Using the Body’s Wisdom to Unlock Piano Technique          

by Jacqueline Herbein

 

As a teacher and performer it is impossible to have too much knowledge about the body. We owe it to our students to pass along information that will allow them to unlock their musical potential and prevent the possibility of injury in the future.  But what information will we pass along?  Recycled information from the latest workshop or clinic we attended or the last article we read?  It all sounded so good and made so much sense when that dynamic speaker/writer presented his or her definitive methods, but on what was it based?  Do we have enough anatomical knowledge to assess the validity of the information?  If it was valid, have we taken the time to incorporate the latest workshop/clinic/article principles into our own playing?  If not, how can we teach what we haven’t experienced?  How does the incorporation of these new principles feel?  Are we in touch with the new physical sensation?  Does it work?  In order to answer these questions we need solid knowledge and an understanding of how our bodies work in relation to the keyboard.          

We now live in an age where more information than we ever dreamed of is only an Internet connection and a mouse click away. Understanding and using this information is another matter.  A thorough knowledge of basic anatomy is crucial to understanding movement at the keyboard.  Armed with solid anatomical facts we can guide the young beginning pianist into forming good physical habits at the keyboard so that when he starts to practice longer hours in junior high and high school he is not at risk of repetitive stress injuries.  This anatomical knowledge allows us to look at the information presented in many of the beginner methods on the market today and truly question its validity.  Position and outward appearance of the hand is only one piece of the puzzle. Creating a movement free from underlying tension is another.  It is here that we must tap into our own body’s wisdom.   In his book, The Inner Athlete, Dan Millman states: “A good teacher can speak the language of the intellect – words – and communicate clearly so the student understands.  An excellent teacher can speak the language of the body – by showing the muscles, bones, and nerves how something should feel if done properly.”

Take a moment to check in with your body right now.  How comfortable are you?  Are you sitting hunched over in a chair or are you sitting supported?  Are your shoulders tight?  Are you gripping the pages or are the pages resting easily in your hands?  What does your body tell you?   The majority of us go through our days without listening to what our bodies are trying to communicate.  We tune our bodies out in order to squeeze in all the demands of our jobs: practicing, rehearsing and teaching, not to mention the details of the rest of our lives.  When our bodies finally get our attention with excruciating sensations we can’t ignore, how do we respond?  Do we shut our bodies up by popping a pill, having a drink or watching mind-numbing television, or do we consider working with them in a cooperative way?     

The messages of holistic health abound.  Look no further than the offerings at your local health club – beside the basic low-impact aerobic and step classes you might find T’ai Chi, Yoga, Pilates and Therapeutic Massage.  Sign on with a personal trainer and you can possibly enter the field of bodywork, core stabilization, somatic education or movement awareness.  Depending on where you live there might be an Alexander Technique or Feldenkrais Method teacher in your area.  As in piano technique, no system or school approaches the body in quite the same way, but most share several basic assumptions:

All of these approaches involve movement and why not?  Life is, after all, movement.  Even at rest we are living, flowing bodies, almost like a stream.  As a stream receives new water from a variety of sources, so we can take in information from a variety of approaches.  Pain is a great motivator and people frequently turn to whole body approaches after surgery or drugs have failed to give them relief from injury or chronic conditions.  In addition to relief, what they ultimately find is an increased sensitivity and flexibility in communicating with their own body.  

Pianists move for a living and the movements they make are infinitely more refined than the movements of everyday life. The journey to unlock technique through body awareness begins away from the keyboard.  As pianists we need to communicate with our own bodies – our whole body.  Tension in one part of the body reverberates through the entire body.    In The Art of Piano Playing Heinrich Neuhaus states: …it is essential to use all the anatomical possibilities of movement with which man has been endowed, beginning with … one point of support – the fingertips on the keyboard, and ending with another point of support on the chair.”   As teachers we need to be in communication with our own bodies so we can intuitively feel what is happening in our student’s bodies.  In a sense, we can teach them to feel what we feel.    Dan Millman again writes in The Inner Athlete: “Remember that the best teachers not only teach a subject – they convey principles of living through a subject.”   When you are alienated from your body you are unaware of the resources you have for making judgments, decisions and refinements of your technique.  Recognized “experts” tell you how to play, how to teach.  Once you start to appreciate your body as an endless source of knowledge, you can listen to those experts and choose on your own.  You begin to instinctively know what is right for you and you can reject what is not.  Befriend your body and really discover its wisdom. It may be the greatest gift you can give yourself and your teaching. 

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