are hard to come by. There are a number of articles of course, but most of

these are very technical and are only to be found in various medical

journals.

 

The author in question, whom I had assumed could give me a lot of valuable

information, promptly answered me in a very kind letter. After reading it

however, it became evident that she knew nothing about the issue. She had

completely misunderstood me and thought that Performing Arts Medicine

refered to healing by the use of the performing arts. This is

understandable, since after all there are things such as music therapy, art

therapy and therapeutic dances. However, the name Performing Arts Medicine

refers to the study and treatment of various medical problems which can

afflict those involved in the performing arts, and which are related to

their occupation. In a sense it is similar to sports medicine, since

performing artists are a kind of athletes. They have to endure intense

training of their bodies, usually several hours a day, year

after year. An incredible coordination is necessary. And, for the more

competitive among them,  great stamina and nerves of steel.

 

The present dissertation will focus on pianists. The simple reason is that

I am a pianist myself, and have something of a personal experience of these

problems. Other pianists have, also. According to all the surveys which

have been carried out in the past eight years, many pianists suffer from

various health problems related to their instrument. It is obvious that

physical conditions, painful or otherwise can happen to anyone, but the

risk is higher among those who use their bodies as intensively as pianists

and other instrumentalists do.

 

More studies have been done on the prevalence of these problems among

members of symphony orchestras than among pianists. One such study, for

instance, was conducted five years ago by the British Association of

Performing Arts Medicine. It revealed that 50 to 60 % of orchestral players

had at one time or another had an acute physical problem connected with

their playing (2). There is no question that a similar situation exists

among pianists. Pianists seem to be everywhere, and the piano is definitely

the most commonly-played instrument. There is a lot of accompanying,

chamber music, concertos and solo recitals; pianists often live busy lives.

 

Of all the different problems which can arise in connection with piano

playing, the present thesis will mainly focus on physical disorders. These

include painful conditions such as what is now called “work-related upper

limb disorder”, also often refered to as tendonitis or tenosynovitis.

Additionally, a “new” mysterious disability will be explored, a painless

syndrome which usually goes by the name of Focal Dystonia. Then there are

various psychological problems connected to the above, and as these are

very important I shall discuss them as well.

 

In the past ten years or so, there has been growing concern about these

problems. Musicians are becoming aware that playing an instrument can be

hazardous under certain conditions, and the medical fraternity has begun to

develop an interest in the whole matter. A journal now exists called

“Medical Problems of Performing Artists”, published quarterly in the USA.

Most of its contributors are doctors, and it is definitely the main body of

literature on the subject.

 

The first issue came out in March 1986. In it was an article by the once-

famous American pianist Gary Graffman, entitled “Doctor, Can You Lend an

Ear?”. It described a serious hand problem which afflicted him and the lack

of understanding which was exhibited by all the doctors he visited. The

condition forced him to retire from the concert platform at the end of the

1970´s, causing a great stir in the USA. The reason was that he was the

first pianist to publicly admit a grave physical problem associated with

playing. Naturally, the fuss alerted the medical community. However,

pianists have existed for  two centuries. Why is it that it took such a

long time for these problems to become an object of scientific study and

popular interest? The answer is that it was inevitable-sooner or later.

Physical problems associated with musical performance have probably been

around since time immemorial. But musicians have been reluctant to come

into the open with them. Mr Graffman explains why in the following words:

“. . . instrumentalists´ hand problems-somewhat like social diseases-were

unmentionable. Understandably so: If a performer is still performing, or

hopes to get back on the road soon, he´d be crazy to advertise his

disablilities. Nobody wants a wounded pianist. There is an oversupply of

healthy ones. Admitting difficulties is like jumping, bleeding, into

piranha-filled waters.” (3)

 

The above is well illustrated by the case of the great Polish pianist,

Ignace Paderewski, during the winter of 1891-1892 while he was playing

throughout the USA. The entire tour was sponsored  by Steinway & Sons on

the condition that he play only on Steinways. In return, he would make a

vast amount of money. The concert schedule was intense, not to mention all

the social obligations. In 117 days he gave 107 concerts and went to 86

dinner parties. At such a pace, Paderewski was feeling increasingly

fatigued, and to add to the difficulty he found the Steinways very hard to

play on. The sound was beautiful, but producing a big tone seemed to

require great physical strength. His hands were beginning to ache, so he

persuaded the Steinway managers to soften the action. After that,

everything went well until one fatal evening in January. The concert was to

be in New York, and  Paderewski had had no time to try out the piano.

Instead he went straight from the train to the crowded concert hall. As

usual, he mounted the stage and walked to the gleaming Steinway. The piano

showed its white and black teeth in a smile, but Paderewski did not know

that it had been in the factory for servicing earlier that day. A regulator

who knew nothing of the arrangement which had been made, had gone lovingly

over the piano and found that something was obviously wrong with the

action. He restored it and the Steinway was back to its evil self.

Paderewski began to play, but had no sooner been through the opening chords

when something seemed to break in his arm. An enormous pain followed and he

knew that he was in trouble. Somehow, he managed to go through the recital,

and after the applause went straight to the nearest doctor.

 

The doctor was not happy. He told Paderewski that he had torn a tendon,

strained others and injured his finger very seriously. Only a complete rest

could make him recover, and even then it was doubtful if he would ever be

able to play again. But Paderewski refused to listen. Having an injury was

humiliating. And if he cancelled the rest of the tour he would forfeit the

contract. No contract, no money. So in spite of everything, Paderewski went

on playing. The simple fact that he managed to continue is something of a

miracle. At the end of the season, his finger was worse than ever, but with

rest and with the help of a masseur he did finally get back to normal.

 

Others have not been so lucky. The case of Schumann´s hand injury is well

known, for instance. Fewer people know about Scriabin. Yet it was a serious

hand injury which forced him to stop playing and to devote his life to

composing. He was devastated, since his aspirations were towards a glorious

career as a concert pianist. He injured his hand while he was still a

student at the Moscow conservatory, and from then on he composed

ceaselessly. His first work after the problem developed was a sonata. It is

very expressive of the feelings experienced when a pianist loses his

ability. Aptly, it ends with a marche funebre. Since I will be writing

about the psychological aspects of Performing Arts Medicine it is of

interest to let Scriabin himself describe how he felt.

“Gravest event of my life. . .Trouble with my hand. Obstacle to my supreme

goals-GLORY, FAME. Insurmountable, according to doctors. This was the first

real defeat in my life. . . Doubted, however, that I would NEVER recover,

but still my darkest hour. . .Cried out against fate, against God. Composed

First Sonata with its “Funeral March” (4)

 

If Scriabin had been living in our time, he might have recovered. There are

a number of Performing Arts Clinics in the USA, and the British Association

of Performing Arts Medicine (BAPAM) is planning to set up 15 such centres

throughout the UK. At present, there are three clinics in operation in

London. One is the so-called Musicians´ Clinic which is run by Dr R. M.

Pearson. Another is a child of BAPAM  and is sanctioned by the National

Health Service. It is run by the registrars of the rheumatology department

at the Royal Free Hospital and its consultants are on the hospital´s staff.

Finally there is a clinic at the London College of Music which is unique

in the sense that it offers a collaborative team of a doctor, a

physiotherapist, an Alexander teacher, a Feldenkrais practitioner, a

psychiatrist, a counsellor and highly- skilled musicians. This

multi-disciplinary clinic was formed by Mrs. Carola Grindea, and without

doubt she has been more influential in this area than any other person.

 

In 1978 she published a book entitled “Tensions in the Performance of

Music”. Stress, or tension, is a fundamental issue, since physical tension

and stage-fright are a great hindrance in music making and can lead to

injuries. Later in the thesis I will try to show why. At the time nothing

of any importance seemed to have been written on the subject. The book was

therefore intended to make people more aware of the problem and to

stimulate research in the field.

 

Some studies had already been undertaken, however. In 1977, Dr Ian James,

the chairman of BAPAM, had published the results of experiments on

betablockers and their practical use for musical performers. His team

proved that these drugs, which lower the blood-pressure, were effective in

combating such effects of stress as trembling of the hands, etc. Similar

studies had been conducted in the USA at about the same time (5). Mrs

Grindea maintained, however, that beta-blockers were unnecessary; control

over stage-fright could be achieved by using more conventional methods,

such as the Alexander Technique, and others.

 

The Alexander Technique is very popular. It is concerned with relaxation

and the improvement of posture while engaged in various tasks. It has

existed since the turn of the century, and has been found very useful in

Performing Arts Medicine. For a long time it was the only method of

relaxation which had been specially designed to help performing artists.

Today, stress management has become an industry and in the UK the technique

has been taught in the principal music colleges since the mid-1970´s (6).

Before then, however, very few knew about it, let alone practised it.

 

Mrs Grindea´s book received a lot of interest, both in the USA and in the

Its publication led to a seminar which was organised by Dr James, Dr

Paul Lehrer,  a well known American psychologist and, of course, Mrs

Grindea herself. The topic was Tension In Performance and it was held at

the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. The event was quite a sensation

and aroused a lot of attention. It led to the founding of the International

Society for the Study of Tension in Performance, or ISSTIP, at the end of

ISSTIP has been a leading force in Performing Arts Medicine ever

since, and its first conference in 1981 was attended by  parties from all

over the world (7).

 

Journalists became interested. A lengthy article appeared in the Sunday New

York Times, headlined “When a Pianist´s Fingers Fail to Obey”. To my

knowledge it was the very first “in depth” coverage to appear in the media.

It described Gary Graffman´s condition in detail, and Leon Fleisher,

another famous American pianist, received his due as well. Mr. Fleisher had

lost the use of his right hand in a manner quite similar to Mr Graffman.

Was physical tension the cause of their problems? The article  mentioned

the medical team at Massachusetts General Hospital which had been highly

involved in their treatment (8). Soon after, doctors and scientists began

to make systematic studies of these problems, and the hospital in

Massachusetts became inundated with indisposed musicians who had finally

found the courage to come out of the closet.

 

Centres and organisations devoted to this new type of medicine began to

appear, such as the International Arts Medicine Association or IAMA which

publishes a bulletin from time to time. There has also been no end to the

articles written on the subject. In May 1991 “The Strad”, which is one of

the leading magazines for string players, included a long and excellent

exposé of the subject(9)

 

There are many controversies in the field. A lot of debate has been going

on as to whether these various problems and injuries are caused by a wrong

way of playing, or whether they are simply caused by overuse of the body.

Later, I will try to examine the issue in depth. Many doctors think that

there is only one way of playing an instrument, and are not aware of the

subtleties of different techniques. In addition, few of them understand the

psychology of being a professional musician. Mrs. Grindea believes that

there is not enough cooperation between musicians and doctors, which is the

reason why she founded the clinic at the London College of Music. Dr Georg

Gomez, a retired but interested General Practitioner comments:

“A lot of GP´s tend to rubbish the symptoms presented to them by musicians.

Many are not aware of the current thinking on work-related upper limb

disorders, let alone those specific to musicians – after all, how many of

their patients are musicians?” (10).

Therefore, diagnoses tend to be simplistic and based on a lack of

understanding. Today however, the medical community is increasingly

recognising the need to examine the conditions under which an instrument is

played. A close relationship has to be kept with the musical fraternity

and, in addition, scientists are making more and more investigations into

the mechanics of playing, what is natural for the body and what is not.

 

Most of these findings have been published in “Medical Problems of

Performing Artists”. Its editor, Alice G. Brandfonbrener, M. D., has also

organised annual seminars at the famous Aspen festival where doctors and

musicians meet and exchange ideas. There will be more such meetings in the

future. A huge congress with some 80 courses and workshops will be held in

Rotterdam in September 1991. It is called “Medart International” and the

event will focus on the following issues:

“1. The relationship of ARTS AND MEDICINE: phenomenology, philosophy,

aesthetics, neurosciences, biology, bioengineering, etc.

MEDICINE FOR ARTISTS: Specialized medical and allied health care for

performing and visual artists, aiming to diagnose, treat and prevent their

occupation-related or job-threatening disorders,

ARTS AS MEDICINE: numerous applications of the Arts as treatment, namely

music therapy, dance therapy and other creative arts therapies.” (11)

 

I have tried to tell the story of Performing Arts Medicine in the last few

pages. It is not much to tell. As Dr Ian James told me bluntly in an

interview: “Performing Arts Medicine has no past; only a future.” With such

an event as Medart International coming up, much is certainly going to

happen. And let us hope that, as this new medicine expands, the musicians

of the world will find it safer to practise their art, and to enjoy it

without problems and without worries.

 

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CHAPTER 1

CASUALTIES OF THE KEYBOARD

 

Making music is an act which is as physical as it is mental. The brain is

responsible, and the brain is a machine of staggering complexity almost

beyond comprehension. It transmits a multitude of neurological signals to

the rest of the body and, with the right coordination, the movements of the

hands and the arms interact with the musical instrument and we hear the

wonderful sounds of a prelude, a fugue or a sonata. This coordination and

sensitivity is of such a degree, that a whole book, “Music and the Brain”,

has been written on the neurological bases of music perception, talent and

performance (12). The musical profession is also very demanding and very

stressful. There are examinations, auditions, competitions and concerts.

Some or all of these challenges have to be met with an intense

concentration and courage. A special type of fitness and stamina is

required, and it is no wonder that the under such a strain the body can be

hurt in one way or another. The hands and arms of a musician are his most

precious possessions. After all, his whole career, his whole livelihood,

his whole life indeed, is finely balanced on a fragile finger, a nerve, a

tendon or a muscle. Therefore, an injury to this delicate apparatus is a

serious concern and deserves special attention.

 

Below are the case histories of three pianists. Throughout the thesis I

will be discussing their problems and the treatment which they were given.

None of them has had a unique disorder in any way; instead their complaints

are fairly typical of some of the problems which Performing Arts Medicine

aims to solve.

 

We are in a small village not far from London. It is Christmas;  it is dark

outside and the snow-flakes are falling. All is quiet, except for the

sounds of Christmas carols and merriment. Candles have been lit in almost

all windows, and Santa Claus´ presence fills the air.

 

One house is different, however. For a start, no candle adorns the window

and no songs can be heard from it. Instead, almost ceaseless bangings on a

piano. The neighbours are not too happy about this. Who wants to listen to

Stravinsky´s Petrouchka at a time like this? Finally, one brave person has

the guts to walk in direction of the noise and ring the door-bell. A pale

young man answers, but refuses to listen to the complaints. Instead, he

continues the blasphemous music. The neighbours shake their heads in anger

and amazement. “He was never like this! What has got into him?”

 

The reason is not hard to find. An important symphony orchestra has

announced that it needs a pianist. The audition is to be on January 2, and

every applicant is to play the first movement from Stravinsky´s Petrouchka.

 

 

Petrouchka is not exactly easy. The young pianist, whom I will call

Michael, has only ten days in which to prepare. So he decides on a

ferocious work schedule. Twelve hours a day the first three days; ease up a

bit the next four, and twelve hours again the final three.

 

On the first day, everything goes as planned. He wakes up stiff and with

some pain on the second day but decides to practise through it. On the

third day, however, he finds that he cannot play at all! His arms are

aching terribly, and the pain grows worse and worse. The days go by, but

there is no improvement. Michael realises that there will be no audition

for him; instead he has to see a doctor. The cause of his problems seems

fairly obvious but,  as I will show, he received more than one type of

treatment. How he was eventually cured is highly interesting.

 

Josephine is a pianist with a large repertoire. Until our story begins, she

had been giving some 15 concerts a year. Her age at present is 28. She

herself is not quite clear about how it all started. Somehow, at some stage

around a year ago, she began to lose the dexterity of her fingers. There

did not seem to be any reason; the fingers just seemed to be losing the

capacity and agility with which they had been endowed. Soon after she began

to notice this strange development, she started to feel pain in both her

arms. The pain grew steadily, until finally she sought help. As was the

case with Michael, she had to see a number of doctors and therapists.

