Yes, you may ask yourself:'what has this got to do with the strings forum?' go and join a WW forum!
Actually for me it's got to do everything with playing the violin!

And I am posting about it here because I want to find out if you know of any other 'female, well rounded' violin player who have the same problem as me!
I have been at my ideal weight in the past and I am now quite overweight...
when I am overweight my 'breasts' are larger, and when I play things on the E string the right one (nearer to bow) gets in the way, I must say my arm is also 'larger' so the two of them being larger...I stumble upon my right breast when I bow, this does not create a problem when I play normal legato/slurred/detache' but when doing spiccato and other sorts with my bowing then the impact makes me lose some of the control of the bow this is really infuriating me and I KNOW I would play a LOT better if I didn't have this problem sometimes I have to lean to one side so that I don't bump my arm and breast together whilst doing some spiccato

I was quite 'comfortable' with my body lately and it didn't worry me about being overweight and now it is bothering me because of this so I think major determination will come out of this and I WILL lose weight and keep it off (well, I am well intentioned in doing so).

I was also slightly 'embarrassed' to write about this but wanted to 'vent off' and also to find out if you know anyone else with the same problem, am I creating excuses for my not so good spiccato bowing or is this a real problem? I think it is a real problem, guess I want to find out I am not alone in this one

Guess I also wanted a 'shoulder to cry on' but after all the crying I will come out strong and determined and make it better for my violin playing and my health!

No problems with my piano playing, but there was a thread going on in another forum about 'well rounded women' and having problems when they have to cross their arms to play some pieces, but I am not at that level yet, maybe if I was I would have this problem too?!

I have exactly the same problem.

Liz

A very delicate subject to discuss.

Have you had any problems tucking your left arm under the violin when playing in higher positions? You might find this action impeded slightly as well?

I know of a couple of 'larger ladies' who play the viola professionally and both of them made the switch for reasons you state. Their larger breasts got too much in the way with the violin to play professionally, but with the viola, everything is further away from their body and thus the arms and bow are less restricted.

Thank you Liz and Amanda, it does 'help' to know that I am not alone, at times I thought I was just 'making excuses!'
Like you said Amanda, a 'delicate' subject to discuss so I did think a little before posting but was feeling so 'lonely' in this I had to share I also thought if anyone else was experiencing the same it 'might' help them a little too ?
I think at the moment I have a great 'spark' to try and lose (and keep off) some weight, only just enough for this problem to go away anyway so I will try very hard to do this.
I love the violin so much I cannot envisage abandoning it ever! Of course not playing professionally I guess I could put up with uneven spiccato



so far...no problems with 3rd position, but have not gone any higher yet!

You are definitely not the only one. I also have the exact same problems as you when I play violin - I reckon both my violin and flute playing would be much improved (as would my health) if I could lose weight so I sympathise with you completely. Good luck with everything and you have all my support and best wishes.

Thank you Blackbird

Oh you do have my support and best wishes too jojo - I hope you can achieve what you'd like without too much pain and suffering

I'm not having that difficulty with my bowing although I'm far from skinny (I'm rather big myself actually and have to choose which chin to tuck the violin under ), but being a flighty artist, I did have 'trouble' in the 'eating' department and am terrified of trying to lose weight in case I end up in trouble again. I do admire people who can just set their mind and lose weight (healthily).

(p.s. being too skinny is no fun at all so please don't aim for that )

I'm hoping to join that club

You sound so determined to keep healthy and to improve your violin playing! I really admire you!

I had a duet lesson with another one of my teacher's adult students, she had the same problem. She was having difficulty playing in the higher positions cos she couldn't tuck her left elbow towards the body to get she a better angle.

I'm sure you're not alone, we all have our own body problems when it comes to playing the violin cos it's such an unnatural instrument to play! For me, it's frustrating cos I have small hands. It's difficult to get perfect intonation cos I have small fingers and so less surface area when I put my finger on the violin, it's easier to go wrong and be a bit sharp or flat. My bow feels too heavy and long so my bow control is terrible.

So don't feel too bad about it! Good luck!

Thank you violin111, I feel better now, whilst I wish you did not have your 'short fingers' problem, at least I have a chance to correct my 'problem', would be a bit more difficult to try and 'lenghten' my fingers (I have images of some torture instrument, maybe one devised by 'Addams Family' to lenghen fingers )

There was one of the 'old school' violin virtuosi who had really podgy fingers that looked so short it's a wonder he could put them on the strings together. I think it was Heifitz (sp?)

Yet he was a virtuoso!

I have short fingers but they're becoming more flexible the more I play so maybe there's hope for all us odd-shapeys out there

AmandaL is a self-confessed tiny-handed person and she is a professional player! So while it might slow you down, certainly don't let it stop you

I have the opposite problem- I am (naturally) quite slim and not very well-endowed, so when I play the violin too energetically it makes my bones hurt and also if I am too tense, it really gives me a bruise on my shoulder/neck because I don't have enough 'padding'- my collarbone sticks out quite a bit.

he things we do for love, eh?

Oh dear, can't win can you?? we are either too thin/too fat, fingers too long/too short

My shoulders are kinda bony but broad and I'm not too well-endowed so I do have difficulty adjusting my shoulder rest sometimes. I suffer from the small-finger problem too. At first, it was just the problem of the 4th finger in the 1st position but now...as I get to higher positions and having to play there is just a nightmare. I tried playing octaves for fun the other day and my wrist just killed me later. I wonder how am I going to manage 10ths when I get there. It's a very long time away though and the worse part is, I can't grow anymore!