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Double jointed problems.

From Danae Lynn
Posted May 10, 2012 at 05:40 AM

My teacher is not double-jointed and does not know how to help.

Any suggestions?

Um, I hate to pour cold water on your theory, but there is no such thing as 'double jointed'. That would mean you have two joints instead of one in any given place, such as four thumb knuckles instead of two. Most people use this phrase when they are overly flexible at the joints, and can even hyperextend or overextend the joint in the opposite direction to normal. Some people have a natural hyper flexiblility, and it is completely normal.
What you are experiencing is probably tension. It happens unconsciously when you concentrate really hard on something difficult or new. It's easy to stiffen up in incorrect ways, transferring concentration to other parts of your body while trying to get the job at hand done. In this instance your bow hand and thumb are suffering, so the remedy is to practice very small parts at a time, focusing on relaxing the offending body part. Eventually your body learns to do as you insist, but it can take several months.
Good luck.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dZeJI6x6b4

I would like to know if this exercise worked for you or anyone else.

I think I understand what you are saying. For the right hand the thumb collapses and you cannot keep it bent (possibly the pinky as well?), for the left hand, the base of the thumb collapses so you are resting the violin on your hand and your pinky collapses making vibrato and shifting difficult.

The only potential solution I know of is that your fingers must be *much* stronger than the average violinist's. If this is a solution or not probably depends on the underlying cause...

For the bow hand do many repetitions of the "spider" exercise and later a lot of bowing at the heel.

For the left hand your thumb should not require much strength, but for the pinky you will need to do something like Schradeick to strengthen the pinky. If your thumb really is a problem you can put the violin on your thumb and extend and bend the thumb like push-ups and also move your thumb back and forth on the neck.

Have you ever had your joints examined by a physician? A physician may be able to help point you in the right direction--the right types of splints, what you can do to improve strength, etc.

Hypermobility is sometimes a symptom of a more serious condition like Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, so you may want to have it checked out.