 

I mentioned in the introduction that there are several controversies raging

in the field. Therefore, the suffering musician hears a hundred different

opinions. My third case was losing her patience when I last interviewed

her. She had actually lost count of all the specialists which she had

visited. She was getting low on the budget as well.

 

The strange case of Elisabeth, who at present is 43 years old, started some

ten years ago. She began to lose control over the third finger of her left

hand. When she wanted to press it down, it went into a spasm and came up

instead. The condition came on gradually, but happened only while she was

playing the piano. She could do everything else with her left hand with

perfect ease, and her GP was puzzled. He did not find anything wrong with

her, and dismissed her complaint as “it is all in your head”. Elisabeth

believed him. She rarely appeared in public, anyway, so the condition did

not bother her much. “My technique is lousy, that´s all”, she thought. She

had been giving piano lessons for a living and simply kept on doing her

business as time went on.

 

Then a year ago, she decided that she would like to start playing the piano

again. Not a recital or anything like that; playing for the simple fun of

it was all she wanted. She felt that her technique was seriously in the

need of being looked into. So she began with some scales, some finger

exercises and some Chopin études which she had learnt in her teens.

However, her third finger of the left hand refused to obey. And in

addition, her right hand began to develop similar symptoms. The fourth and

fifth fingers would curl whenever she had to play octaves. This meant a lot

of wrong notes, no matter how hard she tried. It did not make any

difference whether she played slowly or fast, the fourth or the fifth

finger simply would not be there when she needed them. Elisabeth saw her GP

again. And this time she refused to be sent away. She has not recovered

yet, but there have been some improvements. Therefore, let us follow her

trail and hope that she may find the solution to her ailment.

 

Pianists may suffer from many problems associated with their instrument.

These are usually classified into performance-related and

non-performancerelated disorders. There is a third group in addition which

is the subject of yet another controversy. Dr. Ian James, the chairman of

BAPAM,  describes it as

 

“a painless lack of control. The term occupational palsy has been used by

some but it is important to emphasise that the problem is painless” (13)

 

Performance-related disorders are also called overuse syndromes, misuse

syndromes or RSI which stands for “repetition strain injury”. The latest

term is “work related upper limb disorder”, which has the advantage of

implying neither overuse nor misuse. The controversy surrounding these

terms has been mentioned. Misuse implies incorrect use of the body or

faulty technique. The terms overuse and RSI, on the other hand, mean that

the muscles or tendons or whatever have been stressed beyond their limit

simply because of the time and intensity of the performance or practising

which caused the injury. In other words “intensity multiplied by time”

(14). The case of Michael would be an obvious overuse injury, for instance.

But then, a lot of pianists practise for hours and hours without any

problems whatsoever. Why do some suffer from these injuries, and not

others?

 

One of the greatest experts of Performing Arts Medicine in the UK is Dr. C.

Wynn Parry. I asked him whether a sudden twelve hours of practising

would be called an overuse or misuse of the body. “Misuse”, he replied

without blinking. “Sudden twelve hours mean that you don´t know how to pace

yourself. But even then, if you were practising twelve hours using the

right technique, you wouldn´t have any problems.” Let me however quote Dr.

Hunter Fry, who is a plastic surgeon in Australia. Dr. Fry is considered an

authority on the subject, and has written a number of articles. He favours

the term “overuse”, but still acknowledges the importance of right

technique.

“1. Some people are more physically strong and can play for longer hours

even with a tense technique, without incurring injury. These people are

very fortunate, but it cannot be predicted who the genetically advantaged

people are.

The person´s technique is an important factor. Excessive incoordinated

muscular activity in the technique will interfere with good execution.

Joints that are overstabilized by excessive muscular tone will require more

force to move them, and the joint will be less responsive. All other things

being equal, the person with effortless coordinated technique will always

be further away from the threshold of overuse injury.

Intensity multiplied by time is an all-important factor. The author´s

studies indicate that most students practice themselves into injury through

use that is excessive for their own bodies. Even robust individuals can

contract overuse if the use is great enough.” (15)

 

 

The findings of the first scientific study of such problems were published

in 1983. A medical team described their experience with 100 musicians who

had sought professional help due to various hand afflictions. Forty-two had

disorders of the musculo-tendinious unit which are usually called

tendonitis or tenosynovitis. These syndromes are therefore the most common

occupational problems of musicians (16). Subsequent surveys have confirmed

these findings. According to the study, most of the victims seemed to be

pianists. However, as I mentioned in the introduction, the piano is the

most popular instrument. Therefore it is only natural to expect pianists to

be the ones which are most frequently affected by misuse or overuse.

Typists also suffer quite often by these disorders. And female musicians

are more commonly affected than men. In a survey conducted by the

Performing Arts Medicine Society in Australia, 12- to 16-year-old girls

were the most vulnerable to injury (17).

 

The terms Tendonitis and Tenosynovitis have been somewhat misunderstood as

they refer strictly speaking to an actual inflammation in the tendons and

in the tendon sheaths respectively. The same applies to epicondylitis or

inflammation of the tendon attachment at the elbow, usually called “tennis

elbow” or “golfer’s elbow”. “Tennis elbow” is another frequent affliction

among musicians. It is common for the suffering person who consults the

doctor to complain of pain and swelling in the affected body part, but upon

examination, no swelling can be detected. Furthermore, anti-inflammatory

drugs have been tried, but they do not seem to be very helpful. Therefore,

“true” tendonitis, which is a specific condition and easily verifiable, is

actually quite rare among musicians. The same applies to tenosynovitis and

epicondylitis (18).

 

The frequent lack of objective clinical findings, despite the tearful

complaints of the patient, is the cause of still more arguments. Medical

textbooks tell one that pain means swelling, whether the eye can see it or

not. The inflammation presses the surrounding nerves and one feels pain.

However, the absence of visible physical signs means that it is difficult

to know with any certainty what lies underneath the surface. A way out

would be to take a muscle biopsy, but this is rarely done (19). As

mentioned before, some doctors simply shake their heads and say that there

is nothing wrong with the weeping musician. No clinical findings; the

symptoms must be imaginary. They believe that many of these cases are

nothing more than a “craft neurosis” (20).

 

Performance-related injury as a neurotic symptom or as simple hysteria

could be the subject of some discussion. It is not unlikely that some

degree of mass hysteria might arise with the advent of Performing Arts

Medicine, because it does make people aware that there are occupational

hazards associated with music performance. It is easy to imagine a

hypochondriac pianist. . .In Australia between 1983 and 1985, RSI, or

Repetition Strain Injury became epidemic among keyboard operators such as

typists and others working with screen-based equipment. The condition was

called “kangaroo paw”. It went so far, that even children were taught about

the danger of the keyboard in schools. They were almost told that “if you

play the piano, you play with fire!” Some doctors refused to believe the

symptoms, however, since in most cases they saw nothing wrong with the

patients. They argued that the occupational hazards of the keyboard were

completely imaginary and that RSI was simply psychological.

“The occupational or craft neuroses have produced . . . (frequent)

epidemics. In each, the craft neurosis has been attributed to injury as a

result of work. Time has proved this to be otherwise, usually because the

work has continued while the alleged harmful effects have ceased with the

waning of the epidemic. Only a psychogenic basis for the occupational

neuroses could explain the time-course or the variations among epididemics

from time to time or region to region; they have been greater than is

possible for physical or mental illness and yet each epidemic has been

stereotyped in the one community.” (21)

 

Localised pain and tenderness over the tendon and sometimes in the

surrounding area are the main symptoms of RSI or “work related upper limb

disorder”. Often the injury to one tissue causes an increased strain upon

another, so multiple tissues are usually affected, either sequentially or

at the same time. As a rule the pain increases upon stretching or

contracting the involved muscle. As was the case with Michael, unusually

intense music making, as before a concert or an audition, precedes the

condition in most cases.  But both Dr Hunter Fry and Dr Wynn Parry

emphasise that the

technique, as well as the time and effort, is important. Upon observation,

the sufferer from a performance-related problem often has a poor posture

and/or other bad physical habits connected with playing. This misuse of the

body has usually lasted for years and has become an ingrained habit.

 

Bad posture can be described as a constant battling against the force of

gravity instead of utilizing or “flowing with” it. If the back is not

straight, an unnecessary amount of muscle tension is created simply to

maintain the balance of the body. This muscle tension is often a positive

hindrance against the movements and gestures making up a musical

performance. It results in a kind of a discoordination of the

interdependent voluntary and involuntary systems of the body. Explained

simply, the voluntary system has to do with voluntary movements, whereas

the involuntary system governs automatic functions, such as the heart beat,

digestion and most muscular reflexes which are necessary to maintain the

balance of the body. An armour of tense muscles is maintained by the

involuntary system, if a person is under stress. Agonistic and antagonistic

muscles may even be straining at the same time. One is voluntarily

performing, but the involuntary system is making it very difficult.

 

But what then is a correct or natural technique? There are several teachers

around teaching “the one and only right method of piano playing which will

save you from the horrors and miseries of all the other methods of piano

playing. . .” Such a teacher would maintain that all injuries happen

because of the folly and ignorance of some idiot professor of the past who

led the victim into his vast world of errors!  But is there only one way of

playing the piano? It would seem not, since the great pianists usually play

quite differently from each other. What is similar to most of them is the

ease and coordination in their performances. It follows then that there are

many correct techniques, but they always involve maximum relaxation.

 

Earlier, an overuse injury was defined by the formula of “intensity

multiplied by time”. In view of the above, I can perhaps come up with a

formula for performance-related syndromes caused by misuse as “intensity

multiplied by time and poor use of space”. Or even “intensity multiplied by

time, poor use of space and feeling low”. This is because a bad posture and

a high degree of muscle tension is sometimes associated with anxiety and

depression. Stiff arms can be caused by emotional stress; playing the piano

in such a condition can be harmful to the body.

 

Overuse/misuse syndromes may in fact have deeper causes than seems at

first. The pioneering1983 survey mentioned above found that

 

“among the most frequent concomitant medical disorders were a history of

…alcoholism, manic depression (and) hypertension…” (22)

And Dr. Fry writing on the overuse syndromes and their victims in The

Lancet (September 27, 1986) notes:

“Fluctuating mental depression often appears different from a simple

reaction to the disorder and needs further investigation.” (23)

 

The anxiety and depression need not necessarily be caused by professional

reasons at all. Richard, a concert pianist aged 30, had an intense concert

schedule when a close friend died suddenly. He had often in the past had

periods of frequent performances but never had any physical problems

before. At this time however he began to suffer from crippling pains in the

back which began to interfere with his playing. The pains became so severe

that he had to stop.  The physiotherapist that he subsequently consulted

told him that the pains, which were muscular, were tension-related and very

likely caused by a combination of grief and anxiety coupled with the

intense physical activity of performing. It was also discovered that

Josephine, who mysteriously stopped being able to play, had an emotional

problem which caused her physical symptoms. Her case will continue in

chapter three, where I will examine the issue.

 

It is interesting to note how dangerous the mental attitude can be. There

is often a disregard for the initial symptoms of an injury. In a survey

conducted by Alan H. Lockwood, almost 80 % of the musicians responded in

the affirmative when questioned whether pain was an acceptable factor in

the overcoming of technical difficulties (24). There is often an attempt to

play through the pain, a widespread tendency to avoid medical help and to

indulge in all kinds of self-diagnosis and self-treatment.

 

However, pain does go away sometimes. Let us not become hypochondriacs! The

muscles may simply be a little stiff and need some exercising. But often

the patients who come for the first time to a Performing Arts clinic have

had the symptoms which they complain about for years. Why? Well, eight

years is not a long time. And it has only been for about eight years that

the musical profession has received any serious medical and scientific

investigation. Therefore, in the past, musicians perhaps felt that the

doctors did not understand. As is so well illustrated with the case of Gary

Graffman whose problem caused him during a period of three months to visit

eighteen doctors and receive nearly as many diagnoses:

“Miraculously, (he)…was found to be suffering from the specialty disease

of each specialist (he)…visited. Finally, a famed  Parkinson´s authority

decided that (his syndrome)…exhibited the very earliest symptoms of this

debilitating affliction” (25)

 

However it was a wrong diagnosis. Gary Graffman was eventually found to be

suffering from “the painless lack of control” which I mentioned earlier, a

disease also called focal dystonia (see below).

 

We now come to those problems which can be called non-performance-related.

These are medical disorders which have nothing to do with music making.

Some of these include osteoarthritis, thoracic outlet syndromes and various

kinds of neural impingement or nerve entrapment such as the notorious

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Many other diseases such as diabetes, nervous

disorders, alcoholism, tumours (even death!) can also inhibit musical

performance. Naturally, there is no space here to explore these different

maladies. Some of them have to be mentioned, however, since a number of

patients come to the Performing Arts Clinics suffering from these

conditions.

 

The line between performance-related and non-performance-related syndromes

is sometimes a little blurred because there is often the “wear and tear”

associated with long-term playing on an instrument which can be one of the

contributing factors in bringing some of these diseases about.

Osteoarthritis, is

 

“…of complex multifactorial origin…(but) repeated petty traumata have

an important role to play in …(its) genesis” (26)

 

In one study, the radiographs of the hands of 20 active pianists were

examined and were found to reveal changes of a degenerative nature. These

changes were probably in more or less direct relationship to the mechanism

of piano playing for they were more prominent in the right hand, with the

ring and little fingers the most seriously affected.

 

Nerve entrapment can be caused by muscle and tendon hypertrophy such as the

rare actual tendonitis resulting from misuse or overuse. However it can

also be caused by diabetes, kidney failure, alcoholism and even

malnutrition. The main symptoms are “paresthesias” which is a term employed

to describe

“spontaneous sensory phenomena such as numbness, tingling, prickling,

burning, coldness and even itching…” (27).

 

There can also be pain, cramps and loss of strength and dexterity. The pain

is usually aching and occurs when the arm is at rest, as well as when it is

being used. Sometimes changes occur in the appearance and temperature of

the skin. Nerve conduction study and other electrodiagnostic studies are

frequently necessary in diagnosis and in localizing the exact place of

entrapment or compression.

 

One of three main nerves are usually involved. These are either the Median

nerve, the Ulnar nerve or the Radial nerve. They originate from the

Brachial plexus, which is located in, and slightly above, the arm-pit.

These three nerves ennervate both muscles and skin which means that they

control both motor and sensory functions.

 

The Median nerve is the one most liable to compression. It rules or

controls some of the flexor muscles of the fore- arm as well as many

muscles in the hand, such as three of the four thumb muscles. It also

creates sensation in the thumb, the index, middle finger and half the ring

finger. The Ulnar nerve is the second most commonly involved in these

maladies. It controls the functions of the other flexor muscles of the

fore-arm, all intrinsic handmuscles not ennervated by the Median nerve and

governs the sensation in the little finger and the other half of the ring

finger. The Radial nerve controls the extensor muscles of the arm and is

the least frequently afflicted of the three.

 

The most common of all the neuropathies is the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome,

which refers to the entrapment of the median nerve in the wrist. The median

nerve passes through the Carpal Tunnel which is

“bounded by a concave arc of wrist bones below. . . , and a thick

transverse carpal ligament above, joined in this delineated space by nine

flexor tendons” (28).

 

As stated above, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, as well as the other nerve

entrapment disorders, can have many causes and performance-related overuse

or misuse may be one of them. The main symptoms of this particular syndrome

are pain in the hand with paresthesias in the thumb, index, middle and ring

fingers. Sometimes however there is the experience of sensory loss. The

disease usually occurs in both hands with the dominant one being more

afflicted.

