Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Tai Chi isn't relaxed if you're doing it right ... it's focused ... it's being calm when things around you aren't ... enough Zen for now, I try and keep it under control
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
I don't know how to say this without saying relax.
But it's what's needed.
To be more helpful - you need to take steps to recognise the problem, and to actively perform some step or steps to effect the relaxation required. You might find that before and between tunes (not during!) it might help to massage your right hand with your left, or to stretch your right hand.
Experiment and see if you can find some movements (I shy away from calling them exercises) which will help.
Make sure that between tunes you at least put the pick down - getting the hand out of the "death grip". Then get into the exercises - it needn't be anything vigorous or ostentatious. What we're talking about here is the equivalent of waggling your right foot about when stopped at the traffic lights part way through a long drive.
I don't know about Tai Chi - I find those foreign foods hard to digest.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
One things that works for me is to find little micro-vacations for the left hand in the midst of tunes. By this I mean those split seconds where you can rest two or three fingers while one is working, or rest all of them when you're playing an open string. To do this, at least in the beginning, you have to have laser mental focus, thinking, "Okay, while I'm doing this triplet on the second string B held by the index finger, I'm going to tell the other boys out there to take a break."
Of course, by doing this, you learn just how much excess tension is in your hand to begin with, and over time, you may be able to greatly reduce that, so the need for micro vacations is less.
The other locus of tension that's worth paying attention to is the tendency to squeeze with the thumb, which makes your whole left hand go into gripping mode. Practice (slowly at first) to find out how little finger pressure you need to hold the strings down. Then be conscious of keeping a light touch when playing at speed.
And I agree with Orson--practice playing fast and loud at home. Playing at faster tempos is just another skill that needs practice, too.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
If you are experiencing left hand tension when you play -- even if it is only under specific circumstances -- you need to take measures to correct the problem right away. If not, you run the risk of serious hand injury. If you doubt that, try entering any combination of guitar and hand injury into Google and see what you get. I lost an entire year because I played through hand tightness once too often and ended up in physical therapy.
You need to exercise that left hand before the session (and probably afterwards as well). Stretches, strengthening exercises... there are plenty of resources out there for finding the right exercise. If it's nervousness that causes your hand to tense up at a session, you'll need to address that as well. But don't take risks with your hand health. Having to give up your instrument for any length of time is agony, but trust me, you don't want to be in hand rehab for an entire year before you play again.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Kess, one of the tricks to using as little finger pressure as possible is to make sure you're pressing on the string *only* when you actually need to. Any time a finger isn't holding a note that's actually being played, that finger should be completely limp and at rest, whether it's dangling above the strings or place-holding (that is, resting on a note on the same string below the note being played, or on a note on another string soon to be played).
Using your left hand fingers this way also helps your timing because both hands work in unison, sort of pulsing and synchronized on each note.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Kess, what Will said.
And (this is going to sound really lame...) I have taken to visulizing a kitten sitting in my left hand while I'm playing. It is a way of paying attention to what's happening there being....soft. Don't want cute fuzzy kitten guts on your hand when you're done with the tune.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
LOL, Batlady, that reminds me of a bumper sticker I saw yesterday: "So many cats, so few recipes."
Ewwwwwww.....
I've heard any number of stellar fiddlers talk about holding the bow as though it were a tiny bird, and that "grip" is precisely the *wrong* word. The same applies to the left hand.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
HA! I like the kitten trick!
I have worked very hard over the last year to try to relax my left hand. The natural thing when playing faster than you're used to is to tense up to make the hand move faster. When I start hurting, I have to expend a bunch of my concentration on relaxing the hand.
I think I am doing pretty well with it these days, but I still get what I call the "banjo bruise" on the base knuckle of my index finger if I play too much. That bruise comes from pivoting my hand on the neck to reach up to the high B notes, etc. But that only happens anymore when I play an excessive amount of music. (Maybe 24 hours total in the last 2 weeks, my hand is a bit sore). And it probably means that I am not holding the instrument "properly"
And slightly OT, I have been experimenting recently with ways to relax my right hand as well. So far, the best thing has been switching picks.
