Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2006

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine whether differences exist in the motions employed by pianists when they are sight-reading versus performing repertoire and determine whether these differences could be quantified using high speed motion capture technology. A secondary question of interest was whether or not an improvement in the efficiency of motion could be observed between two sight-reading trials of the same musical excerpt. This case study employed a six digital infrared camera system (Motion Analysis, Inc.) to capture the motion of pianists playing two trials of a repertoire piece and two trials of a sight-reading excerpt. Angular displacements and velocities were calculated for bilateral shoulder, elbow, wrist, and index finger joints. The findings from this study demonstrate the usefulness of high speed motion capture technology for analyzing motions of pianists during performance

Journal Title

Medical Problems of Performing Artists

Volume

21

Issue

1

First Page

10

Last Page

16

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