 

The most famous case of this syndrome in the field of Performing Arts

Medicine is probably the one affecting Leon Fleischer, whom I mentioned in

the introduction.  His problem was fairly complex, and the numerous medical

practitioners whom he visited were quite baffled by his condition. It was

in many ways similar to the one afflicting Gary Graffman, a focal dystonia

which will be discussed later. Whether the later onset of Carpal Tunnel

Syndrome developed as the result of the dystonia or independently is not

clear.  His right hand became painful yet numb, involuntarily claw-like and

eventually useless for all practical purposes. An operation was performed;

it cured the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, but left the dystonia unchanged (29).

 

There is a number of other nerve entrapment syndromes, but these are less

common, and there is no space to mention them here. In any case they are

all purely medical conditions, which a Performing Arts Clinic would refer

to a neurologist, a hand surgeon, or some other specialist.

 

A lack of coordination is a group of medical problems which affects

performing musicians. In a survey of 1000 ailing musicians, 14 percent had

this affliction, and again the overwhelming majority were pianists (30).

The best known form of the disease is the so called “writer´s cramp”  which

refers to the inappropriate contraction of agonistic and antagonistic

muscles of the hand during writing, thereby making the action difficult or

even impossible. The cramp is usually “task specific”, which means that the

hand can perform all other ordinary acts with ease.  Among musicians, the

parallel syndrome is sometimes called  “occupational cramp”, but the more

common term is dystonia which means difficulty in (muscle) tone. Another

less common term is dyskinesia, meaning difficulty in movement.

 

Dystonia is usually divided into three categories, namely generalized,

segmental or focal. The generalized dystonia affects the motor control of

the whole body and the segmental one usually involves two or more adjoining

body-parts.  Focal dystonia, on the other hand, refers to the lack of

control over only one specific portion of the body, such as a particular

muscle.

“The presentation is characteristic: patients report incoordination while

playing, frequently accompanied by involuntary curling or extension of

fingers during passages of music that emphasize rapid, forceful finger

movements. Facial muscles may be involved, with a resulting loss of

embouchure or air seal. The problem…once established, evolves very

slowly, if at all, over a period of many years” (31).

 

 

The most common type of dystonia among pianists is that illustrated by the

case of Elisabeth. Both Gary Graffman and Leon Fleisher suffered from it,

also; a failure of the ring and little fingers to extend properly, such as

in the playing of octaves. These fingers have the tendency to droop, or

even to curl or flex involuntarilyinto the palm while playing.

 

The causes of dystonia have been the subject of much debate as to whether

it is purely a physical disease or a psychiatric condition.  Certainly, the

numerous synonyms for this malady, such as professional neurosis,

professional impotence, occupational spasms, occupational neurosis,

occupational palsies and craft palsies, reflect the many different views on

its nature and cause. In one study of 34 patients suffering from

occupational cramps, there was a “remarkably low incidence of psychiatric

disability” during the onset of the condition, thereby suggesting that

dystonia is indeed of organic origin (32). Ten percent of patients

suffering from writer´s cramp report previous hand injury, suggesting that

trauma may be a causal factor in dystonia (33). In some forms of dystonia,

a genetic basis has been established, and different kinds of dystonia have

been found in

several members of the same family (34).

 

However, in J. Walton´s  “Brain´s Diseases of the Nervous System”, which is

in current use and is a much-respected textbook of neurology, writer´s

cramp and other similar disorders are classified as psychogenic diseases

(35). Generally, no physiological, biochemical or structural abnormalities

have been identified in association with dystonia, and this has led many to

favour the psychogenic hypothesis. Dr Ian James reports some success by

using anti-depressants in the attempt to cure this condition, suggesting

the above (36).  Perhaps there are a number of causes, psychological and/or

physical.

 

Fairly often, dystonia seems to be stress related. Dr Wynn-Parry, whom I

cited earlier, finds that its onset is often caused by great pressure from

more and more professional asignments. The patient is never at ease, never

relaxed, and eventually the control mechanism of the brain becomes

exhausted and seems simply to refuse to go on. The problem then begins with

motor control disturbances of the weak spot in the playing of the

instrument in question, such as the fourth and fifth fingers of pianists.

 

There has also been some speculation as to whether dystonia is caused by

some kind of technical faults. As I have tried to show, there is a

relationship between tension and bad technique. The chronic stress and

anxiety mentioned by Dr. Wynn Parry may result in tense and even awkward

movements of the hand and/or arm so that the musician is playing in an

increasingly forced manner.  Repeatedly, one may be liable to unwittingly

contract inappropriate muscles while performing a certain gesture, and this

tendency can develop into a habit. Since the movement is unnatural, fatigue

sets in, the desired task becomes more and more difficult and finally quite

impossible.

 

As should now be clear, Performing Arts Medicine is quite complex. The

problems are not always as simple as they seem; there is more to overuse

than meets the eye. There may be many different causes which are not

apparent on the surface. A successful musical profession is built out of

many elements, and various factors can go wrong. Various types of treatment

are therefore needed. The advantages of a multi-disciplinary clinic seem

obvious, since the doctor needs to be able to discuss his findings with,

and perhaps refer to,  professional musicians, psychologists and other

therapists. In the subsequent chapters, the more common methods

of treatment will be explored.

 

——————————————————

 

Chapter 2

Treating the Body

 

For the majority of musicians suffering from the problems which I have

attempted to describe, the chances of recovery are generally good. Surgery

is rarely indicated, except in the cases of nerve entrapment where it may

be the only effective treatment. Overuse or misuse disorders are those most

likely to respond successfully to therapy which includes rest as the basic

feature (or at least reduced playing time, in the case of less severe

problems).

 

Some doctors, however caution against resting. Very often, pain can be more

psychological than physical and the cure has nothing to do with rest. If

the technique or posture is faulty and this is corrected, the pain will go

away very soon. But if rest is  necessary, splinting is frequently needed

for the muscles and tendons to recover. Sometimes, this is coupled with the

use of ice, as in ice massage, to further aid the healing process.

Frequently, the local injection of certain anti-inflammatory agents may be

needed.

 

Since the vascularity of the tendons is low, recovery can take quite some

time, or up to eight months or even longer in the case of more serious

injuries. The involved muscles tend to atrophy if the patient has to

abstain from playing for such a long time.  A necessary part of the

treatment will therefore often include the rebuilding of the weak muscles,

sometimes accompanied by fairly intense and regular massage.

 

In the first chapter I mentioned the successful use of anti-depressants in

some cases of dystonia. A paper entitled “Medicine and the Performing Arts,

the Stage Fright Syndrome”, Dr Ian James, presents a case history which

illustrates the successful treatment of dystonia by the use of a drug

called

Bromocriptine (37). It is a drug which is given to those who suffer from

Parkinson´s disease. However here is another controversy, for Dr Alan H.

Lockwood, writing in The New England Journal of Medicine states:

“Other forms of therapy have been used, including treatment with steroids,

diazepam, propranolol, bromocriptine,  tetrabenazine, and tricyclic

antidepressants, psychotherapy, biofeedback, muscle retraining, and

surgery, with uniformly disappointing results” (Italics mine) (38).

 

There have also been some experiments with the injection of Botullinum

toxin  into the affected muscle, with at least temporary benefits.

 

One of the imperatives in the treatment of these maladies is to look into

the possible causes in order to minimize the ever-present risk of

recurrence.

I keep mentioning bad habits of posture and hand use. Apart from

physiotherapy there are specific techniques that deal with these

conditions, especially the Alexander Technique, the Feldenkrais Method and

Yoga. Then there are persons who are sometimes called “piano therapists”.

These are professional pianists with a special understanding of how poorly

coordinated body-use can contribute to injuries. Carola Grindea is one and

there are others as well.

 

The first thing Michael´s doctor instructed him to do was to take a lot of

pills. These included muscle relaxants, anti-inflammatory drugs and pain

killers. His arms felt so bad that he could not even do physiotherapy. The

pills produced no improvement, so Michael went to see one of the doctors

who runs a Performing Arts Clinic in London. There he was injected with

steroids, which are often used to combat inflammation. However, there was

still no improvement. By then four months had passed, and Michael was

becoming pretty desperate. What could he do? He was willing to try

anything.

 

Josephine went to the same doctor who made her wear tight straps around her

forearms. But this did not do any good either. So she went to another

authority in the field. This doctor told her it was all nonsense; her

problem only seemed physical, but in actual fact it was not. So he referred

her to a counsellor.

 

Elisabeth, on the other hand, was sent to a neurologist. He gave her a drug

called benzhexol which is supposed to

“produce modest improvements in tremor, rigidity. . . muscular stiffness

and leg cramps” (39).

However, these improvements were far too modest and Elisabeth decided to go

elsewhere. She saw the same doctor who had initially treated both Josephine

and Michael. He found some muscle wastage at the base of both her thumbs,

and recommended physiotherapy.

 

Physiotherapy can be quite effective with performance-related cases, at

least in the initial stages. It is also often attempted with the

coordination problems. Most physiotherapists examine the body of the

patient when he is playing the instrument in order to see which postural

errors or technical faults may be causing the pain or the lack of dexterity

which the patient complainsabout. In some clinics, the process is even

aided by the help of a video camera so that the musician can himself study

his mode of playing.

 

The spine is checked as well as how the arms, wrists and hands are used.

Very often, the neck is found to be stiff and the shoulders almost

constantly raised, which naturally throws off the balance of the arm. Also,

the back is frequently curved forwards and there is a general excess of

tension which by this stage has become chronic. Here, a specialist musician

may aid the physiotherapist in locating an error in technique which may be

causing the problem, since he has the understanding and experience of how

subtly unnatural movements of the arms, wrists and fingers can cause

difficulties.

 

Whatever the fault, the physiotherapy will start with a massage of the soft

tissues involved. This is extremely important because, as mentioned

earlier, there usually is a chronic tightness in the painful area and the

muscles have to be loosened up if there is to be any improvement.

Frequently, a kneading type of massage is used. Another form of massage, a

so-called trigger-point massage, can also be quite effective. The

trigger-points are the soft spots or areas in the muscle where the maximum

pain is located. If one can relax this painful spot the whole muscle will

be relieved of its tension. A healthy muscle should naturally be soft when

it is relaxed. Additionally, certain stretches are frequently very useful,

because the tension has usually led to the shortening of the muscles as

well.

 

At first, it is very important not to proceed too brusquely. Usually the

suffering musician is extremely anxious about the whole issue, and needs

constant reassurance. Elisabeth had a fit of anxiety and did not sleep for

a whole night after having had her first treatment. The reason was that,

during the session, the physiotherapist exclaimed despairingly: “You have

so many problems that I don´t know where to begin!” By this he meant, in

addition to the muscle wastage, tensions which seemed to afflict most of

her body. She also tended to curve her back while she played.

 

Elisabeth found the physiotherapist´s massage too harsh and went to another

who was far gentler. He started the healing with soft massage, then some

postural reeducation, and she was given a few simple exercises to practise.

These included various stretches for the arm, and some gentle selfmassage.

She was also instructed to do relaxation exercises.

 

Physiotherapists often use modalities like ultra-sound, laser and an

electronic equipment called the Interferential. I would like to touch

briefly upon some of these aids as they are frequently used in the

treatment of

“work-related upper limb disorders”. It must be emphasized however that

these items do not work any miracles, but are rather supposed to stimulate

the body´s own natural healing processes.

 

Ultra-sound is used to break down excess scar tissue. Scar tissue is not

soft like ordinary skin or muscle and consequently does not stretch easily.

Therefore, this procedure may be needed, because when the body has had an

injury, the resultant scar, which is frequently far larger than is actually

necessary, can be quite uncomfortable and even immobilizing.

 

Interferential is an equipment which has four electrical pads attached to

A pair of these pads is placed on the opposite sides of the affected

limb, the electicity is then turned on and each pad emits a current of

different intensity. This is no shock treatment, so the currents are quite

low. However, they interfere with each other inside the arm or other

relevant body part-hence the name-and thereby create a field of sufficient

intensity to stimulate the tissues to reabsorb fluids created from

swellings. Here we come upon the inflammation controversy again; needless

to say, these swellings are in most cases invisible to the naked eye.

 

The lasers which are used in physiotherapy are soft lasers unlike those

which are employed in surgery. They create certain chemical changes or

reactions in the body which attract more white and red blood cells into the

area. The white blood cells clear away the debris from the injury and the

red blood cells bring in more oxygen to aid the healing.

 

I myself once injured my right little finger. This happened while I was

working on a very difficult piece of music which demanded, among other

things, loudly played chords with a very clearly heard melody at the top.

At the time I got the idea that my little finger, which plays the melody,

was not strong enough so I decided to strengthen it with some exercises

which I myself had invented. Then the disaster happened. I felt pain at the

tip of the finger each time I pressed it down. This worried me more and

more because, even though I took three weeks off practising, the finger did

not heal. Finally I went to a doctor who often employed some of those

processes which I have just mentioned. She used a laser on me which did the

trick and I had no more problems with my finger. But I had the wisdom to

dump my finger exercise, and have not done it since. . . (40).

 

The muscles which need to be strong are the muscles of the hand and of the

forearm, since both groups of muscles govern the movement of the fingers.

Previously, I mentioned that the muscles tend to weaken with the prolonged

rest which is often recommended as part of the treatment. A recent

invention to prevent this happening is called the Rosedale Web and is a

lattice of rubber bands inside a metal circle approximately one and a half

feet in diameter.  The fingers are placed inside the web and a great

variety of muscle strengthening exercises can be performed. To quote an

example:

“1. Place your fingers into the grid in a wide open grip and open and close

them, so that your fingers and thumbs touch…2. Insert your fingers into

the centre grid close together then expand your fingers outwards using your

free hand to assist the movement where necessary. When you have improved

enough you can also insert two or

more fingers into a single aperture and then expand.” (41).

 

All of the above is often helpful in the treatment of performance-related

problems. Elisabeth, however, did not find her cure there. She did feel

better in a general sort of way, but her hand problem remained. So she

decided to try the Feldenkrais Method. This is a type of treatment which is

increasingly recommended for those who suffer from dystonia or coordination

problems. Dr. Ian James thinks highly of it, and has said on several

occasions that he knows of many cases which have been cured by the

Feldenkrais Method alone. Dr. Wynn Parry agrees and recommends it also.

 

The Feldenkrais Method is concerned with developing awareness of movement,

how one performs a certain gesture and how one can perform it in many

different ways. When someone has lost the coordination of a certain muscle,

or injured it by “unnatural” way of using it, the brain and the nervous

system often need to be reeducated so that the patient will relearn how to

do that which has become difficult or impossible.

 

However, changing a habit is usually far from easy, as anyone who has had

to change his technique has experienced. The Feldenkrais Method seems to

have found the conditions which can accelerate the learning and relearning

of various motor skills. Basically, this is done through feeling and

awareness. As they say in the Feldenkrais Method, a fool cannot feel. . .

It is very important to learn to differentiate through feeling between the

various parts of the body. Anat Baniel, who is an internationally renowned

teacher of the method, describes the process in the following words:

“…each skill (that) we aquire is based on prior skills and has a

developmental order to it. So for a musician to acquire movement skills, we

intentionally

create conditions for certain differentiations to happen. For instance,

someone starting to play a violin doesn´t know anything about it, including

how to hold it. Initially, he has to start with the very first

differentiations which allow him the first step, then the second and third

and so on. In the Feldenkrais Method, there is a very detailed

understanding of which movement ingredients need to come before other

movement ingredients can be introduced. So when we work with a musician,

beginner or professional, we see which elements are not available or

haven´t been differentiated and integrated into the desired skill. We help

the person learn those details that gradually integrate and create a more

evolved system.” (42).

