wrist angel variations

GregHB

Alright guys, here's the deal: Been gypsy picking for a year and a half and am encountering pretty bad wrist and elbow problems. I've been looking at alot of players and have noticed a bit of a difference in wrist angels....Stochelo seems to have a pretty typical or perhaps even slightly exaggerated wrist angel where as Dorado and Andreas' seems fairly straightened out. So I'm experimenting with trying to straighten out my wrist to see if it helps. Just wondering if anyone has had a similar experience...maybe we aren't all built to perform with this technique?

Bones

What kind of problems? Pain?

GregHB

It's basically a throbbing pain in the elbow, forearm, and wrist. The wrist pain can get pretty bad and sometimes I get a tinglng pain in my hand that radiates into my middle and ring fingers. Seems like the on-set of tendonitis, which I would really like to avoid. If I rotate my wrist and listen, I hear all sorts of cracks and pops.

MichaelHorowitz

Wow...I'm sorry to hear this. Hand problems are never any fun...

In general the Gypsy technique is very ergonomic and I've found that when done correctly it's a very healthy, and almost effortless way to play. But if you have an idiosyncratic issue with your hand, wrist, arm, etc, you may need to consider altering it so it works for you. Maybe a visit to a hand specialist is in order. This popping sound you speak of is definitely not normal and cause for concern.

The main things is that you should have very little tension in your arm, hand, and wrist. If you're using gravity, then it should all feel really natural. But if you're tensing up and muscling the pick through the strings, then you're going to have problems.

I hope you feel better...


-Michael

The Los

Sounds like a horrible experience my friend. Since you mentioned pains in your forearm and elbow I am guessing you are straining muscles you don't even need when playing this music. You're also probably not as relaxed as you should be (whether you know it or not) when you strum. For me, as a rhythm player, the secret is in the wrist. You have to train yourself to use only certain muscles in a specific movement.

Practice moving your wrist in a comfortable but snappy motion (as you would strum a guitar in this style) without your guitar. Practice with a weight in your hand (for only a few minutes at a time). It takes months but over time, if you discipline your wrist enough, you will notice a big difference in ease and comfort when you play.

It is something you have to constantly practice. I fall back on old habits when I am away from my guitar for more than three days. My playing is stiff and I have to re-train my wrist. In short, a never ending battle! I hope this helps. I used to have some pain when I played too but these exercises seemed to erase any discomfort I had.

GregHB

Thanks for all the help guys. I think it might also be from trying to do too much too soon... trying to develop Jimmy or Bireli's chops overnight. I feel like I'm pretty relaxed but I probably tense up without knowing it. I guess I'll throttle it back some and go back to the drawing board to see where I'm going wrong. Thanks again, though.

a

if you can shake out a match, you can play this music.

aside from the calluses, the apparatus is all there. it's just a matter of learning the material carefully. it doesn't matter if you're learning the basics or playing the most technically demanding pieces, it should feel effortless. if it doesn't, slow down and keep at it until it does. It's sort of like in Zen when people become one with with the world outside of the body...this is like a very acute, concentrated version of that. if you feel any tension from the guitar, your hands, etc. then go back a couple of steps and try to isolate the cause.

i also think there is a very direct relation between the amount of time you spend on concentrated practice, and improvement. occasionally, you might take a quantum leap forward or backwards, but try not to let that take attention away from maintaining a regular practice. don't skip a day, or rest. try to devote as much time to practice as possible. vary what you practice. maybe ten minutes on this, ten on that. don't spend more than half an hour at a time on one thing. but do it daily.

i would say good luck, but this has nothing to do with luck.
more like...quit your day job!

Bones

The tingling sounds like it might be a pinched nerve. Could be from tension or posture, etc. You might want to see a doctor and maybe get a referral to a physical therapist who can give you stretches and exercises to get rid of it.

a

oh yeah, big strokes (i forgot to mention).

horowitz's gypsy picking book has most of what you need .

GregHB

All that information was really helpful. It's actually already doing much better. It's amazing how one can be totally convinced that they are completely relaxed when in fact they are still holding tension in their body. So I'm keeping that image of shaking a match in my head while playing and am exaggerating the range of motion and it seems that everything from tone to speed has improved. (I find it strange that a larger motion would increase speed...but there it is). I guess the pain is just a sign of tension...my little built in tension alarm! Thanks again everybody. Much appreciated.