To Move or Not To Move: Balance and Movement in String Playing

Abstract

Some string players move profusely, some hardly move at all during their performances. Pop string players move and dance all over the place during their renditions and audience members remark that this shows how they “really get into their music!” These pop players are exaggerating the natural movements that string players employ to physically play their instrument. So what movements do we teach our students? What movements do we encourage and what do we discourage? String players are sometimes noticeably stiff when playing or find ways to move that are comfortable for them. However, understanding how the human body functions and how to improve essential movements when playing needs to be included in string teaching today. Players develop more ease of playing, “get into the music” more, and improve their playing skills when they are encouraged to move efficiently. As a Galamian student, I remember instruction on movement like to “bow out and bow in,” and to move my head opposite to a strong bow stroke. I went to Galamian’s (1985, 12–13) book Principles of Violin Playing and Teaching to find out what Mr. G had to say about movement when playing: “What should be avoided are exaggerated bodily motions while playing.” The reasons Mr. G gives not to move in exaggerated ways are that it is unpleasant to see and it demands a constant readjustment of the bow to the violin and, thus, disturbs the performance. Galamian then moderates his advice recommending that “It is not advisable to go to the opposite extreme as some teachers do who insist on suppressing in their students every bodily motion” (Galamian 1985, 12–13). Most important is Galamian’s conclusion: “There is a certain amount of movement that is natural and helps the coordination and the feeling for rhythm and accent” (Galamian 1985, 12–13). Galamian and his assistants taught balance and contrary movement in their technical approach. Carl Flesch (1930, 92) pointed out the importance of bodily movement to play a string instrument well in his technical treatise The Art of Playing the Violin: “We now come to the most important of bodily hindrances, to the excessive, incorrect, or entirely missing rhythmic movements of the body . . . Their importance is due to the fact that their incorrect employ influences, not so much technique, but the still more important capacity for expression, in an unfavorable manner.” When I studied with Roman Totenberg (a student of Flesch), contrary motion, weight transfer, and balance on both feet were an integral part of my training. In this article, I will address a number of topics on movement for string playing that will help students understand the biomechanics of playing to improve their technical efficiency and avoid excess muscle tension. Posture Functional dynamic body posture is the most important element in achieving free and balanced movements. However, posture is frequently misunderstood. The body is not static but constantly moving and adjusting to maintain balance. Carl Flesch points out (1930, 96) that, “If the posture is poor, breathing is poor.” We often talk about good and bad posture as if there are only two polarities. Posture, however, is a dynamic balance we maintain based on our physical activity. Joanne Elphinston (2013, 102), physiotherapist for sports and performing arts, warns us in her book Stability, Sport and Performance Movement, “. . . actively trying to prevent motion through muscle activation tends to create rigidity and loss of physical performance.” The worst advice we can give students to improve posture would be: “Stand (sit) up straight, head up, shoulders back, stomach in.” It would be difficult to play a string instrument is this position with muscles contracted to hold everything in tightly. The most effective posture is achieved when nothing is locked, fixed, or held, even when quietly standing. Holding ourselves in a “straight” position restrains free movement. Maintaining this tense position is accomplished by increasing back muscle tension. In this position, free movement is restrained and the player becomes quickly fatigued, collapsing into their original poor posture. Efficient posture should be comfortable, repeatable, and sustainable. The stance needs to be fluid, light, and effortless.