Pain on fingers - technique & control

stavrosdru

Junior Member
Hey guys,

When i'm playing or practicing for a couple or more hours, i feel some pain on my back fingers, usually on ring finger and pinky, mostly on my left hand (i'm playing matched grip). I've starter working on my technique the last couple of weeks playing singles and doubles on very slow tempos (16ths on 50 bpm) and i'm trying to stay as loose as i can and use rebound as much as i can. I know that i should always keep my fingers touching the stick and i'm trying to do that but while i'm hitting the drum or pad the stick is playing in my hand and some kind of hitting on my back fingers and after some time that causes pain on my fingers. If i try to keep my fingers touching the stick a bit more so the stick doesn't play in my hand, it causes me a lot of tension on both fingers and wrist and i can't use rebound at all. What do you think should i do to fix this? Thanks
 
Sounds like you're on the right track to removing tension from your playing.

All the best and keep working on that technique eg moeller.

All the best

Tj
 
I don't see how one can advance their grip without some form of pain. Certain small muscles have to get developed, tendons get stretched, there's no way around that AFAIK. You just have to differentiate between normal pain and not normal pain. Me, I like working my hands and go for fatigue on purpose. It makes them that much stronger next time around. It's not the only way, but it's the way that produces the fastest results for me. There are many different ways to move a drumstick, not just one. I don't subscribe to Jim Chapin's statement "If they tell you no pain no gain, shoot them." Not knocking Jim, he has great technique. It's just that there is more than one way to skin a cat.
 
If it's just skin irritation, I think you just have to live with it, otherwise, monitor it. I do think you should learn to relax while hanging onto the stick, though. Most of drumming is done on instruments less bouncy than your practice pad; and if you want to have any control at all over your dynamics, you can't be using just the rebound to pick up the stick for you.
 
I'm in the camp that says pain is bad. It is probably doing what it is designed to do - to warn you if a problem.

In this case, We can't tell without some sort of video, but my hunch is that you bending your wrist ... the bend I suspect is called ulnar deviation, and if you bend your wrist so that your thumb is more forward than it should be and the pinky is more lateral... sticking out the side that it should be.

In neutral position, the center of the hand is between the pinky/ring finger, and this should point forward (note, there are a LOT of incorrect medical images from reputable sources here that show the thumb forward and others that show the middle finger forward). In neutral position, however, the ulna (the central forearm bone) lines up directly behind the pinky/ring fingers, and the forearm wrist rotates around these.

If your wrist is bent in this way, it will compress the wrist behind the pinky and may give it a tingly feeling, numbness, perhaps phantom pain that comes/goes and reappears in other places.

Other things may also cause these symptoms as well, though - most notably the collarbone pressing on the thoracic nerve through slouching/holding the shoulders too low. But my first guess is the wrist bend. It is suuuuuper common. See it all the time, used to do it myself for years before I studied the physiology (out of necessity from repeated injuries)
 
On this subject, just thought I'd share something in case its relevant to anyone.

I've long struggled with pains especially in my right hand. One thing I've changed fairly recently that seems to have made a remarkable difference (so far) is the angle the stick is in my hand (none-trad grip, german/american). I now have the butt emerging from my hand much nearer my wrist as opposed to nearer the base of the pinky, so it follows more the line of the arm.

Although its not so easy for my pinky to be on the stick now (though it still manages) its made my finger control easier and my hand more relaxed.

It was a bit of a "duh" moment.. been as I've struggled to play for over 20 years and this might be a turning point.

It sort of clicked while watching a Buddy Rich video and also a YouTube clip of Dick Cully talking about grip.

I've had all sorts of videos for ages, including Tommy Igoe's Lifetime video, and its so obvious when he demonstrates the grip, but for some reason I just assumed he was doing it to demonstrate having a short pinky. It seemed so odd to hold it going that far down the palm like that.

I don't have it running right in line with my wrist (some call that Center Stage I think), but off to the side a little. The difference from my old grip is fairly subtle looks wise but it *feels* so different. It's made finger control so much easier too.

Time will tell though if it really helps - I just know for me it has suddenly made things more comfortable *today* since trying it. Looking forward to playing with the band next to see how it goes.
 
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