An electromyographic study of left hand between experts and novices in violin playing

Abstract

We recently recorded string clamping force on the violin during simple (without vibrato) tone production by expert violinists. The results of our studies showed that the peak force exceeded 4.5 N at slow tempi, which decreased to 1.7 N at fast tempi. However, subjective assessment of playing effort indicated an opposite trend; the players felt that playing at faster tempi was more strenuous. We also measured muscular activity along with finger kinematics. We found that the mean left forearm muscle activity increased with tempo. The findings suggest that the speed of finger movement is more related to the arm and hand discomfort when playing a violin, as compared to clamping force. In the present study, we investigated the expert-novice difference in the nature of the string clamping force and related muscles in the left hand and arm while playing a violin. Information regarding the string clamping force and left hand muscle activity can help in teaching novices about the magnitude and timing of the appropriate string stabilizing action during sound production. Surface electromyography (EMG) and string clamping force were measured for this purpose.