RELEARNING MOVEMENT : an investigation on strategies supporting the prevention and rehabilitation of performance-related muskuloskeletal disorders among high-level accordion players

Abstract

The purpose of this research paper is to investigate strategies that support the prevention and rehabilitation of playing-related injury among high-level button accordion players. Strategies of that kind were found in teaching and performance practices of the accordion, but also in specifically tailored exercise programs for musicians that are based on the theory of spiral stabilization (SPS). Spiral stabilization is a therapy method that uses various equipment, especially a long rubber band, to exercise postural stability, balance, mobility, and coordination by training the lengthening muscle chains of the body. In this study, the data was generated through a series of qualitative interviews. The participants’ experiences and knowledge of the problem at hand gave crucial information to assess the importance of several factors that prevent and rehabilitate PRMDs and are connected to the acquisition of body awareness and healthy movement. The results indicate that understanding concepts of physics and anatomy, smart training and hard work, intelligible and factual instruction are key to the prevention and rehabilitation of PRMDs. The study concludes that there are a variety of sustainable strategies in teaching and instruction that help the prevention of PRMDs, but that general occupational injury, including PRMDs, could be caused by a larger societal issue linked to increasing physical inactivity of people.