Musicians?

[Where am I? is staying!]

Hello,

I have been doing some research on professional musicians and I have been finding that they have a lot of problems with chronic pain and discomfort due to the demands of their busy schedules. I'm curious to know if any bodyworkers do regular work on professional musicians and if you have found that they require special needs?

Thanks,

Sombraman

 

[Gemma]

I have done some massage for a violinist passing through my area. (I'm in a university town.) She definitely could have benefitted from very regular massage therapy. It's not just the demanding schedule, but the repetitive motions required to play just one instrument. I'd think those who play several different instruments would be less likely to suffer so much. There are definite special needs involved.

 

[yes im pregnant w/h #2]

Not sure what actually qualifies as professional musicians... I've never worked on any big name entertainment. But I've had a few clients who are musicians with their own albums or have their own small local band.
Those clients I've had, because of being musicians, required a lot of extra work on their hands and arms. There would often be chronic neck and arm issues... massage sessions tend to be at least an hour in length and often longer. Most of my clients tend to either play guitars or piano/keyboard.
If they were practicing for a concert, or playing a lot, there would often be swelling and fatigue in the forearms to deal with as well.
FWIW, I enjoy working on my musician clients, they seem to really appreciate what massage can do for them. (Keep their fingers nimble and keep them playing!) However, even though musicians sometimes have chronic pain, it can be hard to treat them regularly IMO, because of their busy schedules.

 

[72 mg]

I regularly work on professional musicians. As was said above, repetitive use issues are a major issue. Most of my clients are a one instrument player. I have drummers and guitarists, each holds their own set of problems. I also have some who have conditions not caused by their playing but aggravated it.

A few of them are very regular, but with touring and recording schedules that run all hours off the day/night , it's a struggle for them to be consistent.

 

[Logan R]

I have worked on drummers, guitarists and one opera singer.

They all suffer from repetitive stress issues, as well as postural, sleep stress, and high-paced stress.
With the opera singer, I did a lot of abdominal work for her.

I agree with my cyber twin and Vita. Getting them to commit to regular work is very difficult. Many have day jobs as well as their musical work. They just don't feel they can make the time. I figure any massage is better than none at all.

 

[octavio247]

Hi, Sombraman.

Along with being an MT, I am a drummer. Can't work on myself much, but I can certianly tell you about some of my chronic issues. I also have worked on a violin player, fiddle player, and some others.

I am not quite sure I understand the question you are asking, so some clarification or expansion may help. I would echo the others, though, in saying that there are some definite postural and repetitive motion issues associated with different instruments.

For example, my fiddle player stands when she plays. Her pelvis is anteriorly rotated and elevated on the left, fascial shortening along the left ribcage, elevated and anteriorly rotated left shoulder, and slight left side flexion of the neck.

I would be happy to tell you about me, too, if that is what you are looking for.

 

[Mr. Tea]

some other things to remember are they way the sit depending on their instrument. also, the equipment that they must carry. each person has special needs as far as i'm concerned, musician or not. i believe the number one most important thing to know about our client is what they do for a living. it can tell you so very much about them.

my dad is a musician and i'll tell you, at times he has so many complaints it's not even funny (with getting older, it's not as easy as it used to be). he sits on a dinky stool for 4-6 hours playing keyboards while moving his foot around for the base pedal so piriformis can be a huge issue at times. also, he carries speakers that weigh 100lbs a piece (yep, he makes me help : not so fond of that). he also has other equipment that he carries. sometimes for long distances to set up depending on the arrangement of the facility. he also sings, plays keyboards, is a ventriloquist, plays guitar, harmonica and a host of other things. when he is practicing/working on music stuff at home, he sits on the floor hunched over his drum machine for hours & hours. not good.
funny thing is, i think his thumb bothers him the most and that's from playing his gameboy! hahahaha. i'm always working on his thumb.

 

[Kev]

Musicans?

Thank you for all the posts regarding musicians, and special thanks to Palpable for sharing some of your personal experiences. The field of musicians is very interesting as I have found out in some of my research. 'Music Therapy' has been the biggest surprise as I have found that music is used as an 'Audio Analgesic'. Not a lot of published reports on this, but I did find one theory suggesting that music might induce hormonal or immune system changes that reduce pain. Another theory is that music is simply pleasant, and acts as a form of distraction. In any case, from a marketing point of view, 'music therapy' would actually be a competitor of ours in an indirect way, and it is an interesting dichotomy because we are looking at the musicians themselves potentially benefiting from our topical analgesic because of all the pain and discomfort caused from a repetitive motion. Again, thank you for the posts.

Sombraman

 

[Pompal 09.]

I would be happy to tell you about me, too, if that is what you are looking for.

