Exercises to improve finger flexibility?

January 6, 2010 at 10:19 PM ·

Greetings,

get a copy of Kievman- Practicing the violin mentally/physically.  It is full of interesitng and simple exercises that might really apepal to you. In particular developing flexibility involved changing the shape of the whole finger IE the finger tip is more or less extended.  In Basics (Basics ohm, ohm) Simmon Fischer refers to this relationship as square shape versus dimaond which makes the shape of the finger very easy to imagine. You need to practice exericses in which the finger changes between these shapes.  I think Dounis Daily Dozen has a good verison (exericse no3 or 4). 

In general I find this kind of shaping of the fingers is far too far off the radar screen from a teacher sperspective.  If you explain the rather simple cocnept to students they veyr quickly see the sense of what one is sayiong and there is an immediate improvement in intonation.  The typical errod is to adjust the hand instead of the shape of the finger.

Hope this helps,

Buri

January 6, 2010 at 10:22 PM ·

Buri has very good technical advice! 

I have about the same physionomy and problems as you and as "frustrating" as it is, I succeded in going further by doing a few things.  It would be more challenging for a professionnal musician but you can very well go to the last level of a conservatory for amteur students with an interesting repertoire and sound quite good.   

- Practice very much. Stiff and small fingers (often cold too ; ) need much more warming and time to "unstiffen".  Scales and such help but for more immidiate flexibility. Do a little cardio to get blod into your hands. this will warm them and increase flexibility.  When I play gigs, I love to go take a walk in the halls of the school for this reason...  Take the stairs many times too. 

- be absoluntly sure to put the minimum (almost harmonic stage) of pressure on them since you can seriously harm yourself (especially the pinky!).  Wrist and finger vibratos are the most convenient vibratos for me since they are less demanding for the hands and can be as large if you put the minimum pressure and practice vibrato exercise. Possibly the only solution for vibratos on the "big" G string.  Doing this type of vibrato has been a "miracle" for me since it allows to overcome very much the problem. 

Sure playing slowly studies can be a good warming too. (when you can hardly moove at first) Ask your teacher for the ones that would fit you.

Have a quality instrument (if you can professionnal instrument. or beginning of the professionnal range) because it will responds much faster than a cheap one and will forgive some mistakes due to small fingers in chords more easily (as when you must play 2 strings with just one finger and vibrato will be easier if the instrument is responsive with a generous sound)

Good luck,

Anne-Marie

January 8, 2010 at 11:41 PM ·

There was a professional recital which I went to and the female soloist was barely 5 feet tall. She played robustly and with ease and brilliance and seemed to be very comfortable with playing difficult chord successions.  

After the finish of the recital I complemented on her playing and asked what violin she was currently playing. She brought out a 7/8 Ruggeri and showed it to me. She then explained that she got the idea about switching to a 7/8 violin from demonstrating passages for her grammar school violin students.  

She also told me that her practicing was a pleasure in that this size violin fit her physique perfectly and that she learned new pieces faster and better. 

There are violins with shorter necks and narrower bodies. Explore the possibilities of any and all violin sizes and shapes.

Ted Kruzich

January 15, 2010 at 10:51 AM ·

 Here is a trick from the world of sports. Sit or lie down  in a comfortable position. Visualize your fingers being warm, supple, nimble. See yourself playing something simple.  Visualize yourself playing it cleanly, in tune, with a warm sound, effortless. After a while when you see yourself  getting it right, speed up.  If you notice that you tense up somewhere in your body, arm, jaw, shoulder, back, relax that place. Stiffness often comes from another part of the body than you think, be attentive.

I have stiff hands too, I work them slowly without pushing, but it can take a while, sometimes an hour or more to get them supple. It is a process and you will definitely get better if you keep on working, your teacher cannot have meant that you would stay where you are for ever.

Warm ups are good.

January 15, 2010 at 04:11 PM ·

There is a lifetime of music you can look forward to playing without having to play chords or doublestops. Most orchestral playing is done "divisi" with the chords split between different players. I know no better exercise for finger flexibility than playing a specific routine that works. When my fingers started to stiffen up around age 40, I would put in a solid 30 minutes of warmup practice every day before starting to practice. That was 35 years ago. Now, I don't have that much stamina, so I try to loosen up my fingers AND practice at the same time. I'm also stretching a bit by warming up on cello and viola before playing violin lately, and I'm running into problems that are the opposite of "stretching."

Andy

January 15, 2010 at 06:26 PM ·

You all make me so afraid with fingers getting stiffer with age! They are already stiff at 20 what will I be at 80 lol ; )

Anne-Marie

January 17, 2010 at 03:55 AM ·

Hello Joyce;

All the above comments contain great advice, but I figured I'd add my two cents anyway.

I came across a nifty little gadget called a Grip Master not longer ago. It builds your finger/hand muscles, and noticable improvement can be achieved within a week! And it's really convenient because it just fits in the palm of your hand, and you can do it whenever and where ever you wish.

best regards,

Thomas

January 17, 2010 at 07:53 PM ·

I'm 64, been playing seriously a little over 4 years.  I've worked with my hands all my life, as well as doing boxing and martial arts.  Lots of deep cuts, sprains and broken fingers over the years, and my hands are thick and stiff.  I'm also missing a good chunk of my left index finger, and have De Quervain's syndrome and cubital tunnel inflammation in my left arm and hand, related to earlier injuries.  Even with all those impediments, I don't have any trouble playing double stops anywhere on the fingerboard, and I also play some pretty fast material. The only thing that gives me trouble is fourth finger vibrato on the G and D, and that is slowly yielding to practice. I had a little trouble with minor third double stops in first position, but that has also yielded to practice.

