Less Pain, More Gain

In this week’s blog post, prodigal pianist Ryan Morison shares a personal account of his journey from injury caused by a traditional, finger-centric piano technique to discovering a more natural, healthier way of playing.

With insights and guidance from several mentors along the way, Ryan unlearned harmful habits and rebuilt an approach to technique that opened the door to renewed joy, freedom and expressive music-making at the piano.

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Most of us have heard the old adage “No pain, no gain” – this was certainly a key theme for many of my pursuits when growing up! It’s certainly valid in many contexts, for example any marathon runner or weightlifter will tell you that success requires suffering. But when applied to the physical aspects of piano playing it can be highly detrimental.

Unfit for Purpose

Although our understanding of anatomy has advanced significantly since the invention of the piano, much teaching is still heavily based on the “finger centric” school of playing. This was very much my experience, with the emphasis being on repetitive exercises and drills to develop “finger strength” and independence.

The piano has also undergone major changes and unlike earlier versions, the keys now require much more weight to depress. Fingers alone cannot meet the demands of the repertoire on the modern instrument. Add to this the additional workload from our technology-infused lives (Czerny certainly wasn’t texting or typing emails between practice sessions!) and one has a recipe for strain and injury.

I treated piano playing as if it was a gym training programme – physical discomfort was part of the process, something to push through rather than an indicator of poor technique. When pain started creeping in, I assumed it meant I was doing “real work”, building strength and endurance.

As I advanced, this flawed approach meant that I had to work harder and harder to achieve the desired results. It felt like much of my time spent practising was struggling with technique which created further anxiety and tension. The result was that I ultimately ended up riddled with repetitive strain injuries to the extent that I gave up playing altogether.

A Different Approach

Fast forward several years, I still had a burning desire to return to playing as an amateur. Due to physical limitations arising from injuries, I was forced to adopt a different approach. The timing of my attempt to revisit the piano was fortuitous in that I was incredibly fortunate to reconnect with Graham Fitch and have lessons with him on moving to London.

Graham’s teaching was a revelation to me as I realised that piano playing wasn’t just about the fingers, but should involve the arm and the entire body. Experiencing and incorporating natural movements like wrist hinges, lateral adjustments and forearm rotation opened the door to a new way of playing for me.

Graham also introduced me to the exercises of Peter Feuchtwanger, which – while difficult to explain – were transformative. Each pianist seems to take something different from them, but for me, they functioned like a neurological reset, helping me let go of old habits and experience new ways of doing things at the keyboard.

Developing Greater Ease and Awareness

Unlearning years of bad habits doesn’t happen overnight and requires constant attention and awareness. My journey towards playing with greater ease was aided by insights from several other pedagogues.

From Penelope Roskell I gained very useful tools for addressing specific problems. Her “Dusting the Keys” exercise and “Parachute Touch” metaphor for arm weight were particularly useful in that I tended to have very rigid forearms with my elbows carrying much of the weight.  Penelope also provided me with some excellent warm-up routines and quick, but effective ways to improve posture.

A few years on I met Fred Karpoff and in collaborating with him on various projects, discovered additional ideas that helped me embed much of what I’d learnt so far and address some residual issues. Fred’s concept of “The Quiet Hand” helped create awareness of the unnecessary tension I’d carry in fingers that were not playing. I’ve since found several other insights from his work incredibly useful, largely due to the clarity with which he presents and demonstrates concepts.

Lastly, I derived enormous value from William Westney’s philosophies and ideas. Embracing risk, approaching errors as sources of information rather than cues for castigation and the paradox of letting go to achieve control helped me break the vicious mental cycle of anxiety and tension (his book, The Perfect Wrong Note is essential reading!).

“Playing that Feels Good Sounds Good”

Although this journey has not been without challenges, I was pleasantly surprised and encouraged by how easy and natural playing the piano can feel when you’re working with your body rather than against it. I’ve not only recovered from injury and returned to the instrument, but also enjoy playing now more than ever. Instead spending the majority of my time playing on fighting my fingers and enduring discomfort, I’m now able to focus on relishing making music.

In the words of William Westney, “Playing that Feels Good, Sounds Good”. If you’re feeling tension, pain or discomfort when playing, don’t assume it’s a rite of passage. Ask instead: is there a better, more natural way? Because there often is …and it’s worth finding!