As we gear up for fall and the concert season ahead, whether as a student, professor, or touring artist, it's a good time to reflect on our technical habits. For those that took time off over the summer, there's the process of re-integrating hours of practice. For those that are preparing entire new programs (ehhem...yours truly), there's the challenge of not rushing through the learning process, mentally and physically. Throughout my time writing the Marimba Body series, folks have approached me with different questions of "do you have anything about ___?" Coming up a few times is the issue of elbow pain - what it is, how we get it, and how to heal and then prevent it. Here's what I've learned, experienced, and found. Three Common Pain Areas Most commonly, percussionists experience elbow pain: - on the outside of the elbow (lateral epicondylitis, aka: tennis elbow) - on the inside of the elbow (medial epicondylitis, aka: golfer's elb...
artistic health + percussion