The Role Of The Scapula

Hi Alan, I contacted you last summer for help with my problem turning the right hand 4th finger over the thumb in descending scales and arpeggios (e.g., C to B-flat in a B-flat scale or a descending dominant 7th in the key of F). You speculated that my thumb was likely weak and needed lots of slow practice. It's perfectly true that my thumb is a bit weak but I want to report to you what seems to be the larger issue. (I understand perfectly that you couldn't see me play and had advised me a bit in the dark.) Slow thumb-centric practice seemed to help at first, but over the last 4 months of 2009 I had almost lost use of the right arm entirely! I asked a fellow amateur pianist friend to watch me play shirtless (a horrific sight, I know!). She observed that, while my left shoulder and arm moved with a natural ease, my right shoulder was frozen in place and moved not a whit. It's true that my left hand is as agile as I can want (it can safely execute 16th note scales at MM 180) but my right was limited to no more than a third of that speed and it wobbled all the time, with a degree of pain. Essentially, the right hand/arm refused to stand up and maintain proper arch, whereas the left hand/arm is quite adept at this. This started me down a very productive road. I spent a lot of time watching my Baby Kitty (she's the cat in my avatar) and saw how her scapula were very active in all walking, reaching, and climbing tasks (I *know* the body structure of a cat is quite different than a human's but it created a striking image in my mind). I then started working with a good massage therapist who confirmed that my right scapula was essentially "glued" to the ribcage and showed me how to activate it. Previously, my right arm swivelled solely from the ball joint of the shoulder proper and refused to engage the scapula. This resulted in slow, jerky, and somewhat painful horizontal motion with no sense of strength or control. Apparently my left arm had learned proper movement independently of the right. Playing with an awareness of the scapula and imagining the arm as attaching to the body at this point rather than at the ball joint has restored a huge degree of agility and strength. I am extremely relieved that my arm didn't actually wither and die, so to speak! Do you have any advice for me in continuing down this road? Are there specific piano exercises that will reinforce this promising angle of being "scapula centric" rather than "ball joint centric?" Or am I deluding myself? I apologize in advance if this is already covered in your book and/or DVD!! Many thanks for your guidance! - Richard

Hello Richard, Welcome to the Forum. Sorry to hear that my initial advice proved useful only in the short run. The first thing that occurs to me as you describe what has been happening is this: GO SEE A FELDENKRAIS PRACTITIONER! This problem is tailor-made to be solved by this method. Massage will help but Feldenkrais usually does a better job of getting to and addressing the underlying function that led to the frozen scapula. There may be a problem far removed from the scapula that is contributing to its immobility. Do a Google search and you are likely to find a practitioner in your area. As for piano exercises, the basic one to start with is: Stand your thumb and forefinger up to form an arch. Lean the arch forward so your hand moves diagonally across the front of your body; then let the arch sink back so your hand approaches the surface it's standing on. This has several benefits, including: 1) It gives your hand a sense of stable standing, with the corollary nice sense of physical security. This alone should help the scapula release. 2) The movement should evoke movement in the scapula itself. If you stand well, effort is localized in your hand itself. Your arm frees itself. When the arch leans forward, the scapula should follow it and slide forward across your back ribs... Hope this helps. Get moving! AFF

Thanks Alan. Boils down to the basics, I see! I know that my body is somewhat out of whack - I always wear out the left shoe before the right. I all too briefly worked with Maria Sara Villa (an old friend of yours) here in Tucson about two years ago but she stopped holding her classes after I had attended only 4 or 5 sessions. I'll see if she's back in the saddle again or if she has any recommendations. I have hope that I can get back in balance. When I get the scapula properly engaged, I am able to produce a much fatter/larger tone from the instrument than before with very little effort. Not quite Horowitz but far beyond my previous abilities. Thank you for the exercises. I'll start applying them right away. All the best, - Richard

That's right, I had forgotten you had lessons from Maria Sara. Please contact her and tell her that I am submitting a "special request" that she work with you! And could you please also add that I've lost her email address... If she could send me an email at , then I could send her this year's digital Christmas card that has pictures of her namesake, my daughter Maria Sara Fraser who is now ten! All the best, Alan

Hi Alan, I contacted Maria and gave her your message. As she'll tell you, she no longer practices but she did give me a couple of names to pursue. I'll report back to you in a few months. It must be some kind of fate that I found her in my adopted home city shortly after I bought your book. I hope you have a wonderful reunion. I remember her as being very sweet. All the best! - Richard

Hi Alan. Hope you and Maria Sara have been back in touch! My arm problem rapidly became so severe that I was no longer able to perform simple tasks with my right hand, such as shaving or stirring while cooking. I started work with a traditional physical therapist who diagnosed a form of frozen shoulder. After 3 months of intense therapy (quite painful at the start), I have full motion restored! Now it's a matter of relearning a lot of basic motions at the keyboard. I no longer wobble on key nor break down when crossing 3 or 4 over the thumb. And the tone that I produce is quite strong and full. I have to keep my speed down since I all too easily fall back into bad habits but that's a matter of continuing practice and concentration. (And playing very slowly with high concentration is really very satisfying since every note now speaks as it should.) All the best! - Richard

Glad to hear you are back in action! Best, AFF

Hello Alan! Just to let you know that you were, of course, completely correct about my right thumb's weakness. (My original query concerned turning the 4th finger over the thumb.) Alleviating my shoulder problem has allowed me to see that, indeed, my right thumb is overly prone to total collapse. I tend to turn the thumb's distal phalange inward towards the palm, not only in playing piano but in everyday tasks such as holding a pen. In that orientation, it's like an overcooked noodle (and aches to boot), providing no support to the hand whatsoever. Now that I'm aware of it, I hope to build upon this newfound insight through slow practice and eventually gain some degree of competence. Thanks once again! - Richard (and Baby Kitty too)

Sounds like it's a classic case of that part from my film in chapter 3 where I say "I'm a Canadian and hockey is my game..." about the bent thumb being equivalent to ankle skating. And it's so interesting to hear that the pattern spills over into everyday tasks - I think there are many here who should hear and take note! AFF

I should add that I am a leftie who was coerced by parents and teachers to become a rightie. My handwriting has always been laborious and unreadable. I never learned the proper way to hold a pen.