 

The method tries to use a very natural approach to learning. In many ways

it imitates the infant and how it gradually learns how to stand, walk and

so forth. The baby carries out an almost endless and seemingly irrelevant

variations of crawling, rolling, moving the head, etc. In this way it

explores new movements and slowly achieves a full coordination of the body.

In the Feldenkrais Method the learning process also contains many

variations of movement and action which at first may seem unrelated to

whatever the eventual goal of the treatment may be. The reason is that each

variation includes an element of differentiation that is important in one

way or another for the eventual regaining of the lost or reduced

coordination. Differentiation and integration are the basics of learning.

 

The Feldenkrais Method is concerned with self-improvement, both

psychologically and in physical posture and coordination. It recognizes the

wholeness of man and that all human activity consists of feeling, thought,

sensation and movement. By feeling is meant such  emotions as joy, anger,

self-respect and inferiority. Thought includes all intellectual functions

such as analysis, classification, imagination and so forth. Sensation

refers of course to the five senses as well as the kinesthetic sense of

space orientation and the passage of time. And finally, movement includes

all possible changes in the position and state of the body, whether it be

speaking, breathing, walking or circulating the blood.

 

According to Feldenkrais, any one of these factors interacts with, and

influences the others in the waking state at all times. The emotions

especially influence the state and action of the muscles. One is often only

dully aware of what feelings are inside until they express themselves in

some form of muscular activity such as laughter, clenched fists, changed

breathing etc. The process apparently is reversible. Consequently work

upon, and the correction of, physical movements is an effective way towards

emotional equilibrium and general self betterment.

 

Feldenkrais reasons:

“Movement occupies the nervous system more than anything else because we

cannot sense, feel, or think without a many-sided and elaborate series of

actions initiated by the brain to maintain the body against the pull of

gravity. . . We know more clearly and certainly about the organization of

the body against the pull of gravity than we do about the other components

(feeling, thought and sensation). . . A person´s physical build and his

ability to move are probably more important to his self-image than anything

else. . . the muscular pattern of the upright position, facial expression,

and voice reflect the condition of the nervous system.” (43).

 

Therefore the condition of dystonia – difficulties in motor control – may

reflect some form of psychological malaise. I interviewed Roselyn Walters,

a practising Feldenkrais teacher, who takes referrals from doctors

specialising in Performing Arts Medicine. Mrs. Walters is of the opinion

that these problems occur more often than not to people who are liable to

depression and anxiety, usually caused by working under too much pressure

or by trying too hard to achieve or succeed in one area or another.

 

In the first chapter I mentioned the controversies surrounding the issue of

dystonia and that it may in some cases be caused by faulty, stress-related

habits at the instrument. Many piano teachers seem to share this attitude.

It is possible that a continuously anxious performer can play in this

forced manner for a long time without noticing any difficulty. Then

something happens which creates increased anxiety and/or depression. This

causes the weak link in the chain to break and suddenly one has no longer

the strength to keep on forcing that which in any case was never natural.

The victim then begins to notice the difficulty. But due to the sufferer´s

focussing upon it, and becoming conscious of something which had hitherto

been more or less unconscious, the problem only gets worse. It is then

necessary to become aware of tensions and discomforts which perhaps are due

to emotional problems, and learn to differentiate between those muscles

which should act and those muscles which should be relaxed.

 

I have previously referred to writer´s cramp as the best known form of

focal dystonia, consisting of the simultaneous contraction of agonistic and

antagonistic muscles during the act of writing. The conscious

differentiation between those muscles has become considerably distorted

and, in view of the above, it should be obvious how therapeutic the

Feldenkrais Method can be.

 

The work is usually done in groups, but lessons can also be given on a

one-to one basis. Each session usually lasts from 45 minutes to an hour.

Anat Baniel, whom I quoted above, teaches the Feldenkrais Method at the

Tanglewood Music Centre in the USA. Leon Fleischer, no stranger to the

subject of this thesis, is the artistic director of the centre and has a

high regard for the method. He said that before its inclusion in the

curriculum there was usually

“a small army of musicians who´d have overuse or practice-related injuries,

whereas last summer(1989) there was only one.” (44).

 

 

The movements carried out during the lessons are exploratory rather than

goal oriented. The only goal is to experiment and explore many different

ways of doing things, whether it feels good or bad etc. As Anat Baniel

describes it:

“Each lesson is different from other lessons so the student does not fall

into automatic, habitual patterns of movement. The lessons are designed to

be interesting, fun, and absorbing for the student. They are created to

match the student´s level of ability so that the student is taken from his

or her existing level of skill to the next possible level.” (45).

 

All movements are done very slowly and only a few times. More often than

not they are done when lying down. The reason for this is that when one is

in the upright position, a lot of the brain’s work is concerned with the

direction of the muscles maintain balance. So when one is put flat on the

floor, the brain is more open to learning, because the nervous system does

not have to occupy itself with reactions to gravity. The nervous system

frequently does not recognize the most familiar movements, if these same

movements have been done previously in a more demanding position. So

habitual actions are suddenly strange and new. Therefore it is easier to

trick the brain, as it were, into learning new movements or changing old

ones when lying down. According to Roselyn Walters, when one is

reorganizing one´s technique, one should actually practise some of the new

movements in this way, then the nervous system will be quicker to pick up

the unfamiliar way of playing.

 

There have been cases when a pianist could not do certain movements on the

keyboard when sitting in front of it, but could execute those very same

passages when standing. This can be explained by what I said previously

about the developmental order of learning when playing an instrument. One´s

technique is based on a ladder of finer and finer differentiations. The

aspiring pianist starts with those which are necessary: to learn how to sit

in front of the piano, then  how to hold the arms and hands, then how to

move the fingers, etc., etc. The first habit learnt, i.e. that of sitting,

influences the second habit, the second habit affects the third and so on.

Therefore, when one stands or even lies in front of the instrument, one is

altering the very fundamentals, and is not bound by the chains of past

conditioning.

 

Elisabeth seems at last to be finding the solution to her long-standing

dystonia. When I last interviewed her, she had had twelve individual

lessons. At first, her teacher helped her to go through some basic

movements which  all students explore. Then they began to focus on her

hands. They discovered that Elisabeth was not differentiating enough

between the muscles of the thumb and those of the fourth and fifth fingers.

The thumb was not working properly, and she was “helping” it by

involuntarily contracting these other fingers. I mentioned that one of the

doctors found muscle wastage at the base of both her thumbs. This does not

sound strange in view of the above. She is now working on her thumbs and

trying to develop their strength and independence. She has found some

improvement already at the piano and is hopeful about the future.

 

None of my three cases has had any Alexander lessons. Yet it is a

time-tested method. In England there are 700 people registered as members

of the Society of Alexander Teachers (46). It is often recommended by

doctors, especially to those who suffer from performance-related disorders

which have originated in postural defects. Serious injuries cannot be

treated in this way, however, because the effects of the Alexander

Technique are quite slow. So the technique is more effective with those who

suffer from minor back aches, shoulder pains, stiff neck, etc., which are

fairly common among pianists.  Certainly, someone who has fully

incorporated the technique into daily life will experience a greater degree

of comfort and ease in all physical activities.

 

Basically, the technique is concerned with the body´s reactions to gravity.

The fundamental theory has been summed up in the following words:

“1. The reflex response of the organism to gravity is a fundamental

feedback mechanism which integrates other reflex systems.

Under civililized conditions this mechanism is commonly interfered with

by habitual, learned responses which disturb the tonic relation between

head, neck and trunk.

When this interference is perceived kinesthetically it can be inhibited.

By this means the antigravity response is facilitated and its integrative

effevt on the organism is restored.” (47).

 

I have previously discussed the relationship between the voluntary and

involuntary nervous systems when discussing what characterizes bad posture.

There I described it as a constant battle against the forces of gravity

instead of utilizing or “flowing with” it. The tonic relation between the

head, neck and trunk, which is mentioned in the citation above, is termed

the Primary Control, and the state of it affects the quality of our

functioning as a whole. If the back is straight and the neck is free with

the head lightly balanced on the spine, the body is more harmonized and one

needs less effort in maintaining equilibrium. Thus the anti-gravity

response is minimized. Unfortunately, there is a strong tendency in most

people to curve the back, resulting in the head being tilted backwards.

Consequently various muscular tensions are created to maintain the balance

of the body. This downward pull of the body also results in a shortening of

the back of the neck, and this of course affects the neck muscles.

 

The freedom of the neck muscles seems to be extremely important for the

coordination of the body. This is for more than one reason. For one, they

contain far more muscle spindles than does the rest of the muscular system.

These spindles are receptors which send messages to the brain, telling it

how much the muscle is shortening or lengthening and how quickly. In

physiology these receptors are called proprioceptors, from Latin proprius,

meaning one´s own. Experiments have been carried out where anaesthetics

were injected into the neck muscles of animals, resulting in total numbness

in the area. As a result of simply having no feeling in the neck, and

thereby having no knowledge of the exact degree of the contraction of these

muscles, the animals lost much of their coordination. The following is

quoted from a description of an experiment with monkeys:

“…(they) staggered when they tried to walk, they had poor localization of

points in space so that they would miss when trying to pick up morsels of

food. They had difficulty in climbing tasks and missed grasping points…”

(48).

The same only happens with the surgical disconnection of the cerebellum,

the part of the brain which governs muscular coordination.

 

To further illustrate the importance of the neck muscles, I would like to

mention a colleague of mine, a pianist who developed a problem which was

characterized by a feeling of vertigo while performing on stage. He did not

have any Alexander lessons, but went to a physiotherapist instead. The

physiotherapist diagnosed the problem as an immense tension in the neck

which was actually restraining the normal flow of blood to the brain. By

regular sessions of massage and by consciously relaxing the neck muscles,

especially while playing the piano, his problem was eventually solved.

 

The Alexander Technique recognizes the importance of the neck and aims at

freeing it. This is done by moving the head slightly forwards and upwards;

in this way the above-mentioned shortening of the neck is avoided. The back

must be straight and, when bending it, the movement must come from the hip

joints without curving the spine. Arthur Rubinstein is often pointed at by

Alexander teachers as being the one pianist who never needed Alexander

lessons. Bill Benham, who is a teacher of the Alexander Technique at the

Performing Arts Clinic founded by Carola Grindea, told me in an interview

that he had once seen Rubinstein in a concert. His posture had impressed

him very much because he always played with his back straight. Once, he had

almost stood up from the chair to let the entire weight of his body fall,

as it were, upon the keys, playing very loudly, yet with perfect ease and

lack of effort.

 

Apart from acquiring better posture and improved body mechanics, students

of the technique have also reported increased calm and confidence, relief

from insomnia and a greater ability to concentrate (49). The technique is

not directly related to performance. Therefore, an Alexander teacher

helping a pianist need not be a pianist himself. The focus is on a better

general use of the body and a more coordinated function of the primary

control. This results in an improvement of all functions of daily life,

including playing the piano.

 

The basic steps of the Alexander Technique have been summed up in the

following words:

“1. Learning to stop one´s usual reactions-not through suppression, but

rather through a conscious refusal of allowing them to take place.

Alexander called this the “inhibition of habitual reaction”;

“2. giving conscious mental directions to bring about the most balanced

state in the “primary control” of our total coordination…

“3. proceeding with any required activity while maintaining  this

consciously directed condition.” (50).

 

The Alexander lesson has been compared to a “hands on” alternative or

spiritual healing session. The teacher uses a special touch with the hands

to harmonize the primary control in the student, thus “giving” the sensory

experience of a correct posture and movement instead of teaching it

verbally. Positive approach is considered very important; instead of

focussing on what has gone wrong, the student is made to concentrate on the

body as it should be, both with the help of the teacher´s hands and also

with the use of mental affirmations and suggestions such as “head forward

and up!”. This is similar to when music teachers urge their pupils to first

study a passage and then practise it slowly. The importance lies in always

playing correctly and gradually increasing the tempo, instead of practising

fast and reinforcing one´s errors and wrong notes.

 

Lessons are usually private. A very important part of them involves the use

of a chair. The teacher uses his or her hands and words to help the student

get into, sit in, and arise from an ordinary chair without curving the

back, shortening the neck or losing  the balance of the head. Naturally,

changing such basic habits as how one rises from a chair is actually quite

difficult and takes a long time to integrate completely. The same applies

to the playing of an instrument; it is  even more difficult because playing

is a trained reflex. Therefore Alexander himself, the founder of the

method, insisted on seeing his pupils three times a week. In modern times,

this is often difficult and Bill Benham, whom I cited above, is of the

opinion that many people do not get what they should from the lessons

simply because they do not have enough of them. The Alexander Technique is

a way of life, and should ideally be taught from an early age. This has

been successfully attempted in certain schools, such as the Purcell School,

Wells Cathedral School and the Junior Department of the Royal College (51).

The technique will not make anyone play wonderfully, but it will help to

ensure that many of the misuses which lead to performance-related disorders

will not occur.

 

Another technique which is often recommended to those who suffer from

postural-related problems is Yoga. Yoga usually refers to a complex set of

physical exercises which are termed “asanas”-asana  being the Sanskrit word

for posture. Unlike the Alexander Technique, which can be called “active

continuous”, Yoga could be called “active intermittent”. In other words,

Yoga involves the adoption and maintenance of certain anti-gravity postures

during fairly brief sessions on a regular basis. The Alexander Technique on

the other hand requires the conscious use of the muscles in new ways

throughout the day.

 

Many of the Yoga exercises can be very helpful in correcting bad posture.

When practising  the asanas, great emphasis is usually placed on a straight

back and a balanced head position. One exercise in particular has been

recommended for the back by Dr Mossaraf Ali who is on the advisory board of

the Performing Arts Clinic at the London College of Music. This asana has

been termed “The Cobra” and is performed in the following manner: one lies

flat, facing forward  with the palms placed on the floor beneath the

shoulders. The head and the upper torso are then raised in an arc as high

up in the air as possible and this position maintained for some time. It is

absolutely essential to use the back muscles and not those of the arm when

performing this difficult stunt. As a result of regular practice the back

muscles are strengthened, and any forward curvature of the spine that one

might have grown accustomed to corrects itself automatically with time.

 

Another facet of Yoga is meditation. Meditation actually seems to be a term

covering an unimaginably wide variety of mental activities, but in all

cases some psychological benefits are promised to the practitioner. In

Yoga, meditation is always carried out in an upright sitting position with

the spine as straight as possible. Sometimes this is done in an asana

called the lotus position, which requires legs made of rubber instead of

muscles and bones. There is a mystical reason to the straight spine:

according to Yogic theory there is a secret channel inside the spine which

connects a certain esoteric power zone in the pelvis to the brain. The more

ambitious Yoga practitioner hopes to release the cosmic energy in the

pelvis and to direct it upwards along the channel to the head. This can

only happen if the energy is not obstructed on the way by any unnatural

curvature in the back. If all is right, then the lucky person is able to

see angels and behold the face of God in a light-show something akin to a

Pink Floyd concert. Be this as it may, Yoga can certainly be very helpful

and has in many cases been recommended by doctors when dealing with

postural-related problems.

 

Relaxation is an essential factor in Yoga. There usually is a relaxation

exercise at the end of each session of asanas. In addition to this, it is

very important when performing each exercise to relax as completely as

possible all those muscles which are not involved, which is somewhat

reminiscent of the differentiation which lies at the heart of the

Feldenkrais technique. Consequently, one develops an awareness of tension

in areas which should be relaxed when performing a certain task. A Yoga

practitioner can carry this awareness to the piano and benefit

considerably.

 

Michael did not try any of the methods described above. Instead, he went to

a faith healer. A number of various types of alternative medicine exist

today. Most of these approaches are based on the belief that the mind

influences the body to a greater extent than one would suspect. In fact,

the body is often seen as a mirror image of the psyche, and what goes wrong

“inside” is reflected in physical disorders “outside”.