I recently bought some Clayton picks - the large triangular kind. And I have been playing with punching holes in them with a normal paper hole punch. I find that I can put 3 strategically placed holes in the pick so that in essence, I have 3 different "weights" of pick at my disposal. (The closer the hole is to the tip, the "lighter" the pick feels).
The amazing thing is that since your fingers are touching each other through the holes in the pick, you basically don't have to grip the pick at all. I can hold the pick so lightly that I can't even tell there's a pick there, but the pick stays in place! This has REALLY helped me relax my right hand, and subsequently, my triplets are speedier, and my rhythm has improved!
BTW, I know you can buy picks with holes already in them, but I've never tried those. The hole punch idea works well with the lighter (.50-.63mm) nylon picks.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
No, those would be stinky, slimy kitten guts. Reminds me of a song: (sings, off key) "Great big globs of greasy, grimy gopher guts, mutilated monkey meat............."
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Theres two questions here.one for right hand and one for left.
With the R hand, i would see the plectrum, similar to a violin bow. A lot of problems start with peoples ideas of volume and speed. In order to get more volume out of the instrument do not "try and play louder" instead.
(1) Hold the plectum as lightly as possible, with out it falling out the hand.Notice how relaxed the whole hand is and arm.
(2) Then allow gravity to let the wrist drop.(downstroke).Lift the wrist (upstroke). Plectrum is held as lightly as possible..close as possible to falling out of hand (scarey)
Now to increasing volume,without extra tension.The key here is that volume comes from the squeezing the thumb and index finger together to increase grip on pick (not clenching teeth and going red in the face!) in a graded fashion.
(1) Repeat (1) and (2) above. (though the down will start to require more than gravity)
(2) Gradually increase the grip on the plectrum..volume should increase.
Do not try and play louder..let the sound of the instrument fill the room.
(3) Gradually decrease the grip on the plectum..volume goes down.( Often people keep the tension as they go quieter)
When playing a tune some notes are played louder than others.Therefore the amount of grip on the pick is always changing.People will often just hold it the same all the time.
A trick I find usefull when playing is if I find i,m "tensing"
I play all the less important notes much quieter (via relaxing plectum grip) for a few seconds.
For the left hand there are two main points.
(1) The pressure on the fretts only need to be JUST enough to stop the string buzzing.
I useful excerise is to play a single note.Relax the pressure on the fret till it starts bussing,then gradually increase again till it stops.Do this at different voulumes as well.
As with plectum holding the force doen,t have to be the same all the time.
(2) Be carefull about thumb position and tension on the neck.
Sometime the grip is to stong.Sometimes too the position of the thumb can be moved slightly up or down the neck to work more effectively.
(3) Also with the left hand, Be careful of fingers riding high over the stings.they can be much closer to the strings than most people think.
With regard to speed.Why do people people tense up when they try harder,.??? don,t know, but someone said to me once we are educated to get results through effort not efficiency.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Great advise from Will once again. I've heard Will give similar advise on a previous thread about relaxing your fingers between the nano second of each note and it seems to work. Chris Renolds seems to know what he's talking about as well.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Another thing to look at might be the instrument itself. Some have a much lighter action than others.
If the action is only just a bit on the heavy side, you can still end up playing it with far too much pressure at the left hand.
Have a compare between your mandolin and some others, and ask some other players what they think of yours.
A friend of mine (fiddler) was given a nice-ish mandolin by her family, and confessed to me that she was very troubled because she found it so hard to play well - when I had a look it was a very heavy action for the left hand. It was like playing a JCB. I made some very simple modifications to it for her and made it much lighter to play and it all ended happily.
I'm only guessing here, but it could be that you and your instrument might benefit from a tweak.
Even when the pace is blistering with eighths, triplets, rolls, etc, refer mentally to the quarter note rhythm of the tune (because really it's just 1.2.3.4 or 1.2.3). You'll find yourself relaxing as you think in quarters - everything else is a subdivison.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
I find it helps to remember to breathe--focusing on taking slow deep breaths when you start feeling tight or when you're playing at speed can do the trick. Lighten the grip on your pick. Be sure to check body posture and move around as much as possible to free up your muscles--rotate your neck, shrug shoulders, shake your arms and hands whenever you get a chance. A lot of the tension you may feel in your fingers can be tied to tension in the rest of your body--if the big muscles are getting tight, the little ones are sure to follow.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
I have similar issues playing guitar. I sometimes practice with a metronome, cranking up the speed little by little. A loose grip on the plectrum, and a light touch on the strings, seems to be the trick.
