We all know that great violin playing looks effortless. And in one sense, it is ... at least in that moment. (Putting aside all the work that led to that moment.) Great violinists have eliminated muscle tension and unnecessary work from their technique, either naturally or through careful practice, so all of their effort while playing goes directly into things that pay off in sound or virtuosity. And when your work is refined in that way, it really does become almost effortless.
It’s a state we can all work towards. But many violinists spend years and years wasting effort on tense muscles or motions that just get in the way. They’re like brakes on our playing. Even though brakes are essential on a car, no good driver would go everywhere with them constantly engaged. On the violin, these “brakes” of muscle tension or unnecessary work are not essential, yet many violin players still keep them on all the time. So the question is: why?!
Untie the knot of muscle tension
Work vs. Tension
First, a little clarification about muscular work vs. muscle tension. Some amount of work by the muscles is necessary. It’s how we move, right? Unless you’ve mastered telekinesis, you’ll need your muscles to do a little bit of work while playing the violin. And natural, uninhibited body motions — like the “dance” that many violinists do while playing — only enhance the music and keep the body free and loose.
Muscle tension, however, is what happens when muscles are trying to do too much. It’s when they’re chronically holding something in place that doesn’t need to be held in place. Or when they overestimate the amount of work that’s needed for the job. Two big culprits are the fingers of the left hand and one or both of the shoulders. (More on this below.)
I like to think of this tension like an overly-helpful stranger. They want to help. But they don’t quite understand what to do. They just get in the way and slow you down. And thanks to their “help,” you have to do more work and settle for worse results. Now here’s where the analogy splits: for the sake of being polite, you might just accept the situation to avoid hurting any feelings. But in the case of “overly-helpful” muscles, you don’t have to worry about hurt feelings. You just need to get them to stop “helping.”
The hunt for tense muscles
The trick is to identify where the tension is. It might seem like it should be as easy as finding a sore muscle and relaxing it. But usually it’s not so straightforward. If you’ve been habitually holding (tensing) a particular part of your body, you might not even notice it. The tension will feel normal – it’s what playing the violin feels like. So below are some methods for discovering tension you might not know about yet.
Sniffing out tension
Exercises to let go of tension
If you’ve found a tense spot, it seems like it should be easy to let go. “Just don’t tense up.” And maybe for you it will be that simple. But if you’re in that camp, you’re probably not spending time reading an article about tension because it’s not an issue for you. For the rest of us, here are some methods that can help.
Exercise 1: Left Hand
A very common source of tension that interferes with violin playing is in the left hand. The fingers might be pressing too hard, the thumb might be squeezing, or your palm or forearm might be tensing up. (Yes, I think of the forearm as part of the hand, because that’s where the muscles that move your fingers are.)
Here’s one easy method that’s especially helpful to root out excess finger pressure. The goal is to identify how much finger pressure is necessary to get a good sound, by gradually reducing it until it’s not enough (that is, you get a bad sound).
1. Pick a scale or short passage from a piece you know. Play through it.
2. Now repeat it, but this time trying half as much finger pressure as usual.
If your fingers are too light, it will sound like either scratchy static or a harmonic. But it’s very likely that your fingers are still stopping the string effectively, and it still sounds good. So now you know your fingers have been working too hard. This is good news! Because you’re on your way to having an easier time and getting better results. But we’re not done. We want to find the least amount of finger pressure necessary to get a clean note.
3. Keep repeating the scale or passage, each time with half the previous amount of finger pressure (1/4, 1/8, 1/16, etc) until you finally get a bad sound. Yes, the goal is to go as far as it takes to get a bad sound. That’s how you finally know how much finger pressure is actually necessary.
You might be shocked at how little pressure is necessary! Once you know what that amount is, your work is to patiently train your fingers to trust this new knowledge. Spend a few minutes during every practice session reminding your fingers about this new, easier workload. Then let the fruits of those few minutes spill out into the rest of the day’s playing.
The tension brakes are fully engaged in this left hand!
Exercise 2: Shoulders
It’s very common for violinists to hold one or both shoulders slightly raised, to “help” hold up the violin or keep the bow arm from drooping. Letting go of that tension means convincing the shoulder muscles that their “help” isn’t needed. Which may just mean a change in thinking about how the violin is supported (a whole other topic!). Or it may require some changes to your equipment. This doesn’t necessarily mean you need to shell out for a $1,200 shoulder rest or a custom-made chinrest. Sometimes it means recognizing that you need less equipment. Or maybe it’s just a slight adjustment to the gear you already have.
You might be in the habit of holding your shoulders throughout the day – not just when playing the violin. So before even picking up the violin or bow, you can do this little experiment.
1. Raise your shoulders up as high as they comfortably go. Then let go – let them drop to find their own level.
2. Now lower them as far as they comfortably go (probably not very far). Then again, let go so they can find their own level.
3. Now push them forwards and release, then backwards and release.
If you’ve been chronically holding (tensing) your shoulders, there’s a good chance you’ve found a slightly more relaxed stance for them. It’s not that you need to keep them locked in this spot. That would be just changing one problem for a different version of the problem, not solving it. The important thing to learn from this is that the spot you thought was normal for your shoulders is actually a spot that’s held in place by tension. Where they were before may be a perfectly fine sometimes-spot for them. Just not a forever-spot.
Looking even farther
First, I’m going to point out something that seems obvious, but is easy to overlook:
Our muscles are connected.
No muscle exists separately from other muscles. Just like that song about the foot bone connected to the heel bone connected to the shin bone ...
The same goes for our muscles. This means that tension in one muscle will transfer over into the next muscle. And that next muscle can in turn pass it along to yet another muscle. And so on.
It’s easy to see how tension in your hands and shoulders interferes with your playing. But what about tension in your neck? Your face? Your ribs, belly, back, hips, thighs, or feet? When I first started taking Alexander Technique lessons, my first shock was that tension in my neck could show up as pain in my lower back. And that tension in my belly could interfere with my left hand fingers.
I wouldn’t have believed it ... but my own experience proved it to be true. So test it out for yourself. I should say, though, that it helps to have someone guiding you.
Bring in an expert
This kind of work is much easier with someone to help you. That might be a violin teacher (like me), or it might be someone who specializes in body movement (like an Alexander Technique teacher or a Feldenkrais teacher). They can help you unlock the natural ways that your body moves, and let go of unnecessary tension and extra work.
Added 3/16/21:
I just wanted to add information about my Alexander Technique teacher, for those in the Chicago area. He’s also a stellar violinist, so he knows firsthand what issues violinists face.
Andrew McCann, Alexander Technique teacher
Some final tips
You’ve reached the end, so now it’s time to go try out some of the tips above! See what you can discover.
Just remember that tension will try to convince you that it’s necessary. So be patient, returning to these methods for a few minutes every day.
And also keep in mind that you might need to peel back multiple layers of tension. A less-tense hand will open up possibilities for a less-tense shoulder ... which in turn opens up possibilities for an even-less-tense hand ... and so on.
And if you’d like more guidance on this, I’d be happy to set up a lesson time with you. This article is very generalized, but a one-on-one lesson lets us get directly into what’s most relevant for you, your playing, and your goals.
If you’ve tried any of this out, leave a comment below to let me know how it went!
I’m a violinist and private teacher in the Chicago area, and in a previous musical life I was in a professional string quartet. Teaching violin and chamber music are dear to my heart. Send me a note or leave a comment on a post — I’d love to hear from you.
