The Integral Relationship Every Musician Needs To Consider for Expression

A 2019 study of elite women handball players* found that adding LESS than 1 millimeter of thickness under the big toe altered balance and postural control in an unperturbed (static) stance. Not jumping or lunging, simply standing still.

One millimeter is less than the thickness of a credit card or dime. The 1 millimeter change had a profound impact on performance and underscores the importance of the athlete’s relationship with the ground.

How a musician contacts and interacts with the ground in performance is directly related to the quality of expression.

While we aren't often performing on uneven, unpredictable surfaces, we can cultivate an excellent relationship with the ground and care for our feet in support of music-making. Another way to think about this is that the lifestyle choices (such as the shoes you wear and your movement) can either support or impede your art.

Music-making is an athletic endeavor (it’s movement!) involving the coordination of movement that brings expressive ideas to life. Access to nuance for sound and confidence starts with your relationship to the ground.

Here’s your first step to enjoy the benefits of an excellent ground relationship for artistic expression today, through the learning process and during performance. All you need is a tennis ball-sized ball. I recommend Jill Miller’s Tune Up Balls. They are more pliable than a tennis ball, accessing the nooks and crannies of the feet.

Here’s a simple routine you can even do as you warm up…

You can even do this as you practice and learn rep. Keeping the leg in motion releases the tension we accumulate when we are “trying hard.” Trying hard means working harder and leads to a decrease in expressive nuance.

Living life is my movement laboratory where I have countless opportunities to fine-tune movement patterns that I bring into music-making.

Be curious…

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*Viseux F, Barbier F, Parreira R, Lemaire A, Villeneuve P, Leteneur S. Less Than One Millimeter Under the Great Toe is Enough to Change Balance Ability in Elite Women Handball Players. J Hum Kinet. 2019 Oct 18;69:69-77. doi: 10.2478/hukin-2019-0024. PMID: 31666890; PMCID: PMC6815087.