And if you don't like Tai Chi, how about trying some nice hot chai tea?
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
It’s easy to put a non-slip, perspiration resistant grip on a plectrum. Go to your hardware store and buy a can of Plasti-Dip. It’s essentially liquid rubber. Dip the plectrum grip into the stuff and hang it by the tip to dry overnight. You might need two coats – more, if you want to make it fat.
The plectrum *will not* slip out of position. It also allows you to loosen your grip without losing control or accuracy.
Not suitable for triangular picks, unless you’re willing to sacrifice two of the points.
One caveat: The shelf life of Plasti-Dip is not very long, once you open it (don't expect months), so plan to do a fair sized batch.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Make sure your hands are warm anyway. If you've ever been out busking, you'll understand that having freezing hands makes playing really tough.
Keep constant bloodflow and avoid getting things like pins&needles. Lie back into the chair. It helps you to relax as opposed to the position of bending over and giving it a lash!!
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Kess,
You are either suffering from a focal dystonia (known as "Musician's Cramp) which is not very likely from your description or from the much more common Performance Anxiety which is universal.
From what you are describing, you are finding that you can't play as well in a session as you can at home and that your left hand is slowing down or not reacting the way you want it to. You are having a mild "Fight or Flight" reaction stemming from your playing in public and also being a perfectionist (which almost all good musicians are, by the way). As a result, both the flexor and extensor muscles in you body are activated and the opposing forces slow down your movements.
Athletes have this problem all the time and have to learn mental techniques to control it. You can't run fast if the opposing muscles are competing against each other and you can't play fast for the same reason. (Of course, if you are a beginner, you probably can't keep up with a "regular" session, but that is a different problem.) The two most common methods used are relaxation and visualization.
Relaxation is just what it sounds like but it also includes the ability to analyze your muscle tenseness and to regulate it. It takes about a month of daily practice to be adept enough to use it in a stress situation and there are specific methods that can be learned (I'll be glad to send you some information on it if you wish.) The idea is to learn to relax in order that your muscles move efficiently and quickly.
Visualization is a method of looking at what you need to do in your mind's eye. In the case of musicians it is often a kinesthetic feeling but can be visualizing notation or playing the music in your head. Whatever technique you develop, you then focus on it and not on the actions of playing a tune. The tune goes from your ear/mind to your fingers without intervening mental processing, All good musicians do this and it takes a lot of experience to do it well as it is an experienced based skill.
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Learn to play tunes slowly, use a metronome to develop speed overtime. We often learn to play tense because we are trying to play faster than is actually comfortable. Another source, I believe, is playing at loud sessions, hoping to hear your mandolin you try to play with more volume and this causes tension.
Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Ever play at home fine but when you get to a session your left hand (if your right handed) tenses up?
I think it may be something to do with having to play faster and louder than usual.
Any tips on keeping everything relaxed even when thrashing them out?
Please don't say relax!
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Kess
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Tai Chi etc?
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Just a person
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
"Please don't say relax!"
. . .
KFG
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by KFG
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Tai Chi isn't relaxed if you're doing it right ... it's focused ... it's being calm when things around you aren't ... enough Zen for now, I try and keep it under control
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Just a person
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
I don't know how to say this without saying relax.
But it's what's needed.
To be more helpful - you need to take steps to recognise the problem, and to actively perform some step or steps to effect the relaxation required. You might find that before and between tunes (not during!) it might help to massage your right hand with your left, or to stretch your right hand.
Experiment and see if you can find some movements (I shy away from calling them exercises) which will help.
Make sure that between tunes you at least put the pick down - getting the hand out of the "death grip". Then get into the exercises - it needn't be anything vigorous or ostentatious. What we're talking about here is the equivalent of waggling your right foot about when stopped at the traffic lights part way through a long drive.
I don't know about Tai Chi - I find those foreign foods hard to digest.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by showaddydadito
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Showaddy ...
