jeffdesrosby

There are several secrets to successful slurs. For hammer-on slurs, the first rule is to prepare the fingers. Each finger must be in place just above the string to play. Many contend that a significant distance is required to produce a clearly audible sound. However, I would invite them to consult the documents available explaining the famous one-inch punch of Jeet Kune Do Master Bruce Lee. He showed that he could throw back an opponent with a punch initiated from only one inch away. Using this technique, he demonstrated the well-known principle in physics (kinetic energy) that it is not necessarily distance that affects force, but the speed at with the object is moving.

So the secret is a good positioning of the hand and a quick descent of the finger led by the first joint. The positioning of the finger must be optimal thanks to the use of the second and third phalanx so that the attack is perfect and there is no energy loss.

In the case of pulled slurs, the fingers should be placed on the string, as the finger that will play the second note is already in place. In this case, it is the second phalanx that act as an engine.

Again, speed is the secret. The finger that makes the downward movement can also use the bounce of the bottom string (which then serves as a springboard) to change direction.

In achieving the slurs, we can also use the pronator and supinator muscles to give a boost to the hand. Under no circumstances should the hand pull the pronator and supinator muscles. These are the muscles that power the hand.

Cultivate and develop your focus

Like anything else, your focus is something that can grow and maintain. Each day you have to train yourself to develop this element. Take every opportunity to cultivate your attention. At a time when our attention is often drawn to all our electronic communication objects, it is even more important to retrieve this faculty that we seem to gradually lose.

For example, in a room full of people who speak them, try to focus on one voice.

In class, try to concentrate on what the teacher said, his voice insulation of all ambient noise and distractions.

Practice with your cell open and try to stay focused despite signals that indicate that you have received an email, a text message or a call. Try the same thing with a book or watching television.

When practicing your instrument, focus on one part of your body and pay attention to sensations, tension, gestures… Do the same if you practice a physical activity such as running, swimming, etc.

Focus on a word, an idea, an image and try to keep your attention directed toward them. Visualize your goals.

In short, be creative and do you find objects or ideas to which your attention to work your focus. Make sure nice not jeopardize your personal safety while doing this exercise in an inappropriate place.

Have you managed to read this without being distracted?

Holidays, perspective, draw your line

On the eve of what will be for many the holidays, with the family and friends reunions. It is a good time to put things in perspective. In this work so demanding that we make, it’s easy to put aside our friends, our family, our leisure activities and relationships, all that for the benefit of our work and professional success. It is so easy to get lost in our career, until finally, considering work as the most important thing in our life.

The danger in this way of thinking is that we end up defining ourselves by our work. Each professional failure lived in this state of mind will seem insurmountable. Healthy relationships help us to maintain a balance and a life outside of work. This could help you maintain a healthy emotional balance essential to a high-level performance.

Moreover, these friends, the family and all the people around us will be there to encourage us, to help us change our ideas, and so potentially help us increase our confidence in ourselves, which will facilitate our evolution.

Again, it’s all about balance, and that is to each of us, to draw the line.

Left-arm lateral movement

The secret of quick and efficient movement of the left arm is to use the shoulder muscles to move the arm and forearm. The hand is never the driving force behind the action. It is relaxed, and it is brought into place by the musculature of the shoulder. The forearm is then called upon for a more accurate adjustment, while the wrist and fingers maintain their optimized positioning as described above.

The eyes determine the end point of the hand, allowing the brain to calculate the distance between the start and end positions easily.

Focus, concentration, commitment

Maintain maximum concentration and focus is one of the goals of all those who have to perform. Some have a natural ability to enter this state of mind. Other less fortunate will need to work a little.

The first thing to do is to manage its energy level to be able to use a maximum when it is necessary. Maintaining a state of concentration for a long time is demanding. We must learn to dose our efforts.

Great athletes use to the most of this trick, which is both simple and complicated. They simply decide to rush headlong to give the best of themselves and perform in a state of relaxed concentration. Everything is there. They have a clear purpose and fully engage in the pursuit of their goal.

Sometimes the fear of failure can motivate us, but often it paralyzes. In a situation where we have already experienced the failure or fear, one can focus on the routine preparation, on the warm up to finally connect fully with what we do during the performance itself.

