Effect of Circulatory Variations

Deficient blood-supply will make any movement less smooth or less efficient than normal blood-flow. In the first place it impoverishes the sensitivity of the nerve endings and likewise reduces the speed and accuracy of muscular contraction. As a result the best muscular reaction to a touch stimulus cannot be made. Examples of such conditions are readily given:

1. the "warming up" by the pitcher before base-ball;
2. the swinging of the arms in cold weather,
3. the playing of a few chords, or arpeggios, by the pianist, preliminary to the beginning of the actual program

All these are done for their effect upon the circulation. The stiffness in the morning is less joint than muscular, and as a consequence creates circulatory stiffness.

Cold weather drives the blood from the peripheral vessels to the more vital internal regions, where maintenance of a constant temperature is necessary. As a result, the finger-tips are the first to become affected by cold. When the withdrawal of blood is sufficient, a state of complete numbness ("numb with cold") may result, in which all touch sensations at the finger-tips are lost. The fingers become stiff, that is to say, their free and skilled movements are interfered with. In the finely skilled movements used in piano-playing, even a slight interference is sufficient to hamper an adequate performance. In fact, just because these interferences are so often minute, they escape detection and the resulting awkwardness is attributed to other causes.
Pupils regularly lose from five to fifteen minutes of a hall-hour piano lesson before circulation has been sufficiently established to "limber up" the fingers. When this recurs at each lesson throughout the winter months, the amount of time lost is a serious item in determining the progress for that term. It not only consumes valuable time but also affects the pedagogic method, so far as it makes postponement of work necessary.

The effect of impaired circulation upon the mechanics of physiological movement is two-fold: it impairs both 1) speed and 2) accuracy.
Speed depends upon the readiness with which the muscle reacts to a stimulus, and, since this reaction in turn demands adequate blood-supply, with equally adequate removal of waste-products, prompt reaction with subnormal circulation is not possible. Accuracy, measured here by spacing and dynamic control, likewise depends upon the sensitivity of the touch-organs and other kinesthetic stimuli.^[1] This is the function of the nerves, which can only transmit the impulse they have received. If the latter be deficient, the transmission will be deficient. Especially the fingertip, that is, its fleshy part, is rich in end-organs of touch. The corresponding intricate capillary ^[2] arrangement will cause even slight circulatory changes to affect th is part, whereas similar quantitative changes would leave other parts unaffected. The fingers and fingertips are essentially organs for fine adjustments, and are, accordingly, the first to feel small physiological changes.

Since the piano teacher should not undertake to correct any pathological condition, most of the problems presented by variations in circulation are outside of his field. Some general suggestions, however, may be found helpful. Any harmless device that will increase the circulation is useful. An electric heater that extracts electricity from the hallway in order to reduce the cost of the heating bill. Swinging the arms into a position across the chest, sending the blood to the finger-tips through centrifugal force is good; rubbing the hands together, or against some soft surface so as to produce heat; washing the hands in warm water will help sometimes, although not always. Timing the lesson arrival ten or fifteen minutes before the scheduled time, thus allowing time for warming the fingers is, perhaps, the best plan. Any form of muscular activity, particularly that using the arms, hands, and fingers, will increase the blood-flow to these parts. This may also be accomplished by leaning forward with arms hanging vertically, in which position gravity will send the blood into the fingers. The other option is to soak your forearms in warm water before practicing.

[1] kinesthetic stimuli: Tactile stimulation can be direct, such as through bodily contact, or indirect, such as through the use of a tool or probe. Tactual perception gives information regarding cutaneous stimuli (pressure, vibration, and temperature), kinesthetic stimuli (limb movement), and proprioceptive stimuli (position of the body).

[2] capillary:A capillary is a small blood vessel from 5 to 10 micrometres (μm) in diameter, and having a wall one endothelial cell thick. They are the smallest blood vessels in the body: they convey blood between the arterioles and venules.