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Just a person
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Kess - how about practising fast and loud at home? Seriously
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Just a person
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Sorry.
I was putting A la Carte before the Orson.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by showaddydadito
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
One things that works for me is to find little micro-vacations for the left hand in the midst of tunes. By this I mean those split seconds where you can rest two or three fingers while one is working, or rest all of them when you're playing an open string. To do this, at least in the beginning, you have to have laser mental focus, thinking, "Okay, while I'm doing this triplet on the second string B held by the index finger, I'm going to tell the other boys out there to take a break."
Of course, by doing this, you learn just how much excess tension is in your hand to begin with, and over time, you may be able to greatly reduce that, so the need for micro vacations is less.
The other locus of tension that's worth paying attention to is the tendency to squeeze with the thumb, which makes your whole left hand go into gripping mode. Practice (slowly at first) to find out how little finger pressure you need to hold the strings down. Then be conscious of keeping a light touch when playing at speed.
And I agree with Orson--practice playing fast and loud at home. Playing at faster tempos is just another skill that needs practice, too.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Will CPT
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Thanks guys I'll try some of them!
Kess
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Kess
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
I like the one about only holding down the strings as hard as is required,
Why didn't I think about that before! That good be the key,
must try.
KEEP THEM COMING!
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Kess
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Sorry - left hand. I mis read the OP.
Everything I said still applies - just the other way round.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by showaddydadito
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
If you are experiencing left hand tension when you play -- even if it is only under specific circumstances -- you need to take measures to correct the problem right away. If not, you run the risk of serious hand injury. If you doubt that, try entering any combination of guitar and hand injury into Google and see what you get. I lost an entire year because I played through hand tightness once too often and ended up in physical therapy.
You need to exercise that left hand before the session (and probably afterwards as well). Stretches, strengthening exercises... there are plenty of resources out there for finding the right exercise. If it's nervousness that causes your hand to tense up at a session, you'll need to address that as well. But don't take risks with your hand health. Having to give up your instrument for any length of time is agony, but trust me, you don't want to be in hand rehab for an entire year before you play again.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by JSO
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Kess, one of the tricks to using as little finger pressure as possible is to make sure you're pressing on the string *only* when you actually need to. Any time a finger isn't holding a note that's actually being played, that finger should be completely limp and at rest, whether it's dangling above the strings or place-holding (that is, resting on a note on the same string below the note being played, or on a note on another string soon to be played).
Using your left hand fingers this way also helps your timing because both hands work in unison, sort of pulsing and synchronized on each note.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Will CPT
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Kess, what Will said.
And (this is going to sound really lame...) I have taken to visulizing a kitten sitting in my left hand while I'm playing. It is a way of paying attention to what's happening there being....soft. Don't want cute fuzzy kitten guts on your hand when you're done with the tune.
The Death Grip is very bad for your hand.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Batlady
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
LOL, Batlady, that reminds me of a bumper sticker I saw yesterday: "So many cats, so few recipes."
Ewwwwwww.....
I've heard any number of stellar fiddlers talk about holding the bow as though it were a tiny bird, and that "grip" is precisely the *wrong* word. The same applies to the left hand.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Will CPT
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
(Wipes off her hand)
Yeah, I was told that I'm only a prop to hold up the fiddle and the bow; anything else is counterproductive.
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Batlady
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
HA! I like the kitten trick!
I have worked very hard over the last year to try to relax my left hand. The natural thing when playing faster than you're used to is to tense up to make the hand move faster. When I start hurting, I have to expend a bunch of my concentration on relaxing the hand.
I think I am doing pretty well with it these days, but I still get what I call the "banjo bruise" on the base knuckle of my index finger if I play too much. That bruise comes from pivoting my hand on the neck to reach up to the high B notes, etc. But that only happens anymore when I play an excessive amount of music. (Maybe 24 hours total in the last 2 weeks, my hand is a bit sore). And it probably means that I am not holding the instrument "properly"
And slightly OT, I have been experimenting recently with ways to relax my right hand as well. So far, the best thing has been switching picks.
