Thumbs. Without them who knows how we'd play our instruments. Interest in the relationship between the hand, wrist, and thumb began a few years ago when I took piano lessons to refine my technique. (As similar as piano and percussion are in theory , there's much less crossover than I mistakenly thought and hoped.) Anyway, something my mentor said was when the thumb isn't being used it should relax towards the rest of the hand and fingers. Sure, may sound obvious, but in the throes of playing - piano or percussion - it's easy to forget little things like this. Brain: Play a broken 13 over 7, across 6 surfaces...crescendo...oh, right. THUMB. End Scene Thumbs that are mis-mapped, working more than they should, or working when they don't need to contribute to funny aches, pains, and numbness that can get mistaken for carpal tunnel. Just like all other subjects in the Marimba Body series, how we relate to the structure and movement desi
artistic health + percussion