Wow.. Thank you Lynn for arranging this interview & Jennifer for sharing this information. I'm from India and I'm a beginner in learning Violin and I play Carnatic style (Indian Style) & also started with Western style of playing the violin recently and I have been experiencing right hand pain and dint realise it had to do with my shoulder until now. Am gonna try and implement what you shared basically to keep any position in neutral and relaxed. Wish I had come across this session much earlier.!
Amazing information; thank you so much! I am a violinist and violin teacher based in South Africa, and my copy of What Every Violinist Needs to Know About the Body finally arrived in the post last week! Have been soaking it up like a sponge and have had tears of relief in my eyes more than once... and I'm only in chapter 3. Really appreciate the work Ms Johnson has done and continues to do and am hoping to be of similar help to my students. Thank you!
Jennifer will be so happy to hear that, Tinamari! I’m so glad you have the book now. It’s a dense read but it is such a great resource to have, especially as a teacher!
Thank you for this video. It made me feel good because I found out that I am doing well with my way of holding my bow. But my left side is a mess!! So much to change!!! Need lessons and much practice. ☺️
Yes I got a frozen shoulder on my left arm I had to go to physical therapy and it was very very difficult to try to heal this it's still not 100% healed but it's much much better
Thank you. (8 yr., by ear, Old Time fiddler) I'm reminded of my first advise on the bow: to hold it so loosely that you might drop it sometimes (not so scarey for "old time campfire music compared to the classical venue). Then I was advised to control the bow with thumb to middle finger at frog but not tight...great control but I found by locking my thumb to the frog I had great control during fast runs. So now I have mild tendonitis in rt. forearm so I'm returning to a more natural position (thumb to middle isn't for me so thumb to index general area is better) and this was great advice for range of motion issues. And, I recently mounted left-handed chin rest (like Alan Block), which does move my left shoulder back but the main reason was for a better view of the fingerboard. It seems very comfortable to me and as a fiddler I don't care how it looks and I shift to center often while playing. Maybe I'll mount a center rest on my "experimental" fiddle to see if it's a good fit. Thanks again. Still working to get vibrato for my gypsy jazz guitarist friend. I plan getting Jennifer's book.
As an intermediate player who hasn't heard of body mapping or the Alexander technique, it was honestly slightly frustrating to not have a succinct description of what either is in the beginning and just hearing about related background information about the two. I really wanted to get into this video and Dr. Johnson is obviously very knowledgable but it felt like a college lecture where the professor is just on such a high level that they assume everyone is already familiar with what they're talking about when they might not be.
Dear Lynn and Jennifer, Thank you so much for this video! This is excellent...and also a bit heartbreaking because I wish I'd seen it years ago! Ahh! The good news is I know now, and there's hope for a future of pain-free violin playing with less tension. Thank you! I'll check your other resources and books out.
Everyone who struggles with pain and discomfort needs to see this video. 💕 It could save someone from years of searching for the answers! Glad it’s been so helpful to you, Holly!
Alexander Technique is indeed helpful. In fact, any kind of somatic education that builds body awareness can be helpful for musicians to perform with more ease and avoid overuse injuries.
At 31;00 "There's a frog on the bump on the log.." (I think it's called the frog's legs because when the bow is held verticle the screw makes the frog move up and down.)
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Tremendously valuable insights into body functioning for violinists, thank you for sharing!! Jennifer's books are gold...
Yes they are! Jennifer is so helpful and I felt like she gave so many great insights in this interview!
Wow.. Thank you Lynn for arranging this interview & Jennifer for sharing this information. I'm from India and I'm a beginner in learning Violin and I play Carnatic style (Indian Style) & also started with Western style of playing the violin recently and I have been experiencing right hand pain and dint realise it had to do with my shoulder until now. Am gonna try and implement what you shared basically to keep any position in neutral and relaxed. Wish I had come across this session much earlier.!
I’m so happy to hear that you discovered this video and hope it helps improve playing ease for you!
Great info . I bought Jennifers book and I am working through it.
