Caring for yourself

One of my first jobs was tutoring the percussionist in a school’s junior wind ensemble. The students were new to orchestral percussion and uncertain on how to move or even play some of the instruments. This is a common occurrence for young percussionists, who are often chucked in the deep end with minimal guidance. Heck, the first person to teach me timpani was a violist! I made a lot of mistakes as a young percussionist when it came to taking care of myself. So, recognising a lot of my own experience in these young percussionists, I stepped-in to instruct the kids in section etiquette and self-care for a few weeks every term.

Listed below are my top five tips for percussion self-care and section safety which I used to teach my students. These are applicable not only to ensemble rehearsals and performances but also personal practice. Hope they help!

Tip 1. The buddy system

In some ways a timpano or marimba is more similar to a shopping trolley than a flute or trumpet. They are heavy, often unwieldy. They can and will squash you if you’re not careful. So, if something seems too heavy to move on your own, ask for help.

Some companies are now designing their instruments with increased safety in mind. Adams, for example, now makes timpani with wheels under the pedal to make transporting them easier. But a lot of school or community bands are still using older models. Things become even more complicated when you need to lift instruments onto a stage, down stairs, or into a truck.

Asking for help will make the job quicker than if you had tried to do it on your own - and infinitely safer. It also promotes good communication amongst your percussion section and teaches student to rely on one another.

Tip 2. Don’t lift instruments over the top of other ones

In my first year of university, I remember rather vividly being chastised by my teacher. I was bent over an expensive 5-octave Yamaha marimba, balanced on one foot, with my arms fully extended to lift a music stand over the instrument. There was space to walk all the way around the marimba to move the stand without these gymnastics. I was just being lazy.

While sometimes it may seem like the path of least resistance is to lift the trap table/cymbal/music stand etc. over your other instruments, this can become a bad habit. For yourself, lifting an oddly weighted metal pole over another instrument puts a lot of strain on your shoulders and upper back. For the instrument and your bank account, you want to avoid any scenarios where you drop something on the instrument which may damage it.

Tip 3. Remember to take breaks

Learning to recognise your own limits can be challenging. But the irony is that you will likely be able to contribute more if you do less! The more we rush, the more likely we are to injure ourselves. The more we flog ourselves, the more likely we are to experience burnout. In both cases, your ability to contribute to your ensemble or enjoy playing music is diminished.

From an ensemble rehearsal or performance perspective, this links in well with Tip #1. While percussionists have a duty to their section to contribute and pull their weight, the section is also there for support. If you need to take a break, then engage in an open honest dialogue with your section about your limits. And if you notice another percussionist starting to push past these limits, that’s a prime opportunity for you to step-in and ‘be a buddy’ by reminding them to take a break.

From a personal practice perspective, sometimes it’s difficult to see the wood for the trees. By that I mean, sometimes you get so involved in your practice or frustrated over that one bit you just can’t get right that you ignore time passing, muscles cramping, brain fogging, and all other symptoms of over-practicing. One method I found really useful was the 15/5 method: 15 minutes of playing, followed by 5 minutes rest, on repeat. This enables focused practice sessions whilst also allowing time to take a step-back and reassess the situation, relax your muscles, and reset your brain.

Tip 4. Stretching, movement, and posture

Percussion is a whole-body activity, ranging from footwork and core strength to large arm movements and minuscule wrist strokes. Percussionists often have to stand for the full performance or rehearsal. Conversely, timpanists or drummers have to sit for extended periods of time. In both situations it’s important to be aware of posture and where you’re holding tension or your centre of gravity. It can be all too easy to slouch or put all of your weight on one side, but this has a knock-on effect in other areas of your body.

One of the best ways to learn to listen to your body and become familiar with how muscle groups communicate is to stretch. Doing stretches before you practice, as a cool down afterwards, or during the 5-minute rests mentioned in Tip #3 can help to relieve muscle tension and prevent injury.

If there’s enough interest, perhaps I will post my stretching routine!

Tip 5. Keep paths clear

This last tip relates to space management. Tucked away at the back of the rehearsal room, the percussion section can get quite squishy. Spare chairs, other musicians’ instrument cases, music stand racks, or pianos are common obstacles. Meanwhile, the act of playing percussion instruments can at times require you to be pretty agile and active. Percussionists famously have hundreds of bars rest to count. But I’ve also had my fair share of concerts where I’ve needed to make a mad dash across the stage for my next entry. In these cases, ensuring that paths to and from each instrument are clear of trip hazards is really important!

Everybody, but especially fellow percussionists, need to keep an eye out for potential hazards. Correct them where possible. And if they’re not correctable, ensure everyone is aware of the risk to reduce the likelihood of injuries.

Well, that’s all for today. Take care and happy playing!