Yes, please! I have a drummer currently that I am working with. He also has some severe neck issues that I am quite comfortable in dealing with.

BUT, it's the arm and hand issues that I'd like to get a finer grasp on. Any input is good input! Can you give some insight into the items you have noticed crop up from your expereince with being a drummer?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Alyce S]

I would be happy to tell you about me, too, if that is what you are looking for.

Yes, please! I have a drummer currently that I am working with. He also has some severe neck issues that I am quite comfortable in dealing with.

BUT, it's the arm and hand issues that I'd like to get a finer grasp on. Any input is good input! Can you give some insight into the items you have noticed crop up from your expereince with being a drummer?

Thanks in advance!

That is a fairly wide open question. Are there specific things that you would want to know about? Or can you narrow it down a bit?

I am a bit undermassageplanetfienated at the moment, so forgive the denseness.

 

[iTz moleman!]

I would be happy to tell you about me, too, if that is what you are looking for.

Yes, please! I have a drummer currently that I am working with. He also has some severe neck issues that I am quite comfortable in dealing with.

BUT, it's the arm and hand issues that I'd like to get a finer grasp on. Any input is good input! Can you give some insight into the items you have noticed crop up from your expereince with being a drummer?

Thanks in advance!

That is a fairly wide open question. Are there specific things that you would want to know about? Or can you narrow it down a bit?

I am a bit undermassageplanetfienated at the moment, so forgive the denseness.

Go wide!!!!!! I am leaving it up to you to just start throwing stuff out there! I am not searching for anything really specific... just thoughts in general about how drumming affects you / hands / thumbs / arms / body / posture / etc.

 

[Princess Zelda]

I will try and get you started here, and then we can get more specific if any of this leads to somewhere you wanna go.

Generally, when you play, both hands/arm and both feet/legs are moving, so the core of your balance and propulsion tends to come from the pelvic, ab, and low back musculature.

My guess would be that your drummer sits at the set with a posteriorly tilted pelvis- I do it all the time, and I know better. Just thinking here, but I would guess the hip flexors/psoas are tight due to lifting the leg while playing.

Lower leg: probably the anterior tibialis needs attention due to a LOT of dorsiflexion. Course the posterior leg muscles could be tight depending on playing style here (a tighter or heavier sound vs. a freer or looser sound i.e. playing into the drum vs. playing off the drum).

Low back: See the above part about post. pelvic tilt.

Upper back/chest: Typical for anyone who works with arms/hands in front of them. This would especially be so if his/her drums are not very ergonomic. A lot of players will position equipment where they end up having to reach to hit a cymbal. The ideal is to have everything close enough so that you can minimize any reaching or extraneous movement.

Arms and Hands: How is his/her grip on the sticks? How do they hit the drum? Some folks will play in a postition that puts the wrists into ulnar deviation when they hit the drum, which creates a different impact translation into the wrist and arm then if you hit the drum with your wrist in flexion. Think about knocking on a door vs. a karate chop.

Thier grip will have a lot of consequences, as well. Gripping the stick loosley will allow the impact vibration to stay more within the stick. A tight grip (along with the extra strain on the hand and FA mm.) will move the impact vibration more into the hand and arm. This is especially important if they are playing hard.

Also, in playing a traditional grip, as a lot of jazz players do, will involve more finger movement. Matched grip will usually involve more wrist movement.

Hmm. What else? The FAs can really get stiff if they are not warmed up or stretched regularly. Right hip can be tight from a lot of bass drum work. RSI in the wrist can be common.

That is all I can come up with at the moment, but hopefully that will get you started.

t006

 

[Ashley M]

Ooohhh... nice! Fits my fellow to a T. The pelvic tilt makes a lot of sense and I had never realized that's how many drummers sit. I've been working all the right places, and now hopefully with a more concientious mind I'll find even more things that can be tailored for the right reasons. I think this is a most important post and will c&p it to my message box. Thanks!

Are there more muscians or sport specific folks out there who would like to take a stab at going wide about how it can affect them as palpable did?

 

[Papa B]

Ooohhh... nice! I think this is a most important post and will c&p it to my message box. Thanks!

Hehe. You sure do know how to sweet talk a fella'. t051

 

[ShAdOwGiRl:[]

I'm a former drummer myself. :band: It's what kind of got me into Reiki in a way.

I have lower back issues from carrying heavy gear, rotator cuff tendonitis, (under control, but it used to be excruciating) upper back/neck problems, (believe it or not, from stooping to avoid whacking my head on the backlights) and forearm/wrist problems. I have stiff fingers, tender feet (pedals) and substantial hearing loss. t100

I love Reiki! There's no heavy lifting, loud guitar amps, or drunken groupies. Just love, healing, and positive energy. t049