 

Some  doctors agree up to a point. Recently, a book entitled “The Healing

Brain” appeared on the subject by David Sobel, a physician, and Robert

Ornstein who is a professor of Neurobiology at Stanford University. They

maintain that western medicine has for too long separated body and mind,

and that the brain itself “minds the body” (52). The belief in the aid of a

supernatural force can also be very powerful and, in any case, believing or

not believing in whatever treatment one receives significantly affects the

outcome. “Faith moves mountains” is an old saying, and the following

account illustrates this truth quite beautifully:

“Religious fervour temporarily gripped Guatemala City recently when, after

a rainstorm, the face of Jesus Christ (or what he is believed to have

looked like) appeared on the wall of a church; prayers were offered and

miraculous cures were reported. More rain made the face clearer until it

was recognised to be that of Willie Nelson, a country and western singer

whose picture had been stuck to the wall and the painters who redecorated

the church wall had painted over it.” (53).

 

Michael had only one session with the faith healer. She did not seem to do

anything; they only sat together in a room and closed their eyes.

Nonetheless, Michael suddenly felt cured. He went back home and played the

piano without any pain whatsoever. Subsequently he told his story to the

doctor who had unsuccessfully tried to treat him. But the doctor refused to

believe it. He maintained that the anti-inflammatory drugs which he had

given to him some time earlier had-a bit belatedly-effected the cure, not

the faith healer.

 

Another doctor thought differently. Michael was in fact cured before he

went to the faith healer, only he did not know it! The pain and the

inability to play the piano were so firmly engraved in Michael´s mind that

the symptoms existed long after the injury had healed.  Something

extraordinary was needed to dispel this negative image, and the faith

healer did that in an admirable way.

 

Just before Michael had his miraculous cure he had his piano technique

examined by a well known piano teacher. She pointed a few things out to

him. He was not using his arms very freely. But was this the result of the

injury, or was the injury result of his way of playing? Michael did not

remember exactly how he positioned his arms at the piano before his

problems started. He had never given it a thought; he just played. Some

“errors” in technique which piano therapists point out may actually be the

result  of the injury or the dystonia. The pianist may be trying to play

despite the disability and this may result in some very awkward movements.

The piano therapist notices the strangeness of it all and believes that

this weird use of the body is the cause of the problem. An attempt is

consequently made to correct the fault, but the fault is only one of the

symptoms, not the main problem.

 

But in the case of definite misuse injury and/or pain, it is important that

the sufferer´s technique be re-examined. If this is not done, the same or

similar problem may recur with resumed playing. However, as I stated

earlier, it is difficult to change one´s habits. Also, the unfortunate

“misuser” usually does not realize where the error lies and needs help in

spotting the culprit.

 

I would like to mention one person in London who deals with most types of

musicians. This is Mrs. Jean Gibson who has an excellent reputation. Both

Mrs Gibson and Carola Grindea take referrals from doctors. I have

interviewed Mrs Grindea and Mr Peter Feuchtwanger, an internationally famed

piano teacher, and they agree that gentleness, not force, which is harmful,

is essential in building up a healthy technique. Relaxation is imperative.

Excessive tension seems to be a plague among musicians. According to Mrs

Grindea, every case which she has examined at the Performing Arts Clinic is

guilty of either stooping shoulders, tense wrists, tense arms, tense neck

or similar error. I have quoted Dr Wynn Parry who says that one should be

able to play for endless hours without injury if it is done correctly and

without strain. This opinion is shared by both Mrs Grindea and Mr

Feuchtwanger. So the issue is how to play the piano without tension. The

ability to release the tension and maintain the relaxation of those muscles

which are not in use is the basis of a healthy way of playing the piano.

 

There is a special relaxation method which has many similarities to the

Alexander Technique. It has been found very useful, especially just before

a performance. It can also be quite effective when dealing with the

stresses and strains of daily living. It takes only a minute and can be

practised several times, daily. It is called the Grindea Technique because

it is the invention of Mrs. Grindea. Every patient who comes to the

Performing Arts Clinic is made to do this little exercise.

 

The exercise is performed in a standing position in the following manner:

First the musician is asked to “allow the spine to lengthen”. In other

words, the back is gently straightened without any effort. This

automatically seems to liberate tensions at the back of the neck and be

conducive to a balanced head position. After this has been achieved, the

musician exhales loudly and slowly by uttering the syllable “Ha”. This

relaxes the diaphragm area and there are certain physical changes which

become apparent. The shoulders, for instance, relax and the musician

generally feels very comfortable. After this complete exhalation, the body

also inhales differently. The inhalation is complete and full, and this is

very necessary when dealing with tension. The breathing must become regular

and deep, because in all states of stress it is shallow and irregular.

 

The relaxation is made complete by the third step which is “liberating the

whole body through the loosening of the ankles”. One simply orders the

ankles to become very supple and flexible, and this final gesture releases

all the remaining tensions in the body. It becomes light and there is an

exhilarating sensation of floating.

 

This is a very easy exercise. The difficulty lies in carrying the

relaxation to the piano and maintaining this wonderful state during playing

and practising. Fortunately there is no need to tense up in order to

embrace and hold the piano as one does with a violin or a wind instrument.

The piano is much more detached from the body, therefore the only important

thing is that the body of the pianist be in a state of balance.

 

One should sit on the front half of the chair or stool in order to be able

to utilize the force of gravity. The gravity should be pulling the front

half of the body; in that way one is able to let the weight of it create

those effortless Rubinsteinian fortissimos which I mentioned earlier. On

the other hand, if one sits on the whole of the chair, the centre of

gravity is altered and one is much less able to let these fantastic bombs

drop on the keyboard. Mrs. Grindea believes in the sitting position

depicted in the ancient Egyptian paintings of the Pharoes and gods. The

chin is basically at right angles to the neck, and the back at right angles

to the keyboard and floor.

 

According to most piano teachers, one of the fundamental issues in piano

playing is how one uses the arm weight. The arm is very important in tone

production and in the creation of great sonorities and fortissimos. When

the shoulders are relaxed, there is automatically more arm weight resting

on the hands and fingers. And when the arms are relaxed, there is a

wonderful sensation of having no arms at all! At that moment, the arms are

in a state of balance and this is a prerequisite for a healthy technique.

 

The shoulders should not move forwards when the arms are raised and the

hands placed on the piano. This however is a common fault and inhibits the

agility of the arm. All movement of the elbow is thus considerably

inhibited, and movements such as passing over the thumb are rendered more

difficult. Of course, one should not pass over the thumb by raising the

elbow but rather by letting go of the thumb after it has depressed the

required note. With a correct hand position, that is, with the wrist

slightly outwards and the back of the hand as horizontal as possible, the

fourth or the third fingers are then in a comfortable position to continue

the passage, descending with the right and ascending with the left. I am

describing pure finger technique and yet, a very slight movement of the

elbow is absolutely necessary in this task. This is one reason why a

balanced shoulder and a relaxed, agile arm is of fundamental importance. It

facilitates the movements of the fingers.

 

A very common error according to Mr Feuchtwanger, is when the hand, instead

of being completely horizontal on the keyboard, is allowed to tilt towards

the little finger. This might seem more natural, however, since the anatomy

of the body makes for a vertical position of the hands when the arms are

completely relaxed.

 

I have come across a school of playing which is based on this fact. It is

the brainchild of a certain Monique Deschausées who teaches in Paris,

Canada and Spain. She maintains that the arm must be as relaxed as

possible, and the completely horizontal hand position mentioned above makes

for undue tension. However, if the hand is allowed the more natural

position, then the weight of the arm and upper torso rests obviously more

on the little finger than the others. Poor little finger! Being the weakest

of the five, this is hardly fair. But then Mrs Deschaussées has a

countermove.  This involves exercises designed to strengthen the fingers,

especially the little one. After some months of practice, the finger will

be bulging with strength and able to support the arm and torso, both

weighing I don´t know how many kilograms. Peter Feuchtwanger protests: “How

can you strengthen the fingers? There are no muscles in the fingers, only

tendons. Therefore the fingers cannot be strengthened.”

 

A school of piano playing should be based on sound scientific knowledge. To

quote Raoul Tubiana, M.D., and Philippe Chamagne, P.T., writing in “Medical

Problems of Performing Artists”:

“Instrumental musicians use their hands and arms continuously and, usually,

unconsciously. They adopt positions and develop trick movements to

facilitate their playing without considering the physiologic balance of the

muscles or joint biomechanics. . . Some positions are favorable because

they are physiologically normal. Others are unfavorable and put the

musicians at risk for the development of serious problems.” (54).

 

Peter Feuchtwanger claims to be able to “mould” with certain exercises the

natural relaxed position of the arms. So when the arms hang loose, the

thumbs and not the palms face the sides of the body. This would make the

pianist look like an ape! However it would also guarantee the naturalness

of the horizontal hand position. The arms should in any case not be allowed

to touch the sides of the body when playing. Instead, the elbows should

turn a bit outwards which can be achieved without undue tension.

 

Michael´s new piano teacher told him that he had the tendency to play with

the arms almost glued to his body. This made his wrists turn inwards

instead of outwards when touching the keyboard. After his cure, the more

relaxed way of using the arms was a new and wonderful sensation to him. He

even claimed that he would never have injured himself if he had played

Petrouchka like that, twelve hours or not!

 

The suppleness of the wrists is imperative as well. Vovka Ashkenazy recalls

that one of the first thing he learnt from Sulamita Aronovsky at the Royal

Northern College of Music was always to “breathe” with the wrists (55). By

this I mean the constant up and down movement which effectively prevents

tension. Peter Donohoe, the famous British pianist, once consulted Carola

Grindea because he could play all the Chopin études except for one. This

was the Opus 10 no 2 in a-minor which is probably the most difficult and

tiring of them all. No matter how hard he practised, he did not seem to be

able to manage it. Mrs. Grindea gave him the above mentioned trick of

breathing with the wrist, which worked, and Mr Donohoe had no more problems

(56). The same goes for rapid octave passages; a mobile wrist prevents

tension and one is able to play both faster and without fatigue.

 

Another important factor is minimum movement. Small movements are logically

more effective than large movements. Also, the fingers should not be too

curved. Carola Grindea vehemently maintains that this is the cause of many

cases of dystonia manifested in the involuntary curling of one or more

fingers. Dr Wynn Parry agrees to the point that playing with relatively

flat fingers (not completely flat of course; only to the extent that one is

able to see one´s finger nails when playing) is physiologically more

natural.

 

Finally, a respect for one´s physical constitution is an obvious factor.

Somebody who is very tiny and with small, fragile hands should not bother

about playing Rachmaninoff´s 3rd piano concerto. He or she should stick to

Scarlatti. . .

 

The teacher should be something of a counsellor. The pupil must feel that

he is important. This can not happen if the teacher is egocentric,

suffering from a transcendental Messianic complex and delusions of

grandeur.

According to Mr. Feuchtwanger, many of the students of great performers,

like Schnabel or Horowitz, seem pretty much to have been psychologically

destroyed by their awe of the great professor. The teacher should be

patient and not put pressure on the pupil. He should rather let him or her

develop at a pace which is natural to the individual.

 

However, our culture glorifies youth and age-limited competitions seem to

be the only path to a career. Everybody wants to be famous and to possess

fortune and glory. Therefore, in this rat-race, to use a term frequently

employed by the great Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti, one is

sometimes bound to forget one´s individual limits. Even if one has the

talent, a demanding solo career takes a lot more than that. A thick skin,

stamina and a certain kind of one-track mind are only some of the qualities

of a concert pianist. Somebody who aims too high for his natural physical

and psychological endowments will have to pay the price, which can often be

an injury or even dystonia. Let me therefore end this chapter by

paraphrasing Beethoven´s famous dictum: “Pianist, know thyself!”

 

——————————————————

 

Chapter 3

Treating the Mind

 

In the present chapter I will endeavour to explore some of the

psychological illnesses which are either the cause or the result of the

physical problems described previously.

 

In the first chapter I mentioned that the medical history of those

musicians who sought professional help in Performing Arts clinics most

frequently included illnesses such as manic depression, stress and

alcoholism. These disorders were not always simply a reaction to a physical

injury, but seemed to have been lingering around for quite a while before

the physical trouble started. I will try to show how stress and depression

may be important causal factors, not only in the coordination problems as I

have previously suggested, but also in the performance-related injuries.

Naturally these same injuries often create additional psychological

problems, and therefore a vicious circle of, say depression/stress-injury-

increased depression/stress is formed.

 

In addition to psychiatrists, there are counsellors who specialise in

treating artists. Later in this chapter I will try to investigate the

methods of this therapy and mention the drugs which both doctors and

psychiatrists frequently use.

 

The best treatment is holistic. An injury or a focal dystonia can hardly be

treated solely on the couch. However, the counsellor or psychiatrist may be

a significant help in alleviating fear, stress or depression which can

block the performing musician in a variety of ways. As I have mentioned,

highly coordinated muscular activity coupled with stress is very bad for

the muscles and can be conducive to  injury. Therefore, it is necessary to

explore this issue of tension to some extent. Why is it so prevalent in the

music world?

 

There are many factors involved. Stage fright, concerts and competitions,

changing a teacher, how one is viewed by one´s colleagues, whether one

really wants to be a musician, the low salaries of the music profession and

how to get work after graduation. There are many others as well, and the

list seems endless.

 

For instance, all my colleagues whom I have questioned on the matter have

had the experience of coming to a new teacher who, during the very first

lesson, shouted angrily: “Mein Gott! Who taught you zhis terrrrible metode

of spieling zhe klavier? Ve vill haf to change everything!” Having to

change habits that have taken years to incorporate is a devastating blow

and can be a source of a great deal of misery. And often the poor student

has to labour through millions of exercises, only in order to change

everything once again as he or she leaves the professor and goes to a new

teacher in Paris, London or New York.

 

Another factor is the fierce competition in the musical profession, and

also in the music colleges before the commencement of a career. It is very

common to have all sorts of high expectations which, upon arrival in

whatever the college, are not met. One may have been the best pianist in

one´s hometown and cherished the dream that the same would prevail in the

rest of the world. Then suddenly one faces the fact that in the college of

one´s choice one is among equals. So one grits one´s teeth and practises

harder than ever before. After all, one set forth to college with the

determination to become bigger, better and brighter than all other

pianists, so everything is to be sacrificed for that one noble cause. The

trouble is that almost everyone else thinks the same. This is an example of

the rat race. One is not simply involved in a difficult training out of

pure love for music, and indeed that love may be totally forgotten in this

atmosphere of ambition and struggle. The entrance fee to this everlasting

competition is stress and tension. And for the underdogs, who slowly begin

to realize that they “won´t make it” as “big shots”, there is depression as

well.

 

Actually, people often come to music colleges with completely unrealistic

ideas about how it is to be a full-time professional. Martin Lloyd-Elliot

is a counsellor at the Performing Arts Clinic at the London College of

Music. He is amazed how bad career counselling in the colleges seems to be.

People usually have no sound business plans as to how they are going to

earn a living after they leave their teachers. After all, very few people

get rich in the music profession. This has even led many to wonder why

people opt for music at all! One of these is the economist Charles Gray. He

has suggested that

“performing artists must be a pretty peculiar breed; their behaviour does

not seem to make much sense. Why would anyone seek employment in a

profession that pays notoriously low average salaries and entails equally

notorious unemployment and underemployment? Clearly, these people are

behaving in an irrational manner. Or are they?” (57).

