Guitar Changes

Copyright 1998 Paul Marxhausen
When I developed deep pains in my forearms in March of 1994 
following three intense weeks of unaccustomed 8-hour days at the 
computer, I knew it was serious trouble. I even knew it was called 
Repetitive Strain Injury.  But I was pretty sure some good ergonomic 
computing equipment would fix it, that and the splints and ibuprofen 
my physician's assistant prescribed for me.

What I didn't know yet was that my approach to playing guitar and 
other instruments may have been a significant contributing cause of 
my bilateral flexor tendinitis.  

Despite splints, drugs and ergonomic computer equipment , real 
recovery was elusive, not the least because I hardly slowed down my 
frenetic pace on computer OR on my instruments.  But after I 
rehearsed and performed  a Christmas oratorio on violin, I found 
myself in frightening pain and having increasing trouble with 
dexterity.  I asked for and got a referral to a physical therapist, who 
after a time of evaluation laid it out for me: I was in for a long, 
difficult recovery, and I needed to reduce or modify all activities 
that aggravated my tendinitis.  

No phrase is more common to musicians experiencing physical 
problems than "I can't  stop practicing . . . " because we have a 
recital, or we need to keep a paying gig, or "our music is in our 
blood" and we can't bear to leave it be.  But reality is reality: my 
guitar and violin went in their cases and stayed there untouched for 
months while the damage slowly repaired.

There were a great many things that contributed to the return to 
functionality and relative freedom from pain I enjoy today: physical 
reeducation for my body, ice water baths for my arms, gentle 
stretching, microcurrent therapy, meditation to reduce stress, and 
more.   But I'd like to address some specific points about the steel 
string acoustic guitar, which is my main instrument and which I 
believe caused me the most trouble.

Maybe one of the most important things to learn is you don't have to 
fret so darn hard.    Some instructors  suggest fretting notes with 
ever-decreasing pressure, until finally the string actually buzzes 
because it's not fretted enough.  Just a little bit  more than that is 
all it takes to play cleanly, even during vigorous pieces.  "Digging 
in" may feel like you are wrenching more tone from the string, but it 
just ain't so.  (When you strike the strings harder you may have to 
increase your fretting pressure a bit.)  The same rationale applies to 
the picking hand as well: excess tension in finger- or flat-picking 
does not add to your tone, and besides causing injurious strain it 
impedes your speed and dexterity.  If you are fond of using a flat 
pick, you may find using a thumb pick may reduce the amount of 
force needed to hold the pick.  Using more of your whole arm to pick 
instead of doing it all with your wrist is frequently recommended as 
well.  

And the moment pressure or movement is no longer required from 
any finger, relax it.  Give those muscles and tendons a momentary 
chance to recharge and flush waste products away.

Electric guitarists are notorious for preferring postures and 
positions that look cool over those which are least stressful and 
most musically effective, but even a classic guitarist sitting in the 
refined one-foot-elevated position may be creating physical 
problems through hunched shoulders, cocked wrists, and the tilted 
hips that come with the use of the footstool.  I can't begin to 
address all the aspects of correct posture, but I will pass along 
Aaron Shearer's1 sound advice that to the greatest extent possible, 
all joints - shoulders, elbows, knuckles, fingers, wrists - should 
operate in the middle of their range of movement.  Shearer explains 
correct positioning in depth in his excellent book  LEARNING THE 
CLASSIC GUITAR, Part I which while intended for the classic 
guitarist provides principals that can be applied to steel string and 
solid-body guitars.  My own practice has changed in that I try to play 
standing up with a strap whenever possible, which permits me to 
move and avoid any fixed, tense position. Instead of the neck 
extending out parallel to the floor, I minimize my left-hand 
contortions by angling the neck up at about 45 degrees from the 
horizontal.  One injurious habit I'm finding hard to break is holding 
my left shoulder up when I play.  Shoulders should be allowed to 
drop, and raising the arm done through the rotation of the shoulder 
joint, without any "help" from a raised shoulder.  

A controversial point of positioning is placing the left-hand thumb 
behind the neck to optimize reach and fretting strength: this is 
generally accepted as "correct" classic technique.  But it can be 
very hard on the thumb, and letting the neck fall into the web 
between the thumb and fingers instead should at least be considered 
as an optional change of pace to rest the thumb.  Too, overuse of full 
barre chords maximizes the amount of left hand strain; my playing 
and writing style has changed to emphasize partial chords and 
alternatives to full 6-string barres.

Changes to the instrument may help avoid injury.  Lighter strings are 
an obvious method to reduce strain on the hands.  This will likely 
alter your tone and may require a change in your playing style or an 
adjustment in your instrument setup.  Along the same lines, tuning 
down a half or whole step not only reduces string tension further but 
opens up new tonal possibilities.

Using a capo restores the concert pitch of a guitar detuned in this 
way, but in addition it shortens the effective scale of the guitar to 
minimize left hand stretches.  My "standard" setup has my guitar 
detuned one whole step and then capoed two frets up.  

One option to ease playing problems is to get an instrument that is 
shorter, narrower, and/or shallower than the popular dreadnaught-
style acoustics. Options include small bodied "parlor" guitars,  very 
shallow-bodied acoustics/electrics, the round-backed Ovations, and 
at least one "ergonomic" acoustic model where the body is 
shallower on one side than the other, so the right arm and hand do 
not have to reach around so much body.  Though it may sound 
unthinkable to the acoustic purist,  solid-body electric guitars offer 
advantages in shape and easy playing action, and with sophisticated 
electronic processing can provide usable RacousticS tone.  Chet 
Atkins and Joni Mitchell are two  acoustic guitar masters who are 
using solid-body guitars in concert venues.

While these and other changes, and the healing of time, have given 
me back the ability to practice guitar and write new material, 
endurance remains a problem for me.   After a half-hour trying out 
guitars in a music store recently, I found my fingers slipping, 
missing notes, and simply refusing to obey the commands of my 
brain.  I'm hoping that  gentle exercise over the coming months 
rebuilds endurance.

More resources on this subject can be found on-line on my Web site
"Musicians & Injuries" , http://www.engr.unl.edu/eeshop/music.html

References:

 LEARNING THE CLASSIC GUITAR, Part I Aaron Shearer Mel Bay 
Publications, Inc. #4 Industrial Drive, Pacific, MO 63069-0066 Toll 
Free 1-800-325-9518 FAX (314)257-5062