next »

[QCdrummer]

When I was in my early stages of drumming, I would always get blisters because my technique in holding the stick was horrible. It took me a while to break the habit but eventually I did and I haven't had a blister since!

Now that I can actually hold down the board when people start shouting, my church has gotten way carried away with this. And by the end of the service Sunday I had what looked like a bloodclot right there on the part of my thumb that hits the keys. Richt now is kind of light-brownish and feels kind of hard.

This was the first bloodclot, but I always get these blister looking things on my thumbs. My first thought would be that I'm hitting the keys too hard but maybe my technique is somewhat off and maybe there's something I could change so I can stop getting them. Help!

[under13]

never heard of that happening.....

[QCdrummer]

Never? Wow. Maybe I'll just stick with my original theory that I'm just hitting with my thumb way to hard.

[T-Block]

Let me ask you a question, how are your fingers hitting the keys? I say this cuz it sounds like ur playing the keys like u would hit a drum. If that's the case, then that's ur problem. Keys shouldn't be played with brute force like a drum. You will hurt urself and the instrument. Try keeping ur fingers more on the keys and when u want to play louder, just apply pressure or turn up the volume. Don't pick your hands up and then slam em down on the keys.

[SoundofJoy]

I agree with T-Block, I've been playing 38 years and never had a problem with my fingers. If you watch my videos on youtube you'll notice I don't play with force on the keys.

[floaded27]

if i'd guess, this is happening on the outside of the first joint of the thumb. usually this happens because parts of your fingers, especially near joints, arent used to impact. this happens with bass players as well when playing percussively.

i've never had the common hand/finger problems because i've been doing kung fu for years before i started playing. the hand conditioning that is undertaken is quite beneficial for a musician.

what i would suggest is basic hand conditioning. what you can do is get a thick telephone book (but i'd prefer like a sandbag because it'll shape somewhat to your hand) and just sit it on a table or other sturdy surface and just firmly hit it with your palm, fingers spread apart (dont go crazy, you can just hold ur hand above about a few inches and let gravity do the rest). probably do it about 20-30 times like a few times a week (takes only about a minute or so) and u'll be conditioning the surface of your hand and you'll find that those hand injuries will be less common.

Let me ask you a question, how are your fingers hitting the keys? I say this cuz it sounds like ur playing the keys like u would hit a drum. If that's the case, then that's ur problem. Keys shouldn't be played with brute force like a drum. You will hurt urself and the instrument. Try keeping ur fingers more on the keys and when u want to play louder, just apply pressure or turn up the volume. Don't pick your hands up and then slam em down on the keys.

I agree with T-Block, I've been playing 38 years and never had a problem with my fingers. If you watch my videos on youtube you'll notice I don't play with force on the keys.

this probably isnt him trying to play keys like a drum. what often happens with beginners is that at first speed comes with added force because you have to exert more force to move faster because its not as natural. over time you can have the speed + the delicate touch, but at the beginning that combination isnt there. its true on any instrument. (although everyone may not experience that or the same problems/effects of it)

[QCdrummer]

Thanks for all the advice, I'm trying to get better at this, but its hard. I keep wanting to hit the keys really hard. I'm trying to play more delicately, but it seems like when I do that (on weighted keys) its not giving me the big sound I want! When the song is coming down from the climax, I play very delicate because thats the sound I'm trying to get out, but when its building, delicate goes out the window! I'll keep working on it though.

[sonicfoxbody]

Can you remedy it by wrapping your thumb in a band-aid before a service? To kinda cushion the impact a little?

[T-Block]

I have another question: How are u sitting at your keyboard? Are your hands above the keys, level with the keys, or slightly below the keys?

A lot of times if u don't sit correctly with the right height, ur playing will suffer. The keyboard should be down, almost even with your lap. That way in order to get a bigger sound, u can put in some arm pressure as well as pressing the keys a little harder. If the keyboard is up above ur arms, it won't happen.

[musallio]

Sorry about the pain QC.
I see many musicians who slam and bang on the board but none of them have complained about such a problem- so I can't diagnose in that regard.

I agree with what T & Sam have said.

I think you might also be hitting the edge of the board (thumb rolling at the edge of the keys)- hence creating an impact on a small part of the thumb as opposed to a larger surface area- that would definitely cause blisters.
 
Is that how you are playing?