I recently bought some Clayton picks - the large triangular kind. And I have been playing with punching holes in them with a normal paper hole punch. I find that I can put 3 strategically placed holes in the pick so that in essence, I have 3 different "weights" of pick at my disposal. (The closer the hole is to the tip, the "lighter" the pick feels).
The amazing thing is that since your fingers are touching each other through the holes in the pick, you basically don't have to grip the pick at all. I can hold the pick so lightly that I can't even tell there's a pick there, but the pick stays in place! This has REALLY helped me relax my right hand, and subsequently, my triplets are speedier, and my rhythm has improved!
BTW, I know you can buy picks with holes already in them, but I've never tried those. The hole punch idea works well with the lighter (.50-.63mm) nylon picks.
Pete
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by Reverend
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
"HA! I like the kitten trick!"
Might have to go get me a kitten. . .and some recipes.
Anyway, here's a link to the website of one of grand gurus of playing without tension:
http://www.guitarprinciples.com/
KFG
# Posted on December 21st 2005 by KFG
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
"cute fuzzy kitten guts" -- so these would be old, aged guts, then?
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by Zina Lee
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
No, those would be stinky, slimy kitten guts. Reminds me of a song: (sings, off key) "Great big globs of greasy, grimy gopher guts, mutilated monkey meat............."
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by Batlady
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Theres two questions here.one for right hand and one for left.
With the R hand, i would see the plectrum, similar to a violin bow. A lot of problems start with peoples ideas of volume and speed. In order to get more volume out of the instrument do not "try and play louder" instead.
(1) Hold the plectum as lightly as possible, with out it falling out the hand.Notice how relaxed the whole hand is and arm.
(2) Then allow gravity to let the wrist drop.(downstroke).Lift the wrist (upstroke). Plectrum is held as lightly as possible..close as possible to falling out of hand (scarey)
Now to increasing volume,without extra tension.The key here is that volume comes from the squeezing the thumb and index finger together to increase grip on pick (not clenching teeth and going red in the face!) in a graded fashion.
(1) Repeat (1) and (2) above. (though the down will start to require more than gravity)
(2) Gradually increase the grip on the plectrum..volume should increase.
Do not try and play louder..let the sound of the instrument fill the room.
(3) Gradually decrease the grip on the plectum..volume goes down.( Often people keep the tension as they go quieter)
When playing a tune some notes are played louder than others.Therefore the amount of grip on the pick is always changing.People will often just hold it the same all the time.
A trick I find usefull when playing is if I find i,m "tensing"
I play all the less important notes much quieter (via relaxing plectum grip) for a few seconds.
For the left hand there are two main points.
(1) The pressure on the fretts only need to be JUST enough to stop the string buzzing.
I useful excerise is to play a single note.Relax the pressure on the fret till it starts bussing,then gradually increase again till it stops.Do this at different voulumes as well.
As with plectum holding the force doen,t have to be the same all the time.
(2) Be carefull about thumb position and tension on the neck.
Sometime the grip is to stong.Sometimes too the position of the thumb can be moved slightly up or down the neck to work more effectively.
(3) Also with the left hand, Be careful of fingers riding high over the stings.they can be much closer to the strings than most people think.
With regard to speed.Why do people people tense up when they try harder,.??? don,t know, but someone said to me once we are educated to get results through effort not efficiency.
Just some of my ideas ..might be helpful.
God i,ve gone on a bit...
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by Christopher Reynolds
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Great advise from Will once again. I've heard Will give similar advise on a previous thread about relaxing your fingers between the nano second of each note and it seems to work. Chris Renolds seems to know what he's talking about as well.
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by Justintime
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Another thing to look at might be the instrument itself. Some have a much lighter action than others.
If the action is only just a bit on the heavy side, you can still end up playing it with far too much pressure at the left hand.
Have a compare between your mandolin and some others, and ask some other players what they think of yours.
A friend of mine (fiddler) was given a nice-ish mandolin by her family, and confessed to me that she was very troubled because she found it so hard to play well - when I had a look it was a very heavy action for the left hand. It was like playing a JCB. I made some very simple modifications to it for her and made it much lighter to play and it all ended happily.
I'm only guessing here, but it could be that you and your instrument might benefit from a tweak.
