Music for hand eye co-ordination

[Gary]

I have noticed that I am rapidly losing my hand eye co ordination. You know reaching for something and knocking everything on the floor. So I decided that some type of instrument might help and I looked on Craigslist for an organ, the Boise Rescue Mission had one that someone donated and they had no use for it. It had a picture and it was only $50. When I got down there with one of the farm trucks they said we have a forklift to load it. Oh no what have I done?!? it weighs 455 lbs my wife was at her moms for the weekend so left to my own devices I bought it and had SIL and daughter come over to help move it the first thing out of daughters mouth was "does mom know? She is going to kill you!" Anyway I bought some books and away we go. And yes previously the only thing I played is the radio.

Does anyone feel that any type of music therapy (besides playing the radio) has helped?

[SalpalSally]

Wow Gary, what fun! DW will probably love it too! Think of Christmas time and the beautiful music you will be making. Maybe you can hold the church services at your home.

And yes, in keeping with the meaning of this thread it will help your hand eye coordination, I believe.

[nuthatch]

That is so cool Gary! I think it will help too.
Years ago, I decided I was going to learn to play the guitar. I bought a guitar and several books to learn the chords, ect. I am left handed and really tried hard but realize it's much more difficult than it looks, at least for me. Shoot, I can't even walk and chew bubblegum!
I found it difficult to hold the guitar while seated, let alone seated in a wheelchair. I eventually gave up on it. I have a tremendous admiration for, and a bit of envy of anyone who can play a musical instrument.

I recently saw Dierks Bently perform the Pink Floyd song Wish You Were Here, on the Jimmy Falon show (yeah, I stay up too late!). A country western version of a Pink Floyd song sounds like it might be weird, but it was awesome. Of course, as with most country western bands, it included a slide guitar. While watching, I thought hey, it's played sitting down . . . maybe, just maybe. And so the dream lives on.

Hope you get some improvement in eye hand coordination, but more importantly that you get pleasure from it. That's what really counts!

Joan

[Parsi]

I've always had hand-eye coordination problems. Thus I was lousy with ball games (any sort -- baseball, tennis, etc) though I seriously enjoyed the idea of playing. Usually I don't as yet have much problem with knocking things around because of it. Through the years I've played accordion, piano, and various clarinets.

[agate]

Gary, I'm betting your wife will think twice before heading out for a weekend away from home again. Obviously she needs to stick around to keep an eye on you.

Playing the organ might help with eye-hand coordination. I think you can learn it, especially if you already know how to read music, or even if you don't. Many people have learned to play instruments and never read a note of music.

I had to give up on the piano shortly after MS came along but years later I did learn to play the recorder. Nuthatch, one of the songs I played was a version of "Wish You Were Here." I put a recorder part into it (mainly just the melody line) and played along with my Pink Floyd record of that song.

I hope you won't give up on the guitar. I've seen lots of people play guitars while sitting. My son is left-handed and used to play guitar regularly.

Parsi, that's so impressive that you play accordion, piano and clarinet. Do you still play all of these or are you concentrating on one?

[Parsi]

Parsi, that's so impressive that you play accordion, piano and clarinet. Do you still play all of these or are you concentrating on one?

I played, but never very well. I was always losing my place in group playing, as well as making mistakes.

I started accordion when I think I was in 2nd grade. The adult version we got a few years later. I still have it in Wisconsin. Beautiful instrument: gold and white. The bellows are taped up and I'd like to replace them, but I'm not sure it's possible. The sound travels, so many places I've stayed I haven't had the courage to pull it out. (My cousin used to tease me about my playing). And my son's dogs just don't like it. For awhile I owned one in Tehran and on occasion played it when I was alone. It was a smaller version (for females) that I wasn't comfortable with: the fingers felt crowded.
I have a place to play it now in Wisconsin. I hope to take the opportunity.

Piano I played around a bit whenever I had a chance. Didn't actually take lessons until college (minored in music). We don't have a piano now, but we bought an electric keyboard when our son was small. He wanted to learn guitar but I wanted him to learn scales and such on a keyboard first. I pulled it out again when we again had our own place a couple of years ago. But really haven't used it much.

The clarinets belonged to my high school and early college years. I never owned my own, but enjoyed them: B-flat, E-flat, alto, bass.

[stillstANNding]

All impressive! I'd like to hear the BT Band and Orchestra:)

Nuthatch, I volunteered at an MDA camp in my younger days and a 20 something camper played guitar with the guitar across the arms of his wheelchair (guitar was laid flat).

[Gary]

I have to admit I cheat with the reading music I write the number above the note to the corresponding finger. I am now working on using both hands. And to be honest while I have a journey man electrician license, a journey man plumbing license and a journey man refrigeration license . THIS has got to be one of the most difficult things I have ever attempted.

[stillstANNding]

Still waiting to hear about your wife's reaction to the organ.

[Herodotus]

I think it's great you're tickling the ivories! Keyboard is unique because you're using both sides of the brain equally - w/guitar, cello, violin & the like, you're using one hand to strum/bow/pick,while the other hand works the fret/neck of the instrument. In keyboard both hands get a good work out (so that means both halves of the brain). And it's not necessary to be good to get a benefit, or to even play w/both hands at once. The ear is trained, a sense of rythm and timing/counting and pitch as well - all in all, a good brain activity, and far more complex than thought at first blush. I read it takes @ 10,000 hrs of practice to become expert @ something (like
Tiger Woods and golf). Here r some folks on Youtube that I think have done the training - they're amazing, with 5 million hits! Enjoy.......Herodotus

ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xui7x_KF7bY&feature=related

[renee]

How cool is that.
That is half the weight of my first car.
Is this an oldie or what?

We had a one hundred year old church organ in our kitchen (for 2 decades!)
which needed to be reassembled. The elaborate hardwood organ
ended up in the custody of an eccentric guy who would actually do the job.

My great aunt and uncle lived in a house filled with pianos and organs.
There was a old pump organ in their basement that was an out of body experience.
Geez, it was like being inside a whale.

Have fun.

[SalpalSally]

Still waiting to hear about your wife's reaction to the organ.

Yes, Gary, waitingggggggggggggggg, teehee!!!

[renee]

I know people who play music for a living and can't read it at all and others
who write music w/their own system. If assigning numbers to notes works for you,
excellent and all hail your innovation.

I took the postal service exam once with 1000 other people.
Applicants had to memorize a page of addresses with long numbers within a couple of
minutes.
I had crazy neuropathic eye movement and bad memory under stress
so I assigned tones to numbers and a learned a pile of short tunes.

I remember music.
It worked- they offered me a job.

As soon as I get my relative health back I'm going to return to my on-loan ukulele.
You laugh now!

It's small so I don't tip over playing.
And it can be played more like a guitar than a Don Ho backup player.
Nice and pretty.

Aloha.

[Herodotus]

wow renee,
how did you do that?! that's as big a memory feat as the numbers, because it seems you'd have to make up a lot of tunes (according to the numbers) and remember them! that's way beyond recalling the numbers from an already written, popular tune, like Happy Birthday. (112143112154) although if it's a memory hook, that's easier than the #s, but how do you remember all the new tune snippets? that's an amazing ability!

in admiration,

h.

[Frog42]

No kidding Renee! I've taken the postal service exam and that sucker is hard! I only got about 97% but people with veterans preference usually got a score over 100 (and the jobs). :ambivalence: