Anto
Oud Admirer
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Registered: 3-6-2004
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right hand wrist
I seem to be having some problems with my right hand technique, so i thought id ask about it here. I have been feeling pain and stiffness in my right
wrist after playing for more than a half hour. I beleive that i am holding the oud right, as i hold the instrument like the people in the videos that
mike has and the way oud cafe describes, but my problem is that my forearm comes too far forward so it is hard to pluck near the bridge. To
conspensate for this, i generally have somewhat of an angle at my wrist, its not an extreme angle though, so i assumed it would not hurt my wrist. Im
just wondering because i think its possible that my wrist hurts because i havent been playing oud that long, but im also worried that i might be doing
damage to my wrist. So my basic question is, how do you play near the bridge without bending your wrist too much? and if you cant play near the bridge
without too much bending, then what happens if i keep playing like this? can i end up giving myself carpal tunnel syndrome or something?
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Jameel
Oud Junkie
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You don't have to necessarily play near the bridge. The most important thing is to relax. Don't have any tension. I was having a lesson once
with my teacher Issa Boulos, and he said "ok, start over, now relax your shouders" I was amazed when he said this since I hadn't even
realized I was flexing my whole neck/shoulder area! I get about 1 hour of lessons per year, since I am 5 hours from my teacher, but I learn more in
that time than months reading descriptions or playing on my own. You should try to find a good oud teacher if you are serious about playing.
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Brian Prunka
Oud Junkie
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Registered: 1-30-2004
Location: Brooklyn, NY
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I agree with Jameel, this is a really difficult thing to get right just by talking about . . . finding a teacher is the best thing to do.
That said, maybe you can't find a teacher, so here's an attempt to explain:
the main area you want to pick is probably where your pickguard is, about halfway between the soundhole and bridge.
the palm of your hand should be nearly parallel to the face of the oud, with your wrist bent at about a 35-45 degree angle (try bending your wrist
without the oud, and you should be able to feel what range is comfortable). common problems: your arm sticks out too far, making your wrist bend too
much. or your elbow is too far away from your body, adding tension and stress. using a mirror will help you to be aware of these tendencies.
everyone's body is somewhat different, so exact positions will vary (that's why it helps to get a teacher!). I happen to have really long
arms, so I really tend to get too far in front of the oud.
and like Jameel said, relax. relax some more.
it may not be the angle/hand position, it may just be tension. one aspect of picking i've just started really dealing with is the idea of
continuous motion.
when you swing a baseball bat, you don't hold it out in front of you and try to hit the ball really hard and then stop the bat once you've
hit the ball: it won't go very far. you prepare by holding the bat in a fairly relaxed way at a distance that lets you build up momentum
smoothly, then you follow through in one motion. there's no distinction between the point at which you hit the ball and any other point on the
bat's path. It's exactly the same with picking. if you want to relax, you need to prepare the stroke and move smoothly, and follow
through. not huge distances, but they make a difference all the same. A metronome is really helpful here. the faster you go, the less preparation
& follow through you can do, but the principle is still the same. I hope this helps; I know it's something I need to keep working on.
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Anto
Oud Admirer
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Registered: 3-6-2004
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thanks for the tips, this helps a lot.
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