Stretching: lol

[DaveKnific]

After practicing some scales for a bit, my arms began to hurt a little, so I searched YouTube for some quality videos.


Instead, I found this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owEvLMfqa5c



But on a serious note, I'm a novice on piano (or at least practicing professionally), and I need some help with stretching. Can anyone show me any good stretches for your arms? I feel pain specifically on the outsides of my forearms.


Thank you!

[rediscovery]

I've never had forearm pain from playing- when I first started out I got a little wrist pain but it went away after I started practicing arpeggios.
Look up "Stretching" by Bob Anderson (might be at your local library)...This book helps you pretty much avoid muscular straining :smile:

[gylfih]

I had the same sort of problem for a while, especially when I was Der Erlkonig by Liszt, so I asked my teacher about that and he said it was just because I was putting too much effort into moving my fingers. You don't need to put a huge amount of movement and effort in to play quickly, or loudly, just try moving the specific area of your arm required for that thing. So for my piece, it was the wrist only, for scales it would just be moving fingers, and the arm up and down the piano from the elbow (only moving laterally, not up and down).
You might want to watch this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91Byb28Cp50), or maybe this one (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fJe_kbuP_M&feature=PlayList&p=A0BC15305E93427D&index=87).

[PinkFloydDudi]

Check out the Conservatory on JR's website! He has some great exercises that get your hands used to playing, as well as some tips/tricks for limiting your actual movement.

Well worth the 1 time fee of $50 in my opinion.

Favorite are the exercises that don't require a piano, that I can sit at my desk at work and do!

My wrists still hurt when I play a few shows in a row or do lots of practicing during the week and then play out. I chalk it up to the fact that I spend much of my day at work on a computer typing, and then get home and jump right on my keyboards to play.

Carpal Tunnel, here I come.