Let us know if you are able to improve things.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Dave
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by showaddydadito
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing ...
Even when the pace is blistering with eighths, triplets, rolls, etc, refer mentally to the quarter note rhythm of the tune (because really it's just 1.2.3.4 or 1.2.3). You'll find yourself relaxing as you think in quarters - everything else is a subdivison.
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by drone
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
I find it helps to remember to breathe--focusing on taking slow deep breaths when you start feeling tight or when you're playing at speed can do the trick. Lighten the grip on your pick. Be sure to check body posture and move around as much as possible to free up your muscles--rotate your neck, shrug shoulders, shake your arms and hands whenever you get a chance. A lot of the tension you may feel in your fingers can be tied to tension in the rest of your body--if the big muscles are getting tight, the little ones are sure to follow.
Good luck.
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by jmcdaniel
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
I have similar issues playing guitar. I sometimes practice with a metronome, cranking up the speed little by little. A loose grip on the plectrum, and a light touch on the strings, seems to be the trick.
And if you don't like Tai Chi, how about trying some nice hot chai tea?
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by AlBrown
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
It’s easy to put a non-slip, perspiration resistant grip on a plectrum. Go to your hardware store and buy a can of Plasti-Dip. It’s essentially liquid rubber. Dip the plectrum grip into the stuff and hang it by the tip to dry overnight. You might need two coats – more, if you want to make it fat.
The plectrum *will not* slip out of position. It also allows you to loosen your grip without losing control or accuracy.
Not suitable for triangular picks, unless you’re willing to sacrifice two of the points.
One caveat: The shelf life of Plasti-Dip is not very long, once you open it (don't expect months), so plan to do a fair sized batch.
# Posted on December 22nd 2005 by Bob himself
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Make sure your hands are warm anyway. If you've ever been out busking, you'll understand that having freezing hands makes playing really tough.
Keep constant bloodflow and avoid getting things like pins&needles. Lie back into the chair. It helps you to relax as opposed to the position of bending over and giving it a lash!!
# Posted on December 24th 2005 by PaddyCmusic
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Kess,
You are either suffering from a focal dystonia (known as "Musician's Cramp) which is not very likely from your description or from the much more common Performance Anxiety which is universal.
From what you are describing, you are finding that you can't play as well in a session as you can at home and that your left hand is slowing down or not reacting the way you want it to. You are having a mild "Fight or Flight" reaction stemming from your playing in public and also being a perfectionist (which almost all good musicians are, by the way). As a result, both the flexor and extensor muscles in you body are activated and the opposing forces slow down your movements.
Athletes have this problem all the time and have to learn mental techniques to control it. You can't run fast if the opposing muscles are competing against each other and you can't play fast for the same reason. (Of course, if you are a beginner, you probably can't keep up with a "regular" session, but that is a different problem.) The two most common methods used are relaxation and visualization.
Relaxation is just what it sounds like but it also includes the ability to analyze your muscle tenseness and to regulate it. It takes about a month of daily practice to be adept enough to use it in a stress situation and there are specific methods that can be learned (I'll be glad to send you some information on it if you wish.) The idea is to learn to relax in order that your muscles move efficiently and quickly.
Visualization is a method of looking at what you need to do in your mind's eye. In the case of musicians it is often a kinesthetic feeling but can be visualizing notation or playing the music in your head. Whatever technique you develop, you then focus on it and not on the actions of playing a tune. The tune goes from your ear/mind to your fingers without intervening mental processing, All good musicians do this and it takes a lot of experience to do it well as it is an experienced based skill.
I write a monthly column for Shotgun Sports magazine (http://www.shotgunsportsmagazine.com/mental_training/mental_training.html) and probably have something written about your specific problem. Drop me a line.
MIke Keyes
http://www.banjosessions.com/dec05/triplets.html
# Posted on December 31st 2005 by mikeyes
Re: Tips on not tensing up when playing Mandolin/Banjo?
Learn to play tunes slowly, use a metronome to develop speed overtime. We often learn to play tense because we are trying to play faster than is actually comfortable. Another source, I believe, is playing at loud sessions, hoping to hear your mandolin you try to play with more volume and this causes tension.
# Posted on January 6th 2006 by JonathanR