Some of the things that really helped me are good arm hand position, and learning to relax, as well as practicing all sorts of scale exercises, slowly and carefully, listening really hard to my intonation. I also work pretty hard on keeping my left hand "quiet", finger movement minimal.  You really don't need a whole lot of flexibility if you keep your fingers close to the board, and close to "home".

I figured out hand and arm position by putting all four fingers in tune on the D string in first position, then moving the violin left and right to where my fingers and arm were most relaxed. Then I moved my thumb to the place where it felt most relaxed.  My left elbow automatically settled well under the violin, and it's easy to swing over to reach the G string in tune, no stretching up to 7th position. It helps a lot to keep the violin up so that it's pretty level in a line from tail to scroll.

It doesn't take strength to stop a note, especially if your hand is well placed.  I got rid of my death grip by imagining the fingerboard to be coated with butterfly wings that I didn't want to damage.  Makes vibrato a lot easier, and makes it much easier to play fast.  I don't have any sensation of pressing when I stop a note; it feels more like just putting a little bit of weight into my finger.  I know some outstanding players like a little more resistance - it's a matter of what works for you.

All the other suggestions are great, but I suspect they'll work even better if you pay attention to arm and hand position, to relaxing, and to keeping your hand quiet. I'll probably never be playing Paganini caprices, or auditoning for a seat with a symphony, but I can play fast and in tune, and people invite me to play with them. BTW, if you raise your shoulders or clamp down with your chin on the chin rest, the tension tends to radiate through your whole body, and can really mess your playing up . I have to monitor myself constantly, especially when I play solo in public or work on new material.

That's my experience as a late beginner, anyway.  Hope there's something useful in it.  I'm surprised that your teacher hasn't gotten into all this; I think most of it is pretty basic.  I'm mostly self-taught, but I work with pro players and teachers all the time, and I keep hearing the same observations over and over, in different words and different contexts.  Some of it is even starting to sink in ;-D

April 25, 2010 at 12:06 PM ·

Thanks everyone for your tips and advice.  It's funny that after 3.5 months I'm still trying to solve the same problems, although I must admit that my finger flexibility has definitely improved thanks to some of the tips above.

April 26, 2010 at 11:16 AM ·

 In addition to everything that's been said, and particularly Buri's excellent recommendation I will offer you my method for increasing flexibility.  I do this all the time for uncomfortable doublestops and chords and it seems to work for me.

Pick a part that's troubling for you, stretch-wise.  Carefully play that part slowly and as relaxed as you can.  Pick up your fingertips and do it again.  After the third time, set your violin down and gently shake out your hand.  Then extend your arms straight out to either side with your palms facing forward.  Keeping your fingers straight, bend your palms backwards only as far as is comfortable.  If you do it right, you should feel some stretch reaching into your fingertips.  Now pick up the violin and play the troubling part 5 more times or until you feel that your hand's relaxation is close to being compromised.  Repeat.  By playing the passage, then relaxing and doing a gentle stretch then trying again you are sending the message to your muscle memory that it must be able to accomplish what you are asking in a relaxed manner that doesn't strain your hand, and you are repeatedly practicing the stretch as well.  If you do this consistently I hope you'll find that your hand will soften and begin to accommodate you.  The most important thing is that you must understand the difference between a stretch and a strain.  A stretch is when you aren't asking too much of your hand to be unhealthy but you can feel that you're reaching a bit farther than you are used to.  A strain is where you tried too hard and are risking injury.  It's easy to hurt your hand at this stage in your study but if you are patient and careful and listen to what your body is telling you, then you will overcome these challenges and you will thank yourself for not quitting.

Also one other thing, I often hear adult beginners worrying that their flexibility problems are age-related.  Sometimes this may be the case but not all of the time and even if it is that doesn't mean you can't learn to play the way you want.  All it means is that there may be an extra hurdle to overcome, you may need a little extra patience but there are much harder things in life so don't despair.  A lot of adult beginners give up before they've even spent the amount of time that it would take a child or a teenager to accomplish similar feats.  Just be gentle with yourself, take heart and know that you have a lot of wonderful music to look forward to.

April 27, 2010 at 05:11 AM ·

I'm new to violin - but I have been playing guitar for years... and it's all about the heat. Strength is something else - but you didn't say strength was an issue.

Hands are machines.. machines with lubricant - like your car's oil - the warmer your hands the more viscous the lubricant in the joints. friction warms your joints (e.g. warm up time like folks are mentioning...)

also, if you are not making progress here, you might seek your doctor's opinion on suppliments that might help your joints.

It takes me 30 minutes on the guitar to get really limber I can play ANY TIME but for the really intricate stuff - I really need to play 30minutes to an hour for things to really loosen up.

No matter what: don't give up if you like playing violin! You'll get better! Besides ... sometimes a slow piece played well has as much beauty as flight of the bumble bee.. perhaps more!