 

This “irrational” choice of a career in music is quite hard for many people

to make, and has often involved serious inner conflicts. Interestingly,

there is evidence that the amount of stress that people suffer from when on

stage is actually affected in some ways by how the musician arrived at his

or her career decision, which in turn is influenced by certain early

inter-personal

relationships. There has been developed an “Identity Status Model” which

groups musicians into categories according to the way they made this

choice. Studies were carried out quite recently at the University of

Michigan School of Music which measured the different amount of “stage

fright, fear of success. . . (and) self-handicapping behaviour. . .”

between each group (58). The musicians were categorized in the following

manner:

“Identity Achieved

When applied to musicians, Identity Achieved individuals seek careers in

music performance but have also tried or thought seriously about other

options. . .Ultimately they have arrived at their choice, perhaps despite

parental objections and, most importantly, are relatively conflictfree.

Identity Foreclosed

Identity Foreclosed individuals, like Identity Achieved, maintain that a

career in music is their goal. However, these people, unlike the Achieved

musicians, never have considered carreer alternatives. Generally, they are

following a career path or life style predetermined by their parents, and

their self-esteem is greatly dependent upon authority figures (which

includes parents, teachers, and audiences).

Identity Moratorium

Identity Moratorium individuals are musicians currently in crisis about

their career plans in the performing arts. Currently undecided and weighing

alternatives, these individuals are considering their talent and potential,

parental objections, and social and economic problems that confront

performing artists.

Identity Diffused

The last category in this paradigm suggests that Identity Diffused

individuals may pursue music professionally because they enjoy music and

the attention performance brings; however, they also feel other professions

can offer satisfaction as well. . . (This reflects) a lack of commitment as

well as a lack of struggle. . .” (59).

 

 

Even though these categories are a kind of psychological portrait during a

particular period, the underlying dynamics of each stage are connected to

childhood and adolescent experiences, especially relationship with parents

and family. These are very strong influences in the shaping of career

plans, ego strength or the lack of it, and the degree of stress-related

symptoms. Therefore, there is a connection between high levels of stage

fright and high levels of family pathology. The anxiety generated from

unhealthy family relationship worms its way into the professional lives of

many unfortunate individuals.

 

The study revealed that Achieved subjects were statistically lower in

performance anxiety than were the Moratorium, Diffused and Foreclosed

subjects. This is not surprising, since the Moratorium individuals are

experiencing a crisis, and the Diffused ones are uncommitted to their

careers. The Achieved and the Foreclosed individuals appear very much alike

in their commitment to the musical profession, but there is a very

important difference. The Foreclosed musicians are motivated mainly by

parental expectations and have a very suppressed individuality. In other

words, their choice of a carreer was never their own and even though they

are listening to their own piano playing, they may not necessarily be

listening to their hearts. This lack of a strong ego makes them higher in

stage fright than the Achieved musicians, because anxiety over the loss of

parental approval and love is often projected to the audience. The Achieved

subjects have, on the other hand, had the courage to work through problems

with family, solved other troublesome issues that often arise in connection

with music, and have eventually found that music, and all that music

implies, is what their life is all about. They have arrived at knowing

exactly what they truly want and are therefore relatively free from inner

conflicts.

 

Unconsciously, the Moratorium and the Foreclosed subjects may actually want

to injure themselves in order to escape from an impossible situation,

which they have not had the courage to face honestly. The counsellor Andrew

Evans finds that a disproportionate number of the misuse syndromes occur to

people who come from families where the father has a successful career and

the mother is a housewife. The possible reason for this is that the mother

may have tried to use her child to fulfill her ownpersonal ambitions which

had hitherto been frustrated by her position at home.  She herself probably

wanted to become a musician and sees in her child  the potential

realization of her dream. Escaping from such a situation is not easy,

because    the mother subtly threatens the withdrawal of her love if one

expresses one´s personal desire to do something entirely different in life.

The injury then “happens” and usefully serves as a secondary benefit. It

creates a way of escape from “monstrous mama”, and one is free to do what

one wants (60).

 

Now that I have looked at the element of stress in Performing Arts

Medicine, the other side of the coin needs exploration too. This is

depression. As with stress, depression is very common and there are many

causes of depression in the music world. There is depression resulting from

isolation and loneliness, which is not uncommon among pianists. It must not

be forgotten that pianists are rarely members of an orchestra. Therefore,

private teaching is the average pianist´s lot, and this is often a lonely,

not to mention dull, way of making money.

 

In addition to this, there are other causes. A special syndrome exists

which is called Post-Performance Depression. Then there may be a huge load

of depression caused by some personal problem which has nothing to do with

music at all.  There is also, as stated previously, quite a tangible

depression caused by the injury or cramp of a finger. And major depressive

episodes when that same finger refuses to heal. This is one of the reasons

why the holistic approach is the best. It is because few doctors merit the

name of Dr Jekyll and Mr Freud; they are unqualified to deal with these

psychological side effects, and have to refer their patients to a

psychiatrist or a

counsellor.

 

There is also depression which is simply organic. In other words, it is not

a reactive depression as are the instances mentioned above, but is caused

by certain chemical processes which are associated with cerebral

dysfunction. Manic depression fits this last category (61). As pointed out

earlier, manic depression seems to be one of the psychological causes of

injuries and motor coordination problems.

 

The presence during two weeks of five symptoms out of the nine listed below

meets the criteria for a major episode of reactive depression. These

symptoms are:

Depressed mood.

Loss of pleasure or interest in most daily activities.

Loss of sleep or, conversely, hypersomnia.

Recurrent thoughts of death, suicidal thoughts or even attempts at suicide.

Some form of “psychomotor agitation or retardation”.

Lack of concentration and indecisiveness.

Fatigue.

Weight loss or gain which is not related to dieting.

Feelings of guilt and worthlessness (62).

 

The organic form of depression, however, is manifested in a special kind of

personality and the person with a manic-depressive temperament has been

described in the following terms:

“. . . one could say that normal people become conditioned by receiving

enough love as small children to expect that others will give them

approval, and thus proceed through life with confidence. People who remain

in the depressive position have no such built-in confidence. They remain as

vulnerable to outside opinion as a baby is vulnerable to the withdrawal of

the breast. Indeed, for such people, the good opinion of others is as vital

to their well-being as milk is to the infant. Rejection and disapproval are

a matter of life and death; for unless supplies of approval are forthcoming

from the outside, they relapse into a state of depression in which

selfesteem sinks so low, and rage becomes so uncontrollable, that suicide

becomes a real possibility.” (63).

 

People of such a disposition experience difficulties in finding a normal

outlet for their aggressive impulses. Since self-esteem is so much

dependent on other people there are frequent feelings of rejection. There

is a compulsive “good” behaviour, however, in order to receive as much

approval as possible. So all aggressiveness against those who frustrate

them is repressed and rage turns inwards (64). A self-destructive pattern

develops and there is a very definite tendency to physical self-abuse,

whether this is unconscious or not. The road is then clear to a Performing

Arts Clinic with an abused wrist, misused finger and an overused arm.

 

The manic phase can also easily lead to the same. An overconcern with

something is one of the main characteristic of this pathological state

(65). A kind of a “work orgy” of maybe a fifteen hours a day is typical in

order to bolster the low self-esteem, with fairly obvious consequences.

 

Other states of depression which come to the attention of a team working in

a Performing Arts Clinic is the phenomenon of Post-Performance Depression.

“Post-performance depression is characterized by sadness, crying bouts,

anxiety and panic attacks in some individuals, anhedonia or lack of

interest, lethargy, fatigue, excessive sleeping, truancy or failure to

attent class or coaching, failure to complete homework assignments,

suicidal ideation and, in some instances, serious suicidal attempt.” (66).

 

Loss is probably the basic common factor in depression. There is a form of

loss that musicians sometimes experience after a series of concerts.

Teachers have noticed that some of their pupils in such periods often seem

to suffer from loss of spark and energy.  There is also a distinct decline

in posture, and a lingering depression (67).

 

Why do musicians suffer from post-performance depression? One reason may be

the sense of specialness which the performer enjoys. The attention which a

series of concerts bring is a tremendous boost for one´s ego. There is

large amount of tension as well and a “do-it-or-die” attitude towards the

coming concert. One person described such a period as “charged with a

cosmic tempo”! Some form of failure or mishap may cost one´s reputation, in

fact one´s whole life! Most pianists feel that you are only as good as your

last performance. . . If one survives and does well, one is a hero and is

adored. Resuming one´s normal life after such an excitement and hopefully,

success, is then often experienced as a feeling of sudden emptiness, and

life may seem to have lost its purpose. There is no longer that tremendous

intensity which has vitalized one´s dreary existence. Instead, one wanders

aimlessly through a dense and dark forest, “lost in space and lost in

meaning. . . ”

 

Another possible reason may be that practising for a concert takes many

months, and in one´s college years, this preliminary preparation is

accomplished with the help of one´s teacher. After one becomes a fully

fledged performer, some form of help is usually sought in one´s colleagues

who then act as a substitute for the teacher. One constantly seeks both

positive advice and constructive criticism. However, at the same time one

may lose one´s autonomy and independence because one is relying more and

more on external feedback. After the end of a performance the feedback

suddenly disappears. The inevitable ending of this support is then often

experienced as a loss, and this loss may be another of the reasons for the

phenomenon of post-performance depression.

 

Another cause for depression is the isolation of the music student. After

all, one practises alone, and one´s instrumental lessons are usually

private. Many undergraduate and postgraduate students also live in foreign

cities or cities at least thousand miles from their families and homes. And

even though teenage piano students live with their families they still have

to be busily practising apart from their normal school curriculum.

Therefore they tend to be deprived of the normal social life which is so

important in adolescence. The teenager may even begin to resent the

instrument, because of the huge sacrifices he has to make in order to have

time for the music study.  Friends may also scorn the music student´s “lack

of time for fun”, and teachers may worry that homework and class time will

suffer on account of the “bloody piano”. All this tends to surround the

instrument with some really evil associations. Forinstance, it carries the

message that the music student is different from his fellows, which is a

very dangerous situation. Typically, thoughts such as “I am alone in the

world and nobody understands me” develop into an obsession, and suicide may

become an attractive option.

 

And there is more. Most musicians know the effort, stress and tension which

the Goddess of Music demands from Her followers. What, then, about the

depression which develops when the musician is forced for a period of time

to retire from playing? As I stated at the beginning of the last chapter,

many doctors rightly or wrongly include rest as the cornerstone of their

treatment.  Some of their patients are forbidden to touch their instrument

for many months, sometimes more than a year. And in the cases of dystonia

there are still gloomier prospects. Dystonia is very difficult to treat.

Therefore, doctors will usually tell the sufferer that they have no idea

how long it will take to recover. So it is common for the unfortunate

musician to have all sorts of doubts and worries about whether he really

will be able to play again, and if so, if he will be able to play as well

as before, etc., etc. This is a devastatingly difficult problem, because

injury and dystonia potentially destroy that aspect of the person´s

professional life which is concerned with performing. The self-esteem then

dwindles away and may even disappear altogether. It must not be forgotten

that, even though most pianists become teachers,  a substantial number of

these teachers are also performers to a greater or lesser extent. This may

simply consist of demonstrating to a pupil how to play a certain passage.

 

 

Apart from being an outlaw from the land of the keyboard, serious injury or

dystonia can also have a very negative effect on the musician´s private

life. Andrew Evans, whom I mentioned earlier, knows of many cases where

injuries demanding only six months´ withdrawal from playing ruined the

person´s  private life, resulting in a temporary separation or even

divorce. The reason is that the musician has suddenly lost his or her

expertise. That expertise may have bestowed an important aura of glamour

which caused the partner to be attracted to the musician in the first

place. And now, he or she appears only half the person he or she used to be

before. Many partners cannot cope with that and simply leave, thereby

completing the destruction of the musician´s life. . .

 

Psychotherapy is therefore a very important aspect of Performing Arts

Medicine, due to the close relationship of body and mind, or the body and

the feelings. Very often, a patient coming to a Performing Arts Clinic will

benefit immensely from consulting a psychotherapist or a counsellor, which

is the reason why these clinics should offer such services.

 

There are other cases, however, which do not respond as well to this kind

of treatment. As I mentioned above, depression is can be either reactive or

organic. The latter is difficult to treat with psychotherapeutic methods

alone, and indeed such pathologies respond poorly to any other treatment

than drugs (68). This is where the psychiatrist comes in. Manic depression

is constitutional in a sense; psychotherapy can do no more about that than,

say, changing the bone structure or the height of a certain individual.

 

According to Dr Ian James, anti-depressants alone are sometimes very

effective, no matter whether the symptom is a painful finger or a cramp.

This does not mean however that the patient is a manic depressive.

Depression, whatever the cause, can easily disturb the delicate balance

between mind and body, which is imperative in the study and learning

leading to a musical performance. There has to be a perfect flow between

the intellect, the emotions and the body.

 

The following illustrates this in very simplistic terms:

The intellect: I perceive this, this is what I want to do.

The emotions: It is the right thing, it is what I would like to do.

The body: The physical movements making up a correctly performed piece

of music (69).

 

The process is from the intellect to the body via the emotions. The flow

becomes affected if the emotions are seriously disturbed as happens in

severe depression. It makes one unable to learn correctly; one may

understand perfectly, but somehow the physical outcome is distorted.

Obviously, this is an important factor in the development of a misuse

syndrome or dystonia (70).

 

The case history below illustrates how depressive illness can cause

unconscious muscle tension to such an extent that pain may develop.

 

One pianist, a woman, had been suffering from severe pains in her arms for

several months, the reasons for these being unclear. As a result she had

been forced to stop playing the piano. It was immediately apparent to Dr

James that she was suffering from an enormous depression, and further

investigation revealed that it was caused by a personal problem completely

unrelated to anything to do with music. He therefore prescribed

antidepressants for her and the pains immediately started to disappear.

They eventually found out that the depression had been causing the woman to

tense her arms while she slept and this had been causing the pains. With

the pains gone, she was able to resume playing, and eventually recovered

with the help of a psychologist.

 

Drugs can control the effects of an unhappy situation, thereby enabling the

sufferer to view it more objectively. Most techniques of psychotherapy on

the other hand focus more on the roots of a problem, and attempt to solve

it with a verbal analysis alone.

 

The aim of psychotherapy or counselling is to make people better. Many

medically trained people have been known to scorn the whole idea however,

and some doctors in the past liked to say that in medicine people either

die or get better whereas in psychotherapy nobody dies and nobody gets

better!  This is no longer true though, and most doctors in the field seem

only too happy to refer people to a counsellor.

 

I have mentioned that Josephine received such advice. Since there seemed to

be no physical cause for her difficulties, her mind had to be searched out.

She had an appointment with a counsellor and, after the first session,

decided to work with him.

 

It became apparent that she had some psychological problems which were

definitely connected with her status as a pianist. Josephine had won a

small competition when she was twelve. Her parents and her teacher almost

exploded with pride and began to put a great deal of pressure on her. In

retrospect, she felt it was the end of her childhood. She had to practise

and practise, and her parents soon decided she was ready for another go. A

major competition was coming up and she was to participate in it. She did,

but failed miserably. Her parents showed a surprising understanding, but

her teacher scolded her. He became quite sarcastic for a long time

afterwards and she developed a huge sense of guilt. She got over it

eventually, but never won another competition. Yet there were some

successes and, just prior to her illness, a great career opportunity

presented itself. She was invited to give series of concerts in Germany.

 

Josephine thought she was eager to go, but her psychologist discovered

otherwise. Underneath the seeming self-assurance was a great amount of

fear. It had started after she failed in the competition and had to suffer

the nasty comments which her teacher occasionally launched at her.

Therefore she became extremely vulnerable towards criticism and afraid of

another failure. She suppressed her feelings, however, and did not realise

that her  attitude was causing problems. Instead, she had physical

symptoms.

 

As the counselling proceeded, she began to be more conscious of her inner

mind. Gradually, her physical problems started to disappear, and she was

 

able to play again. Before I tell about the relatively simple solution that

her therapist came up with, the act of counselling needs to be explained.

