Tension in right arm and shoulder...

[henrah]

...and I can't seem to get rid of it. I can feel it right now, as I type, and even as I lie down and do absolutely anything. I just can't seem to release it, and it's really getting to me.

Any pointers?
Henrah

[thalbergmad]

TENSION, I hate it, it ruins everything.

I remember seeing an interview on telly with Claudio Arrau, in which he likened the human body to an electric circuit board. If there is tension anywhere, the circuit is broken and the music is ruined.

What works for me is no piano practice or computer work for 2 days and a piping hot lavendar herbal bath. I follow this up with rubbing in Albugel.

If this does not work, then amputate your arm, for it is better to have no arm than one with tension.

Hops this helps

Thal

[pianistimo]

thal is right.  and maybe how you sleep at night.  sometimes your arm can be up over your head and not getting circulation or in a strange position.  also you could try a foam 'topper' over the mattress.  it gives a little bit more cushioning and helps some people to not be stiff in the morning.  (*ok 'stiff' isn't a word to use either).  middle section.  stiff.  must remember not to use these words.

[henrah]

Oooo, I haven't had a bath in aaaaaaaaaaaages!! (I shower instead, not that you thought I was smelly eheh) That sounds very relaxing! But Thal, what is Albugel? Would Boots have it, and if so how much does it generally cost?

Pianistimo, I do have stiffness when I wake up (heheh the connotations) and sometimes from sleeping on my old mattress I get side pains when I breathe in deeply. But I found a new mattress and am sleeping fairly comfortably now, although that extra foam layer you're talking about sounds very pleasing I shall look into it.

Overnight, the tension I was feeling (which was mainly at the very top of my arm in the shoulder [deltoid?] muscle) has gone, but the scapula tension has come back, and it does every time I play. I have trouble playing without tension in my right arm, but my left is fine. I think it's all this Mozart I'm doing, as it's all finger work and doesn't allow any arm work. Like repetitive notes in the thumb with a melody going between third fourth and fifth.

* henrah is liking Mozart

Henrah

[pianistimo]

my back cannot handle long practice without lower back exercises everyday.  unfortunately, i'm not getting it every day - but for me, bicycling really improves my back.  somehow the cycling makes the mid section able to hold my back up for much longer periods and to hold it up straight - which makes relaxing from the neck down easier (since the back isn't tilted one way or the other - which really gets you off balance after a while).

also, you can lay down on the floor and put your knees up and just 'feel' how the back pops into place.  a few knees to chest and you've popped your back into place again.  this works well, and sometimes leaning back against a wall and pushing the lower back into the wall. surprisingly this all can affect many places in the body - including neck , arms, upper back and make you feel how you are 'supposed' to carry' your weight.  stomach in not out.