We must constantly remind our best moments, our success, our pleasure, our pride in order to feed this mental state.

Another simple trick is to always work with the same desire to reach a state of concentration and commitment to what we do. Give yourself clear goals in your practice and focus on how to achieve your goals. This will help you develop your focus.

Optimal hand position

The optimal positioning of the right and left hand is achieved through compliance with the ergonomic principles outlined in previous post. The hand must be tilted on the ulnar side to an angle of 15 degrees at the wrist. A slight flexion toward the outside of 15 degrees at the wrist completes the positioning. Although it is impossible to maintain this optimum positioning at all times, the player will attempt to return to this position in which the fingers are free to move as often as possible.

Sleep less, work more?

Cutting the hours of sleep to get more time to work? Is it effective?

Everyone knows that a good night’s sleep is important. Not only, we rest, but the brain also uses this time to defragment the hard drive (our brain) by analyzing and classifying information in the right place. He also takes the time to make brand new bridges, completely new connections that will allow us to run perfectly our new learning.

We can maximize the effect of sleep by doing a nap after a period of intense work (particularly effective around noon). The brain then digests the information, which becomes available after our sleep. In addition, the nap will help us reduce our cortisol levels. We can systematically take a nap just before a stressful event to a halt the production of cortisol.

Lack of sleep affects our cognitive abilities, but how much?

Take the example of a student who always gets ” A ” and still ranks in the top 10% in everything she did. If she sleeps just less than seven hours a night during the week and about 6:20 the weekend, she will see her results fall in the back rows, as people that would normally get results in the lower 10%.

A study on soldiers responsible for operating a military complex showed that after a night’s sleep less, there was a 30% decline in their cognitive abilities coupled with a decline in their performance. After two nights of sleep deprivation, the drop was 60%.

When a person is sleeping less than six hours a night for five consecutive days, we observe the same effects as a person deprived of sleep for 48 hours.

Although sleep is important to maximize the effectiveness of your work. Sleep well and be more efficient than ever.

Right hand

We can apply all the principles developed for the left hand to the right hand. Although the arm is supported on the guitar, we must, nevertheless, maintain tone. This will prevent the arm from relying too much on the guitar, compressing the soundboard and reducing resonance. In addition, several important tendons pass through the point at which the arm lies. Supporting the arm with the appropriate muscles reduces the pressure on the tendons and thus ensures the free movement of those fundamental elements.

The right hand falls into place much more naturally than the left hand. We can optimize the action by applying a slight supination, which increases the agility and independence of the fingers. Although the wrist should be involved in facilitating the passage of tendons, a light ulnar deviation facilitates the movements of the fingers. In addition, by moving the thumb away from the index, we use extended opposition, which promotes the stability of the hand and accuracy.

In addition to extended opposition, other principles can help maximize the action of the fingers on the instrument. Each finger can flex and extend. They can move laterally as well, but also in axial rotation.

The musician looks for a free and quick flexion of the finger. He also looks for a rapid extension without amplitude and a possible side extension of the fingers when necessary, despite bending.

The initial rule is to use the sequential winding of the phalanx. The second phalanx must be the engine of the movement, followed by the first and, finally, the third. This sequence ensures the proper functioning of the intrinsic and extrinsic muscles of the hand. Follow exactly the same sequence to take up the finger. By starting the movement with the second phalanx, we optimize speed.

The rounded balanced hand ensures functional stability. It also promotes the independence of the fingers. As the gaps are difficult when the fingers are flexed, we can facilitate this by flexing the wrist. In addition, the lateral motion must begin from the pulp and not the base of the finger. In summary, the hand reaches equilibrium when there is harmony between its intrinsic and extrinsic muscles.

The index finger is stable if it is inclined from the radial side. If it is turned on the ulnar side, this destabilizes the hand. The middle finger is, meanwhile, a finger that moves laterally and is extremely stable. It can serve as a stabilizer for the other fingers. The ring is the true functional axis of the hand, and everything can be organized around it. It is difficult to move up, but if we use the sequential winding of the phalanx, it facilitates the extension. The auricular has its own musculature. It is sometimes difficult to control because of this characteristic.

Author Archives: jeffdesrosby

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