Basic Left Hand Position for Beginners

"Fingers curved, wrist straight, elbow up, and...thumb between 1st and 2nd fingers (said quickly!)."

This is how I often begin my introduction to the left hand with beginning cellists. This one silly saying captures the primary elements of left hand technique: the fingers, the wrist, the elbow, and the placement of the thumb.

The first three are fairly standard (fingers, wrist, and elbow) but the thumb placement between 1st and 2nd fingers is a bit at variance from tradition. 

Let's look at each concept individually.

Keeping the fingers curved of beginning cellists is often a challenge!  The fingers of younger players, in particular, are often too weak to stay curved and will 'pancake' or become 'platypus fingers' as the joints hyper-extend or flatten. I'll sometimes try to make my point with a little humor by asking my students how well platypuses run. Of course, they are not good runners (albeit good swimmers!). Neither are platypus fingers good for running around the fingerboard!

I find that having students curve their fingers more than usual helps with this. This will mean playing more on the tips than would typically be necessary. This often solves the problem temporarily.  A long term solution is finger strengthening to be discussed later in the article.

Another little game is to have the students hold their hands in front of them as if they were holding a glass of juice - how about something nutritious like broccoli juice? Yum!  With the pulp!  Yuk, they say!

Are you kidding me? It's nutritious and delicious!

Of course, the idea is to have an capital 'C' in the hand. The students then bring the hand to the fingerboard and place the first finger down with a nice 'C' shape. Some prefer to start with all four fingers down - the 'C' works for either.

If the hand loses it's nice capital 'C', I will say No C sickness please!  I've been known to pass out an empty Dramamine box to those who are 'C sick'. Again, why not have a little fun?

Another little trick is to roll up an 8' x 11' piece of paper, tape it so it maintains its roll, and tape it to the side of the neck of the cello with some Scotch tape. I then instruct the beginning cellists to keep a 'C' so as not to touch the paper. This can be helpful when the teacher is not around to keep an eye on things.

The first time students put their finger(s) down in a 'C' shape, I have them do thumb circles immediately. I want the first experience of depressing the string to be without any thumb squeezing - zero thumb!. 

You know, those pesky thumbs are trouble - and they are hard to see!  As my former teacher says, the thumbs are the naughty puppies of cello technique!  How true!

I often have beginning students practice thumb circles interspersed throughout the lesson. Not only do thumb circles prevent squeezing, motion is like kryptonite to tension. 

With all of the cases of carpel tunnel syndrome, it's a no-brainer to keep our wrists straight. Flexing or extending the wrist leads to pressure on the median nerve. Also, we do not want our tendons to have to pass around a corner. Everything works best in the hand, wrist, and arm when the wrist is straight.

The thumb placement may be the culprit of a flexed or extended wrist so keep an eye out for it. If the thumb is too far behind the neck of the cello, the wrist may extend (cock back). If the thumb is too far to the side, the wrist may flex (bend forward). 

How high should the elbow be? I mention 'elbow up' in my corny saying because, in my experience, it is more common for the elbow to be too low than too high in beginning cellists. 

It is equally important (maybe more so) that the elbow not be too high. The upper arm should always have some 'down hill' slop. This is much healthier for the shoulder that can suffer rotator cuff injury or subacromial impingement if elbows are over elevated.

It is tradition to have the left thumb oppose the 2nd finger. Eventually, in more advanced playing, my goal is for the placement of the left thumb be determined by which finger is down. This is especially helpful for vibrato. I find vibrato on first finger to be excessively restricted when the thumb opposes the second finger. 

For beginners, however, the thumb is a wonderful reference point for the rest of the fingers so it is best if it has a home. Since the ultimate goal is a dynamic technique (adapting and changing) that does not prescribe a fixed position for the left thumb, I opt for a placement between 1st and second fingers - a sort of compromise. 

For me, and I know this is unorthodox, I actually don't fuss too much about the thumb placement as long as the thumb opposes the 1st finger, 2nd finger, or anywhere in between. I am more concerned that the thumb not be placed directly on the pad nor squeeze. The thumb should be placed on the neck of the cello between the pad and the side of the thumb.

If you are of a school of thought that prefers to keep the thumb opposing the 2nd finger, then by all means teach this from the beginning. I find, however, that the knuckle base of the index finger tends to remain flattened if the thumb always opposes the 2nd finger and becomes a source of tension.  

In the mean time, it is important to begin strengthening the fingers so they can maintain their rounded shape without excessive curving. To do this, I like to introduce the 'Mr. Muscle' or 'Ms. Muscle' exercise. Here's how it works...

• Have the students place their 1st finger on the C string, 2nd on G, 3rd on D, and 4th on A.
• While holding the other fingers down, practice lifting the 1st finger up high and bringing it back down with a little percussive sound.
• Repeat this for the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th fingers.
• I'd only start with 5 reps per finger in the beginning, working up to 10 reps later on.
• Don't overdo this - it can be taxing. Stick to 5 reps at first!
• Remember, only one finger lifts while the others stay down.