Bruce. From Hanover. ONtario.
Hi Bruce! I’m glad you bought Jennifer’s book! I bought her most recent book as well: Musician, Heal Thyself!
Amazing information; thank you so much! I am a violinist and violin teacher based in South Africa, and my copy of What Every Violinist Needs to Know About the Body finally arrived in the post last week! Have been soaking it up like a sponge and have had tears of relief in my eyes more than once... and I'm only in chapter 3. Really appreciate the work Ms Johnson has done and continues to do and am hoping to be of similar help to my students. Thank you!
Jennifer will be so happy to hear that, Tinamari! I’m so glad you have the book now. It’s a dense read but it is such a great resource to have, especially as a teacher!
Thank you for this video. It made me feel good because I found out that I am doing well with my way of holding my bow. But my left side is a mess!! So much to change!!! Need lessons and much practice. ☺️
That's great that you are cognizant of what you need to do! Thanks for leaving a comment, Stella! Good luck!
Yes I got a frozen shoulder on my left arm I had to go to physical therapy and it was very very difficult to try to heal this it's still not 100% healed but it's much much better
Glad you’re getting improvement, Debbie! Glad luck with your healing journey!
Thank you. (8 yr., by ear, Old Time fiddler) I'm reminded of my first advise on the bow: to hold it so loosely that you might drop it sometimes (not so scarey for "old time campfire music compared to the classical venue). Then I was advised to control the bow with thumb to middle finger at frog but not tight...great control but I found by locking my thumb to the frog I had great control during fast runs. So now I have mild tendonitis in rt. forearm so I'm returning to a more natural position (thumb to middle isn't for me so thumb to index general area is better) and this was great advice for range of motion issues.
And, I recently mounted left-handed chin rest (like Alan Block), which does move my left shoulder back but the main reason was for a better view of the fingerboard. It seems very comfortable to me and as a fiddler I don't care how it looks and I shift to center often while playing. Maybe I'll mount a center rest on my "experimental" fiddle to see if it's a good fit. Thanks again. Still working to get vibrato for my gypsy jazz guitarist friend. I plan getting Jennifer's book.
Thanks for sharing! It’s always a personal journey on the instrument. Hope Jennifer’s book(s) are helpful!
As an intermediate player who hasn't heard of body mapping or the Alexander technique, it was honestly slightly frustrating to not have a succinct description of what either is in the beginning and just hearing about related background information about the two. I really wanted to get into this video and Dr. Johnson is obviously very knowledgable but it felt like a college lecture where the professor is just on such a high level that they assume everyone is already familiar with what they're talking about when they might not be.
Dear Lynn and Jennifer, Thank you so much for this video! This is excellent...and also a bit heartbreaking because I wish I'd seen it years ago! Ahh! The good news is I know now, and there's hope for a future of pain-free violin playing with less tension. Thank you! I'll check your other resources and books out.
Everyone who struggles with pain and discomfort needs to see this video. 💕 It could save someone from years of searching for the answers!
Glad it’s been so helpful to you, Holly!
Thank you for this very interesting information. I was told that I needed help from the Alexander Technique because if my poor
Alexander Technique is indeed helpful. In fact, any kind of somatic education that builds body awareness can be helpful for musicians to perform with more ease and avoid overuse injuries.
Extremely well done, an excellent incentive to dive into the book, again.
Yes, me too! Glad you enjoyed the interview and thanks for leaving a comment!
Great video, many thanks Lynn and Jennifer.
Thanks so much for watching, Vanessa! And my pleasure!
So informative! Thanks for sharing!
Kathleen Covalt Thanks for watching, Kathleen! Such amazing content that Jennifer shared with us!
At 31;00 "There's a frog on the bump on the log.." (I think it's called the frog's legs because when the bow is held verticle the screw makes the frog move up and down.)
Frog’s legs! Ah, thank you!
hello miss Lynn Kuo I'm from Mauritius
Hi from Canada 🇨🇦! 🙋♀️