Vaseline as a lubricant for fingering?
Hi. I play Indian carnatic classical music. Unlike western classical music, this style involves "gamakas", i.e. oscillations and gliding of the fingers on the finger board, most of the time. Lubrication is hence used and the most common lubricant is coconut oil. This is just less than a drop every now and then.
I was wondering if I can use vaseline instead of coconut oil. I am not sure if vaseline on ebony will damage the finger board.
Any suggestion is welcome.
Thanks.
Replies (17)
Try talcum powder instead. Use it sparingly.
I was going to suggest talc as well, but some people have concerns about potential toxicity from inhalation. The amount you would be using is so trivial though. Graphite?
Talc or graphite would not be as good for gamakas. Dunlop 65 ultraglide would be better.
The problem with Dunlop 65 is that you dont really know what's in it. You might know the top few ingredients. With mineral oil there's not really any mystery.
Vaseline= NO!!
moderate to long term usage literally suffocates, starves and kills your skin cells.
The problem with keeping oil in your case is that it makes a mess and invariably leaks. I know this from experience. Dunlop 65 is in a handy dispenser that wipes on.
Thank you all. Really helpful.
Maybe chalk, like you would use for snooker / pool cue? Might work. Just a thought.
I thought the chalk was to get a better grip...
Yes, but you can also rub it on your hand, where you make the arch for the cue, to reduce friction - old trick that.
I think that Vaseline would be a goopy mess. Just what you should use, I'm not sure.
I know what you mean as I took some lessons in Indian violin playing a long time ago. But Western playing uses more gliding than you might think. The modern Western style eschews position changes being HEARD much, unless we want a particular effect. But it's still subtly and smoothly done. Whatever the style, we all play the violin, not a keyboard.
As was suggested, maybe a bit of talcum powder, and keep the neck and fingerboard clean. Wipe after each use. And once in a great while clean the fingerboard with a tiny bit of alcohol - after first completely covering the body of the violin with cloths so no spare drop can land and take off varnish. This is somewhat controversial, but I've never had a problem. Or instead, you might more safely try Petz rosin remover.
There's a young-ish female violinist whose name I forget whose vibrato slides all over the fingerboard, I believe she has some youtubes. I don't think she uses anything.
If there is a substance that the Indian classical musicians have been using for ages and ages then this substance is the best for the same reason that shoulder rests are bad.
I would say this is more likely an issue with tension, to much weight on the fingerboard, dirty;sticky fingerboard or poor left hand technique.
Thinking back to those few lessons in Indian violin playing I had years ago I can give that style credit for giving me some insight into a smoother shifting technique. So I doubt that the OP is using too much tension.
At the same time, with my Indian style teacher whose original training was Western, we used a compromise position: we sat on the floor, cross-legged, but held our violins the Western way - on the collar-bone with the chin, etc. The more traditional Indian way is to hold the violin at the chest and have the scroll drop down to touch a leg or knee - am I right, Seethapathy? And while I hopefully have your attention, I have this question which has always puzzled me: the traditional Indian positioning being what it is, why do so many Indian players retain the chinrest? It doesn't come anywhere near the chin. Is it just because when you order a violin, it comes with a chinrest? I'm really curious about this.
Dear Mr. Klayman,
Of course you have my attention!
To answer your question, the chin rest is indeed cosmetic in Indian classical music. My guru's father, late Sri A. Narayana Iyer (under whom also I learnt after my guru left for New Delhi), advised me to remove it and I did so promptly. In none of my violins have I retained the chin rest. A lot of Indian classical violinists do have the chin rest but it does not serve any purpose.
And, like you have rightly pointed out, the traditional way for us is to rest the violin under the left collar bone while the scroll is placed on the right foot (the right leg is extended and the left leg is folded, as we sit on the ground. When we start learning the violin as a child, the violin is quite big and we will not be able to rest it under the left collar bone. It kind of rests near the neck. Once we gain height and some prowess in violin playing, we "graduate" into resting it under the left collar bone.
Hope your curiosity is satisfied.
Yes, thanks!
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March 2, 2016 at 09:05 PM · Vaseline is a mineral oil product (paraffin, petrolatum). My own feeling is that it is not any more likely to be damaging toward your fingerboard than coconut oil would be. One advantage of petrolatum is that it does not turn rancid or otherwise spoil.
Many types of wood will absorb oil, and in fact that is a common way of finishing certain types of wood and helping it stand up to water. I have a wooden salad bowl that is treated occasionally with "wood oil" which is, in fact, mineral oil, just in a more liquid form than petrolatum. So, if you decide you can use petrolatum but want something thinner, try mineral oil. Mineral oil is available at the pharmacy.
Make sure the oil that you do decide to use does not contain synthetic additives such as fragrances.