Perfect Poise, Perfect Life
Bring your body into balance and revolutionise your life
By Noel Kingsley
Publisher Hodder Mobius
AVAILABLE HERE
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less effort, more fluidity
It's about nine months since I started learning the violin but a month ago a worrying small pain in my left elbow alerted me to the possibility that I was making too much effort and straining. I have been pressing my fingers down on the fingerboard in my desire to hit the right note and 'play the music'. So the last few weeks has been about 'not playing the music' but working on 'how I play the violin'.
This morning's practice has been a landmark awaken-er. Suddenly after dozens of hours of just relearning to hold the violin more lightly, adjusting the position of my left hand so I get a more vertical action of my fingers, I get a lovely firm pressure on the string where I can 'squeeze' the note out without tightening. The pain in my elbow is subsiding, and I've also found far more freedom of my whole left arm , wrist and fingers so they can move more easily. This has resulted in a much more fluid and full vibrato than I've ever experienced before. The sound was great.....just great. Menuhin watch out.....
Today is truly a landmark day, one where life turns a corner. I have found again, as my Alexander Technique experience tells me, that releasing in one part of my body, other parts are released too, so clearly showing how all parts of the body are interrelated. Conversely tensing in one part of the body can cause tensions elsewhere.
So often our attempts to do better and 'try hard' result in too much effort, the opposite of what is often required. It takes courage to do less when our instincts are crying out to do more. Sometimes we need to step back and take a good look at 'how' we are doing things and not 'what' we are doing. My experiences with my violin are exciting stuff and I'm chuffed to bits. I wish you could hear my new vibrato! I'll keep you posted.
