One of the most common complaints I hear from musicians is that they tend to lift and hold their shoulders up when under stress. I often wondered why this might be. First off, there is a connection between stress and holding shoulders up. If you look at people hurrying and rushing, you might see this. If you watch someone working under pressure at a computer, you will probably see the raising of shoulders.
I had another idea as well. Have you ever watched a child inhale when they’re told they should breathe with a lot of air? Well, they often scrunch up their little faces and lift their shoulders up to their ears. How many times have young wind instrument students been told that playing an instrument takes of lot of air? Maybe there’s a clue? In a later post, I’ll talk about why raising your shoulders does, in a funny way help breathing and how it takes more energy to do it than it gives.
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