Hello and welcome back to Musician’s Maintenance where it’s my job to connect you with science based resources to take care of your musical body.
Here’s what I’ve got this week 1) An interview on recovering from injury 2) A virtual yoga studio for musicians by musicians 3) A specific exercise program for professional orchestral musicians.
(Note: If you enjoy these newsletters, please consider forwarding this email to a friend, colleague, teacher or classmate. They can sign up here and then you won’t be the only one you know doing virtual yoga for musicians).
Onwards!
1) An Interview on Recovering from Injury
When you are in the middle of an injury it’s common to feel like you’ll never recover, so it can be helpful to hear stories from those who have. Here’s an interview by Noa Kageyama, PhD of The Bulletproof Musician with violinist Pamela Frank and physical therapist Howard Nelson on how Pamela was able to successfully recovery from a serious injury.
Howard is an excellent physical therapist and the interview includes specific examples of the strategies he used along with ideas for preventing injury in the first place. Plus, Noa is a great interviewer and even shares his own injury story and experience with physical therapy.
Click below and check out the interview. If you liked it, you may also want to check out Howard and Pamela’s collaboration called Fit as a Fiddle for more on their work to help musicians avoid injury.
Listen: On Recovering from Injury | The Bulletproof Musician
Sponsor: Musician’s Yoga: A Guide to Practice Performance and Inspiration
If you are interested in yoga you should probably start by taking a class (ideally from a musician who is also a yoga teacher, see below for exactly this). However, if you’re more the self study type and want a book, here’s a good one especially if you are interested in how the movement, mindfulness, postural and breathing practices of yoga can translate to the quality of your playing.
Musician’s Yoga by Mia Olson | (Affiliate: If you buy the book through this link, I get a small portion of the sale at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting the Musician’s Maintenance mission!)
2) A Virtual Yoga Studio for Musicians by Musicians
Yoga is a great way for musicians to keep their bodies moving, plus it emphasizes the breath and mind-body connection; all things I think are very important in an injury prevention program. However, if your yoga instructor doesn’t actually understand the unique needs of musicians, it can sometimes lead to injury.
Luckily 4 amazing musicians who are also yoga instructors (Brianne Borden, Claire Howard, Amelia Rosenberger, and Kim Hankins) have collaborated to form the first musicians specific yoga studio. The studio is virtual, so it doesn’t matter where you are, you can access their expertise.
Click below to check out everything they’re offering, and if you are interested, consider virtually attending their opening celebration on May 16 at 1 pm MST.
A Virtual Yoga Studio for Musicians by Musicians | Yoga for All Musicians
3) A Specific Exercise Program for Professional Orchestral Musicians
One of my missions for Musician’s Maintenance is to make musician’s health research accessible, understandable, and useful for you. My latest effort is to read research, then talk you through the article and give my thoughts on it. This week, I reviewed an article called Development of a Specific Exercise Program for Professional Musicians. Click below to listen on the website or find it on your favorite podcasting service.
Listen: Research Review of “A Specific Exercise Program for Professional Musicians” | Musician’s Maintenance