 

The British Association of Counsellors has defined it in the following words:

“When a person occupying the role of counsellor offers or agrees explicitly

to give time, attention and respect to another person in their role of

client. The task of counselling is to give the client an opportunity to

explore, discover and classify ways of living more resourcefully and toward

greater well being. The

boundaries of time, usually over several meetings, are an important

integral part of counselling and the attention of the counsellor who is

free of his or her own personal environmental preoccupations, is able to

open herself to the client´s comunications and engage actively with him in

his personal explorations.The counsellor respects the client´s potential to

be creative for himself, and to make his own value choices in the light of

his own particular cultural, social and political background.”

 

Privacy and confidentially are of course the basis of such a therapy and

the client is free to explore patterns of feeling, thinking and behaviour

that appear to be sources of trouble. New ways of living are experimented

with and various values and personal meanings clarified. It is very

important to realise that a musician can have problems with his or her

music without having any other psychological grievances. As we have already

seen, music alone can be quite a trouble maker. . .Therefore, at the start

of psychotherapy, the counsellor asks the musician a lot of questions about

his occupation, such as when the person started to play, whether the person

liked the particular instrument or whether that instrument was chosen by

someone else. Whether the parents were encouraging or not, and whether they

had high expectations or none at all. The person is asked about his aims

and motivation and if he realises what it means to be a fulltime musician.

 

One of the very first issues which are tackled is that of time management.

Sometimes, a lot of worries, not to mention a general malaise and even

depression, are quite simply generated by a chaotic or poorly planned

timetable. The initial homework of someone taking therapy would then be

directed at a more efficient organisation of daily study, practicing,

household chores or whatever it is. The person´s all important business

side needs looking into and often the counsellor will be helpful in

constructing some form of a finanicial plan to help the impractical and

sometimes starving musician make a fairly decent living.

 

One of the main problems, as mentioned earlier is that of stage-fright. As

I have tried to show, all kinds of unresolved problems with parents are

often projected to the audience. Therefore it is important to go to the

stage where the whole trouble started and try to build up the person´s

general selfconfidence. The person needs to grow up in a sense. He has to

come to terms with himself and become an independent adult. The struggle

with the father, mother or the whole family has to end and this means that

the pattern of anxious reaction to parental influences must be neutralised.

The sufferer of excessive stage-fright is usually obsessed with other

people´s attitude and sometimes this is generated from what psychologists

call a “fundamental

attribution error”. In other words, one has a tendency to attribute all

sorts of negative happenings that go around to faults one has done, even

though one may be completely innocent of the whole thing. So there is a

feeling a tremendous guilt and anxiety that if one makes the slightest

mistake, the world may go to pieces. As Peter Feuchtwaenger says: “A war in

the Gulf is more important than a wrong note in a concert”. A change in

attitude is therefore necessary  and this logically comes about with

enhanced self esteem. Having a higher self esteem means of course that

there is less need to prove oneself and there is less at stake when

performing in front of an audience. In addition to this there are a

number of techniques that deal with stage-fright. Since this thesis is not

about that per se  , I will only mention those commonly known methods of

creative visualisation and  autogenic training. Some tricks, which in my

opinion are quite stupid, consist of thinking that the audience is nothing

but a bunch of fools and idiots with no sense of the difference between a

good and a bad performance. Then there are the beta-blockers which I

refered to in the introduction. For some, they mean the end of shaky hands,

sweaty palms and cold fingers. All this has been dealt with in previous

dissertations and I will therefore not repeat again it here.

 

Josephine, was unwilling to tell me about all the intimate details of her

therapy. However, she did reveal to me what cured her. It was very simple:

She did not go to Germany. She decided that she needed more time to come to

terms with herself, and that she as a person was more important than being

a famous pianist. The pressure was off and her arms and fingers began to

move again. This may sound quite incredible, but it is true all the same.

The mind can have such an influence over the body that a deep fear may be

totally paralysing. The body appears ill, but it is the mind which needs

the healing.

 

A physical injury basically means two things. Either the person will get

better or not. The therapy has to solve the psychological problem which may

have been the cause and also help the person to deal with negative feelings

which the injury may result in. The  ego must be boosted and its strength

maintained at all costs. Permanently losing the ability to play is a

terrible loss, because for most musicians the instrument has become a kind

of an extension of the body. Playing the piano is for pianists

“. . . a physical as much as a psychological need, since they feel unwell

and uncomfortable if they cannot play. In Freudian terms it is the id , the

creative

instinctual child who needs to play, which is the most powerful part of

their psyche. The toy with which the child is entirely absorbed and

obsessed, is the musical instrument and the sounds that come out of it.

They identify, each with his particular instrument as part of the self.

After all, an instrument is only a tool but it symbolises so much more. ”

 

A musician very often describes his first experience of music in childhood

as something holy or religious. A collegue of mine was five years old when

she was first exposed to a piece of classical music, and she felt wonderful

rapture at hearing sounds which obviously came from paradise. I have been

told many similar accounts. Music at first is like a mystical revelation;

studying it, practicing and listening to it is a completely natural and

almost a magical process. For some, this wonderful glamour never ceases.

Others, however meet new teachers with some radical ideas about how to play

the piano. . . Still others, as we have seen, have injuries and some have

to stop playing for a while. And as previously mentioned, a re-examination

of one´s technique may be a necessary stage on the road to recovery. In

these instances, one becomes

suddenly conscious of a natural function. I have mentioned this destructive

self-consciousness in relation to dystonia. Becoming aware of one´s habits

and attempting to change them is far from being a bad thing, but the magic,

which has been such a huge motivation, does have the tendency to disappear

in the process. With that childlike wonder lost, playing the piano is not

as attractive as it used to be. At this stage, many consider other

vocational options even though the injury or dystonia has healed.  Some

don´t leave entirely but try instead to find the vanished spiritual

dimension in some or another religious system alongside the music. A few

even resort to alcohol and drugs, thinking:

“where there is dope, there is hope”. How to regain one´s motivation after

the often difficult recovery is a problem which many counsellors don´t know

how to solve. Perhaps, there is a question of time here. The correction of

habits and, in the words of Carola Grindea, the liberation of the body,

does take time to integrate completely. One has to re-train the body, then

forget it if the Spirit is to enter again. Or as Alfred Cortot would have

it, the way is “from the knowledge of the physical to the perception of the

metaphysical”. In other words, the “new” body is no longer the object of

attention. Instead the mind soars to the heavenly realms of music, and the

physical hands, fingers and wrist become a vehicle for the voice of God. .

.

 

In the sad cases of never being able to play again, however, the counsellor

can help in choosing career alternatives. The advice would be based on the

knowledge of personality types and the vocations apart from music which

attract similar temperaments. The Myers-Briggs type indicator which is

based

on the theories of the  psychologist Carl Jung is very often used. It

divides people as follows:

“Extraversion: Outer focus or Introversion: Inner focus. Sensing: Realistic

focus or Intuitive: Imaginative focus.

Thinking: Objective focus or Feeling: Sympathetic focus.

Judging: Planning focus or Perceptive: Improvising focus.

Each person will have a natural preference for one or the other function.

Thus, though able to use both (e. g. Thinking and Feeling), they will tend

to make use of the weaker function less often or less naturally than the

stronger or preferred function.”

 

Each musician would be tested individually, and his or her personality

assessed. The personality type of the average classical musician is in most

cases classified as extravert, intuitive, judging and feeling. According to

Andrew Evans, the similar or same type of person is also found in the

following groups:

The Clergy.

Health teachers.

Actors.

Writers.

Painters.

Composers.

Counsellors.

 

When recovery becomes so difficult that the musician begins to consider

other vocational possibilities, money obviously becomes a cause for

concern. If the pianist´s only means of income is giving concerts, it may

not be so easy to suddenly find a teaching job. And even if there are a

number of willing students available, the routine of being a pedagogue

takes time to settle into.

 

Obviously this is the extreme case, since most pianists already have at

least a handful of pupils. But even then, the many consultations, expert

opinions and therapies cost a lot of money. Unfortunately, not many

charities are around to supply this need, and only very few musicians get

the financial support necessary. The Royal Society of Musicians of Great

Britain has recognised the problem, however. The 1987 Royal Charter stated

its intentions as

“. . . the relief of poverty and sickness among (a) professional musicians;

(b) former professional musicians and persons aspiring and intending to

embark on a career as professional musicians; and (c) the families and

dependants of any of the foregoing, priority being given to Members of the

Society. . . over persons who are not Members.”

 

It should now have become obvious that suffering musicians need a lot of

help.  Sympathy and understanding are probably the most important factors.

Above all, the average musician is a sensitive human being. Even though we

have been classified as judging types who need to plan our lives, we are

also both feeling and intuitive. Therefore our emotions are often in

turmoil, and we are easily stirred by great feelings. It seems to me that

all the great musicians have been like that. After all, how could we, as

artists, be otherwise? Therefore, in the words of Dr Wynn Parry, the

musician needs a guru, a person with whom to talk. With a growing knowledge

of all these different problems,  teachers, GP´s and even one´s spouse will

become more aware of the issue and therefore automatically be able to offer

the sympathy and understanding which the musician deserves.

 

——————————————————

 

CONCLUSION

 

To sum up I think it is relevant to relate the story of my own case. I have

a personal experience of Performing Arts Medicine due to a physical problem

connected with my piano playing. It was diagnosed as a dystonia. I was

still in difficulties when I began studying this new branch of medicine for

the purpose of writing the present dissertation. Now, however, I seem to be

cured.

 

I am a concert pianist. I do not give many concerts a year, but I do play

some of the most difficult pieces in the piano repertoire, and have been

doing so since the age of thirteen. Four years ago, I began to encounter

strange difficulties at the piano. For some reason my right hand was not

working as it used to. Every time I had to do a descending scale or

arpeggio, the thumb and the second finger would somehow be in the way.

After I had pressed the latter down, it did not relax immediately

afterwards. When the thumb went down to play the next note in the passage,

the second finger was quite stiff and had a tendency to curl. After I had

pressed down the thumb and wanted to pass over it with the third or the

fourth finger, the second would somehow hit the thumb or stumble over it.

Also, the thumb, like the second finger, would not relax in order to let

the other fingers continue.

 

This condition did not happen all of a sudden. I had always noticed that

the second finger of my right hand seemed to lack a certain dexterity, and

this was more noticeable in descending passages than when I played

ascending notes. It did not bother me though, because I could play most

things anyway. However, the majority of pianists find descending with the

right hand and ascending with the left easier than the other way round.

With my right hand it was the opposite. My left hand posed no problems;

there, both the thumb and the second finger were completely relaxed and did

what they were supposed to do.

 

Very slowly and insidiously, this slight difficulty grew to the point that

in 1987 it had developed into a problem which I could not solve. It began

when I had to play Chopin´s Barcarolle in public. The Barcarolle is not

such a difficult piece, but it does feature a rapid descending passage at

the very end which has to be played quite clearly and brilliantly. I had

played it some months before without any problems. Just before this

performance, however, I noticed that I would involuntarily stop for a

moment somewhere in the middle of this final passage. It was caused by that

strange stiffness of the thumb and the second finger which I described

above. Why, I did not know. It did not happen all the time, though, but

enough to make me feel insecure. I was like an actor who had suddenly

developed a stutter.  No methods of practising that I knew seemed to work.

No tricks, either. I became extremely worried, but decided to go through

with it anyway, hoping that I would be saved by some miracle. Of course no

miracle happened. I played the Barcarolle without difficulties, but when I

came to the end of it, the final passage went to pieces.

 

What was wrong with me? Nobody around seemed to be able to help me. I asked

some of the local piano teachers for advice, but most of them just made fun

of me. What was more, my problem was usually dismissed as being “in my

head”, and if I forgot about it, it would go away. In any case, nobody had

heard about a similar condition before.

 

However, I could not forget about it. And the problem did not go away. As

time went by I discovered to my horror that my repertoire had become

extremely small. I had to avoid all works containing rapid descending

passages which had to be executed with the right hand alone. This meant

that I had to wipe out from my concert programmes most of the sonatas by

Beethoven, Mozart and Schubert, and a lot of others too. Unfortunately I

love Beethoven, Mozart and Schubert. Therefore I was determined to solve my

problem.

 

It should not be hard to imagine my sense of humiliation. I had played

music such as the second piano concerto by Brahms, the b-minor sonata by

Liszt, the Appassionata by Beethoven, and now I could not play a simple

descending scale! What was worse, no matter what I tried, the condition

remained, and even grew worse. I was optimistic, though. Somehow I knew

that I would eventually get over it. I hoped that if I just practised

slowly, I would get my hand back to normal sooner or later.

 

Yet a whole year passed without improvement. I went to see a neurologist

who did some tests on me but nothing showed. I even went to an

acupuncturist who stuck a needle between my thumb and second finger,

guaranteeing that I would be back on the road in three months. But the

three months passed and nothing happened. Then I went to see Jean Gibson

whom I have mentioned. She examined me and found that my right arm was

extremely stiff. She pointed out to me that it was almost completely rigid

when I was playing and, additionally, my shoulder would move forwards when

I placed the hands on the keyboard. This, she explained, impaired the

agility of the arm. She also noticed that I was not articulating enough

with my thumb. The thumb of my left hand was much freer, not to mention the

second finger. We also discovered that my right thumb was sadly lacking in

independence from the second finger, so every time I moved the former, the

latter would move involuntarily as well. Her advice was this: loosen up

your arm! She also gave me an exercise which is borrowed from the

Feldenkrais Method. It has to do with the development of a sense of

differentiation by making slow, circular movements with the thumb without

moving the second finger.

 

I went home and tried to practise what Mrs. Gibson had taught me. There was

some improvement, but not much. In retrospect however, I think that this

lack of progress was because I, like Michael, had never given the slightest

thought to my arm during playing. I had had good teachers who were always

telling me how important the arm is, but somehow it never registered in my

mind. Therefore, when I began to try to do what Mrs. Gibson had advised me,

I automatically focussed on developing the agility and articulation of my

thumb but forgot about the arm.

 

It was only several months later that I had my moment of truth. Something

happened. I suddenly understood what I had been doing wrong. The problem

was not really in the fingers. If I relaxed my arm while playing, I could

do things that I had been unable to do for a long time. I am not saying

that the whole problem went away just like that. But at least there was

tangible improvement.

 

Why had my arms been so tense ? Was it simply a bad habit, or was there a

deeper cause for it? I have tried to show how physical problems and

injuries can be the result of anxiety and depression, and that these

negative emotional states have commonly affected the population of

indisposed musicians for quite a while before their physical disorders

appeared. I was not an exception. For a long time before my troubles began,

I had suffered from the common doubts about the musical profession which

afflict so many musicians. I did not really know if I wanted to become a

pianist, and if I did, whether I was good enough to make it on a

professional scale. I was also miserably afraid of failure in case I

attempted to go for the top, and I often reasoned that it was better not

even to try.

 

The ability to let go of the muscles of my arm was without any doubt the

result of a major psychological breakthrough. Just before I “discovered” my

arm I had made a final decision. I was going to be a full time musician and

to play as much as I could. It had nothing to do with making money or going

to Hollywood. It was the inevitable conclusion based on the simple but

powerful discovery that I love music and I love to play the piano, nothing

more, nothing less. I did not care about the rest. Even ending up as a bar

pianist in Detroit would not change it.

 

 

After that, things went uphill. I met Dr Mosaraf Ali, mentioned previously,

who discovered some more stiffness in my right arm. He gave me a thorough

massage and told me how to do it myself. The muscle which moves the second

finger was very tight and it took me a month to loosen it up. This helped a

great deal, as did my regular piano lessons with Carola Grindea who taught

me many things which I had forgotten. The most important one was that, due

to tension, my wrist was turned inwards instead of outwards when I played.

