The proper GRIP seems to get a lot of talk about but what I have missed is something about posture.
Because I have fibromyalgia and am still new to flute playing, I have lately noticed to have a lot of neck problems and esp at the left side and wondering if it has something to do with posture.
Also sometimes my neck gets very tense while playing at the back of the neck/ head.
So I am asking, what makes a good posture and how do you learn to RELAX more.
Have seen a lot of pics with various postures of various players…made me think there is nothing like a particular good posture.
Currently I try to play while standing up, and keep the head upright but it seems not to be willing to keep that position while playing
But hope there are some people amongst you all who could give me some good pointers to make the flute playing more relaxed and my neck less painful.
For posture, imagine a thread running from the top of your head to the ceiling. To help relax take a deep breath before putting the instrument to your lips. Take a deep breath after each tune and clear your mind for a moment. If you feel your concentration waning it is a good idea to take a break and sit or walk for a minute.
i have fibromyalgia aswell, but it never bothers me while playing.
i use an incline pillow. it’s also pressure relieving.
my right foot is closer to the chair than my left.
my right upper arm is close to my body,
my left fore arm is in front of me,
not horizontal, but in a 45 degree angle.
but i don’t sit like a statue either, i swing about
Fluting aches and pains plagued me when I first took it up. At one stage I could only hold the flute to my lips for a tune or so before my left shoulder cramped up. I think in my case it was because in order to make this devil’s tube make its dulcet tones everything had to be in a consistant position and if anything was out of place my tone would vanish. But now I keep moving the position of head shoulders and arms as I play- not wildly -but gently, I notice I do this anyhow with the whistle, then nothing has a chance to seize up!
Rob
I’m often bothered if I’ve been sitting at the computer too long at work. I’ve found a couple of things that work. I most often get a little achy when I’m reading music. I find that turning to face the music, rather than having the normal posture of the head a little to the left, helps in this case. All the time, I try to change postures. A little more straight-backed for awhile, a little slouched, a little more front-facing, a little more side facing. Also, I stand most of the time playing, but if my back hurts, I’ll sit occasionally.
One other thing that helps in all aspects of flute playing, but is also very comfortable, is to bring the flute to yoour lips – get comfortable, then don’t move your head till you have the flute in position.
I know we have at least one or two physical therapists who post occasionally. I hope they chime in.
For me standing is the best posture.
I blow better and more evenly
and I’m aligned better too.
I will add as an aside that sitting
zazen is the best and quickest
route to good posture.
Do that for 20 minutes plus
each day, or even every other
day, and standing/sitting straight
becomes easy and pleasant.
I change my posture all over the place; sometimes I even slouch relaxed-like into the back of the chair if it’s a session. Certainly not an example to be followed, there, but there you have it. My body really gets into the playing, though, and it’ll sometimes change its arrangement when the tune changes, particularly foot placement. Haven’t figured that out.
Playing into a mike, I’m fairly erect but with a slight forward lean.
hi berti,
welcome to the stiffneck club!
here are some tips for when you play (assuming you are righthanded):
—standing is better than sitting for the following.
—keep the left shoulder down as much as possible - avoid letting it creep up toward the ear. when it rides high like this, there is unnecessary tension held.
we like to let it ride high in an attempt to shorten the distance from the tip of shoulder to the jaw (as we try to hold the flute to the lips). but this is a tightening of that area and can lead to imbalance and tension. it is not necessary.
—keep the left elbow ‘in’ as close to the torso as possible while remaining comfortable. when the elbow flairs out away from the body, tension is held to keep it out like that.
—keep the head as neutral as possible. we tend to want the head to lean foward, or protrude the chin or tuck the chin to get the lips to the flute. but as others have said, bringing the flute to the lips helps to keep the head in line with the shoulders and not stretched out, causing the back of the head and neck to strain and feel tight.
there seems to be a slight rotation of the head to the left as we hold the flute to lips. pretty much unavoidable, which can lead to imbalance of the muscles in the neck (leftside/rightside imbalance).
—regular exercise of the neck and shoulders - mostly joint mobility so the tension (static contractions) from holding and playing the flute can be flushed out of your body and to let relaxation creep in and balance (leftside-to-rightside) return. you do not have to exercise like a bodybuilder. you do it to stop chronic tension and imbalance in the body. a little bit everyday would be great.
the general rule of thumb is to do the following as many times as your age. i.e. if you are 25, then do each exercise 25 times.
yes-no movements
sidebend: bring ear-to-shoulder (do both sides) while keeping nose pointed foward (iow, do not rotate head and do not raise up shoulder just sidebend neck)
stick chin out/tuck chin in (protract/retract o/a joint)
shoulder rotations
—get a nice massage! come and see me
hopefully this will help loosen things. like me, you may always be nagged by stiffness, but a regular self care program can help tremendously. interesting, my neck can loosen up better than most normal folks, but then it also has the propensity to tighten up more than is normal too.
‘static’ positions are a killer for me.
I often play while reclining in my Lazy-Boy chair. This allows me not only to generate neck pain but also some really wonderful discomfort in the shoulder, wrists, and left elbow not to mention my back.
I’ve tried standing or sitting on a straight chair but I can’t generate any real discomfort with those.
I have had a lot of pain with big flutes over the years despite my knowledge and experience in yoga and dance.
However when I do apply the knowledge the pain diminishes and goes away eventually.
It is difficult to describe posture here in words in an efficient manner. I tried it once before in a similar topic. Therefore I will keep it to a minimum. I reckon if you heed the following minimum rules all the rest will become obvious to you KINESTHETICALLY.
an unbent neck with non jutting chin
elbows up and out and upper arms tending to horizontal
lumbar, thoracic and cervical verterbrae in alignment
adjustment to flute by rotation of hip line only, so that
(for right handed players) the tip of your nose is directed roughly across the inner crook of your left elbow.
Sorry to go off-topic here, but when I saw your sig line, I almost spewed coffee. You see, your avatar is an owl, and I could have sworn that it said, “every flute harbours a Mouse.”
You will now be returned to your regularly scheduled discussion of posture.
If your son takes after his mother, you need never be confused again
because the creature that does not inanely repeat everything you say
will always be your very dear son …