By correcting it, I found it much easier to do that which I had found so

difficult.

 

All of the foregoing has led me to conclude that I can accomplish very

little if I am not relaxed. I think the same applies to most of mycolleague

A healthy, relaxed attitude to music, music making and the music world

seems imperative. Most, if not all of the methods of treatment which I have

explored in these pages: physiotherapy, the Feldenkrais Method, the

Alexander Technique, Yoga, counselling and the building up of a healthy

piano technique focus on the release of tension in one form or another. As

I have said before, stress is a fundamental issue in Performing Arts

Medicine. Relaxation in the fullest sense – a relaxed body and a relaxed,

healthy mind – is what should characterise a happy pianist who enjoys his

art and who will never, never  have to visit a Performing Arts Clinic.

 

——————————————————

 

NOTES

 

Murry Hope, author of THE PSYCHOLOGY OF HEALING.

Wallace, H. : “Performance-Related Injuries – a Dark Continent?”, p. 396.

 

Graffman, G. : “Doctor, Can You Lend an Ear?”, p. 5.

 

Bowers, F. : SCRIABIN, Vol. 1, p. 168.

 

James, I. : Private Interview.

 

Wallace, H. : “Performance-Related Injuries – a Dark Continent?”, p. 400.

 

Grindea, C. : Private Interview.

 

Mentioned in “Doctor, Can You Lend an Ear?” by Gary Graffman, p. 6.

 

Wallace, H. : “Performance-Related Injuries – a Dark Continent?”.

 

Ibid., p. 399.

 

“Medart International”, Brochure, p. 1.

 

Critchley, M. & Henson, R. A., eds.

 

James, I. : “Medicine and the Performing Arts, the Stage Fright Syndrome”,

8.

 

Fry, H. : “What´s in a Name? The Musician´s Anthology of Misuse”, p. 38.

 

Ibid., p. 38.

 

Hochberg, F. H., Leffert, R. D., Heller, M. D. & Merriman, L. : “Hand

Difficulties Among Musicians”., p. 1870.

 

Fry, H. : “Occupational Maladies of Musicians: Their Cause and

Prevention”, p. 59.

 

Fry, H. : “What´s in a Name? The Musician´s Anthology of Misuse”, p. 36.

 

James, I. : Private Interview.

 

Bell, D. S. : “”Repetition Strain Injury”: an Iatrogenic Epidemic of

Simulated Injury””, p. 281.

 

Ibid. p. 281.

 

Hochberg, F. H., Leffert, R. D., Heller, M. D. & Merriman, L. : “Hand

Difficulties Among Musicians”, p. 1871.

 

Fry, H. : “Overuse Syndrome in Musicians: Prevention and Management”,

728.

 

Lockwood, A. H. : “Medical Problems of Musicians”, p. 226.

 

Graffman, G. : “Doctor, Can You Lend an Ear?”, p. 4.

 

Acheson, R. M., Chan, Y.K. & Clemett, A. R. : “New Haven Survey of

Joint Diseases XII: Distribution and Symptoms of Osteoarthrosis in the

Hands With Reference to Handedness”, p. 284.

 

Lederman, R. J. : “Nerve Entrapment Syndromes in Instrumental

Musicians”, p. 46.

 

Ibid., p. 46.

 

Graffman, G. : “Doctor, Can You Lend an Ear?”, p. 5 & Grindea, C.,

Private Interview.

 

Lockwood, A. H. : “Medical Problems of Musicians”, p. 224,

 

Ibid. p. 224.

 

Sheehy, M. P. & Marsden, C. D. : “Writers´ Cramp”, p.472.

 

James, I. : Private Interview. See also Lockwood, A. H. & Lindsay, M.

: “Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy After Overuse: the Possible Relationship

to Focal Dystonia”, p. 117.

 

James, I. : Private Interview.

 

Walton, J. : BRAIN´S DISEASES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM, pp. 334-349.

 

James, I. : Private Interview.

 

James, I. : “Medicine and the Performing Arts, the Stage Fright

Syndrome”, pp. 8-9.

 

 

Lockwood, A. H. : “Medical Problems of Musicians”, p. 225,

 

Laurence, D. R. & Bennet, P. N. : CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, p. 380.

 

The use of Laser, Ultra-Sound and Interferential according to Simpson,

: Private Interview.

 

Brochure entitled “Information and Use of the Rosedale Web”, exercises

nos. 1 & 2.

 

Spire, M. : “The Feldenkrais Method: an Interview with Anat Baniel”, p. 159.

 

Feldenkrais, M. : AWARENESS TRHOUGH MOVEMENT, pp. 33-36.

 

Spire, M. : “The Feldenkrais Method: an Interview with Anat Baniel”, p. 161.

 

Ibid. p. 160.

 

Wallace, H. : “Performance-Related Injuries – a Dark Continent?”, p. 400.

 

Jones, F. P. : BODY AWARENESS IN ACTION, p. 151. Cited in Murray, A. :

“The Alexander Technique”, p. 132.

 

Cohen, L. A. : “Role of Eye and Neck Proprioceptive Mechanisms in Body

Orientation andMotor Coordination”, p. 7.

 

Rosenthal, E. : “The Alexander Technique – What It Is and How it

Works”, p. 53.

 

Ben-Or, N. : “The Alexander Technique – Its Relevance to Performance”,

41.

 

Wallace, H. : “Performance-Related Injuries – a Dark Continent?”, p. 400.

 

THE HEALING BRAIN is mentioned in Hope, M. : THE PSYCHOLOGY OF HEALING,

34.

 

53 Ibid., p. 241.

 

Tubiana, R. & Chamagne, P. : “Functional Anatomy of the Hand”, p. 83.

 

Vovka Ashkenazy: Private Communication, 1978.

 

Grindea, C. : Private Interview.

 

Cited in “In Pursuit of Perfection: Career Choice and Performance

Anxiety in Musicians” by J. J. Nagel, pp. 140-141.

 

Ibid., p. 142.

 

Ibid., p. 141

 

In case I risk giving offence, let it be stated that I am not implying

that all housewives fit this mother-image. Far from it, indeed, as the

cases show. . .

 

Spitz, L: Private Interview.

 

62.The presence during two weeks of five symptoms out of the nine listed

below meets the criteria for a major episode of reactive depression.   (set

by the American Psyciatric Assoiciation Diagnostic and Statistic Manual III

(Revised Edition) These symptoms are:

 

Robson, B. E. & Gillies, E. : “Post-Performance Depression in Arts

Students”, p. 139.

 

Storr, A. : THE DYNAMICS OF CREATION, p. 104.

 

Ibid., p. 104.

 

Spitz, L. : Private Interview.

 

Robson, B. E. & Gillies, E. : “Post-Performance Depression in Arts

Students”, p. 137.

 

Robson, B. E. & Gillies, E. : “Post-Performance Depression in Arts Students”

139.

 

Spitz, L. : Private Interview.

 

Ibid.

 

Ibid.

 

Cited in Butler, C. : “Counselling Music Students”, p. 20.

 

The process of counselling musicians as described to me by counsellors

Martin Lloyd-Elliot and Andrew Evans.

 

Feuchtwanger, P. : Private Interview.

 

Butler, C. : “Counselling Music Students”, p. 21.

 

Grindea, C. : Private Interview.

 

Evans, A. : Private Interview. See Lloyd-Elliot, M. & Evans, A. : THE

AVERAGE MUSICIAN.

 

Lloyd-Elliot, M. & Evans, A. : THE AVERAGE MUSICIAN, p. 2.

 

The Royal Society of Musicians, Brochure, p. 2.

 

——————————————————

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

 

Acheson, R. M., Chan, Y.K. & Clemett, A. R. : “New Haven Survey of Joint

Diseases XII: Distribution and Symptoms of Osteoarthrosis in the Hands With

Reference to Handedness”, Annal of Rheumatic Disorders, Vol. 29 (1970), pp.

275-286.

 

Bard, C. C., Sylvestre, J. J. & Dussault, R. G. : “Hand Osteoarthropathy in

Pianists”, Journal of the Canadian Association of Radiologists, Vol. 35

(1984), 154-158.

 

Bell, D. S. : “”Repetition Strain Injury”: an Iatrogenic Epidemic of

Simulated Injury””, The Medical Journal of Australia, Vol. 151 (1989), pp.

280-283.

 

Benham, B. : “Am I Too Tall ?”, ISSTIP Journal No. 6 (1990), pp. 30-33.

 

 

Ben-Or, N. : “The Alexander Technique – Its Relevance to Performance”,

ISSTIP Journal No.1 (1983), pp. 39-42.

 

Bowers, F. : SCRIABIN, Kodansha International Ltd. Tokyo 1970.

 

Butler, C. : “Counselling Music Students”, ISSTIP Journal No. 5 (1988), pp.

2025.

 

Cohen, L. A. : “Role of Eye and Neck Proprioceptive Mechanisms in Body

Orientation and Motor Coordination”, Journal of Neurophysiology, Vol. 24

(1961), pp. 1-11.

 

Critchley, M. & Henson, R. A., eds. : MUSIC AND THE BRAIN,  William

Heinemann, London 1977.

 

Feldenkrais, M. : AWARENESS THROUGH MOVEMENT, Arkana, London 1990.

 

Fry, H. : “Occupational Maladies of Musicians: Their Cause and Prevention”,

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Fry, H. : “Overuse Syndrome in Musicians: Prevention and Management”, The

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Fry, H. : “What´s in a Name? The Musician´s Anthology of Misuse”, Medical

Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 1 (1986), pp. 37-38.

 

Goodman, G. & Staz, S. : “Occupational Therapy for Musicians with Upper

Extremity Overuse Syndrome: Patient Perceptions Regarding Effectiveness of

Treatment”, Medical Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 4 (1989), pp. 914.

 

 

Graffman, G. : “Doctor, Can You Lend an Ear?”, Medical Problems of

Performing Artists, Vol. 1 (1986), pp. 3-6.

 

Grindea, C. : “Running a Performing Arts Clinic in a Music College”, ISSTIP

Journal No. 6 (1990), pp. 11-14.

 

Grindea, C., ed. : TENSIONS IN THE PERFORMANCE OF MUSIC, A SYMPOSIUM, Kahn

& Averill, London 1978.

 

Hochberg, F. H., Leffert, R. D., Heller, M. D. & Merriman, L. : “Hand

Difficulties Among Musicians”, JAMA, Vol. 249 (1983), pp. 1869-1872.

 

Hope, M. : THE PSYCHOLOGY OF HEALING, Element Books, Dorset 1989.

 

“Information and Use of the Rosedale Web”, Brochure, Rosedale Research Ltd.

London 1990.

 

James, I. : “Medicine and the Performing Arts, the Stage Fright Syndrome”,

a privately published report, London 1988.

 

Laurence, D. R. & Bennet, P. N. : CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Churchill

Livingstone, London 1987.

 

Layzer, R. B. & Rowland, L. P. : “Cramps”, New England Journal Of Medicine,

Vol. 285 (1971), pp. 31-40.

 

Lederman, R. J. : “Occupational Cramp in Instrumental Musicians”, Medical

Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 3 (1988), pp. 45-51.

 

Lederman, R. J. : “Thoracic Outlet Syndromes, Review of the Controversies

and a Report of 17 Instrumental Musicians”, Medical Problems of Performing

Artists, Vol. 2 (1987), pp. 87-91.

 

Lederman, R. J. : “Nerve Entrapment Syndromes in Instrumental Musicians”,

Medical Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 1 (1986), pp. 45-48.

 

Lederman, R. J. & Calabrese, L. H. : “Overuse Syndromes in

Instrumentalists”, Medical Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 1 (1986),

7-11.

 

Lloyd-Elliot, M. & Evans, A. : THE AVERAGE MUSICIAN, Arts Psychology

Consultants Ltd., London: year not indicated.

 

Lockwood, A. H. : “Medical Problems of Musicians”, The New England Journal

of Medicine, Vol. 320 (1989), pp. 221-227.

 

Lockwood, A. H. & Lindsay, M. L. : “Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy After

Overuse: The Possible Relationship to Focal Dystonia”, Medical Problems of

Performing Artists, Vol. 4 (1989), pp. 114-117.

 

“Medart International”, Brochure, Hoboken Congress Organization, Rotterdam 1991.

 

Merriman, L., Newmark, J., Hochberg, F., Shahani, B. & Leffert, R. : “A

Focal Movement Disorder of the Hand in Six Pianists”, Medical Problems of

Performing Artists, Vol. 1 (1986), pp. 17-19.

 

Murray, A. : “The Alexander Technique”, Medical Problems of Performing

Artists, Vol. 1 (1986), pp. 131-132.

 

Nagel, J. J. : “In Pursuit of Perfection: Career Choice and Performance

Anxiety in Musicians”, Medical Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 3

(1988), pp. 140-145.

 

Ornstein, R. & Sobel, D. : THE HEALING BRAIN, Macmillan, London 1988.

 

Pearson, R. M. : “The Musicians´ Clinic”, ISSTIP Journal No. 5 (1988), pp. 3334.

 

Robson, B. E. & Gillies, E. : “Post-Performance Depression in Arts

Students”, Medical Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 2 (1987), pp.

137-140.

 

Roos, D. B. : “Thoracic Outlet Syndromes: Symptoms, Diagnosis, Anatony and

Surgical Treatment”, Medical Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 1 (1986),

91-93.

 

Rosenthal, E. : “The Alexander Technique – What It Is and How It Works”.

Medical Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 2 (1987), pp. 53-58.

 

“The Royal Society of Musicians of Great Britain”, Brochure, London, year

not indicated.

 

Sheehy, M. P. & Marsden, C. D. : “Writers´ Cramp – a Focal Dystonia”,

Brain, Vol. 105 (1982), pp. 461-480.

 

Spire, M. : “The Feldenkrais Method: an Interview with Anat Baniel”,

Medical Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 4 (1989), pp. 159-162.

 

Storr, A. : THE DYNAMICS OF CREATION, Pelican Books, London 1976.

 

Tubiana, R & Chamagne, P. : “Functional Anatomy of the Hand”, Medical

Problems of Performing Artists, Vol. 3 (1988), pp. 83-87.

 

Wallace, H. : “Performance-Related Injuries – a Dark Continent?”, The

Strad, Vol. 102 (1991), pp. 396-404.

 

Walton, J: BRAIN´S DISEASES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM, Oxford University,

OXford 1985.

 

Wynn Parry, C. B. : “ISSTIP Performing Arts Clinic at London College of Music”, ISSTIP Journal No. 6 (1990), pp. 4-10.

 

Zamoyski, A. : PADEREWSKI, Collins, London 1982.

 

 

 

Private Interviews with the following Persons:

 

Benham, Bill., teacher of the Alexander Technique, London 1991.

Evans, A.ndrew, counsellor at Arts Psychology Consultants Ltd., London 1990.

Feuchtwanger, Peter., piano teacher, London 1991.

Grindea, Carola., piano teacher, chairman of ISSTIP and director of the

Performing Arts Clinic at the LCM, London 1991.

James, Dr. Ian, chairman of the Bristish Association of Performing Arts

Medicine, London 1990 & 1991.

Lloyd-Elliot, Martin., counsellor at Arts Psychology Consultants Ltd.

Pearson, Dr. Richard. M., director of the Musicians´ Clinic, London 1990.

Simpson, E.lisabeth, physiotherapist, London 1991.

Spitz, Dr. Lydia., psychiatrist, London 1991.

Walters, Roselyn., teacher of the Feldenkrais Method, London 1991.

Wynn Parry, Dr. C. B.,  Director of Rehabilitation at King Edward VII

Hospital in Midhurst and consultant for the Performing Arts Clinic, London

1991.

 

A number of patients who wish to remain anonymous, London 1990-1991.

 

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