There’s a rule of thumb when it comes to learning an instrument: according to common belief, only those who have practised for at least 10,000 hours by their 20th birthday can realistically hope to become a master of their craft. That works out at around 417 days of non-stop practice, 24 hours a day. No question about it: since very few musical instruments are played while walking, this immense amount of time means one thing above all else, among many others: a lot of time spent sitting. Good thing there are special chairs for musicians. A brief overview of a musician’s working conditions and the requirements a good chair for music makers should meet.
-
Music that fits
-
Practice makes perfect
-
A saddle seat for the guitarist, a high chair for the double bassist
-
Health problems caused by office work, not by playing the drums
Music that fits
10,000 hours is an immense amount of time. Admittedly, a day has 24 hours, so in theory you could master an instrument in just under a year without sleep or breaks. But since most people have a fairly urgent need for sleep, fresh air and food, that quickly turns into 666 days with 9 hours set aside for meals and rest. Anyone who has ever tried learning an instrument knows how demanding it can be to focus non-stop on a tricky subject. So even the eight hours a day that an average employee spends doing their job, breaks included, is already quite an ambitious assumption: without weekends, that comes to 1,250 days, or a good three and a half years. With weekends included, it’s already just over four years of full-time work without any holidays.
If these examples already make your head spin, bear in mind that the likes of Mozart, Bach and Beethoven, and certainly the Beatles too, were probably well into five figures when it came to practice hours by the peak of their creative careers. Anyone who reads musicians’ biographies will often come across a rather uneventful chapter, especially in the case of virtuosos, somewhere in the first third of the book. Often driven by an inner urge towards music, the protagonists — whether rock guitarist, punk drummer or world-class pianist — hole themselves up in basements, childhood bedrooms or rehearsal rooms and practise every free minute they have. Shortly after this episode, the story usually starts to pick up pace — namely at the point when the narrator of the life story realises that a great deal has changed in terms of their ability and dares to step into the public eye.
But it is not just the sheer amount of time that determines success. Talent also plays a part, as does the good fortune of being able to pursue your goal undisturbed or even with support from a teacher or fellow musician. After all, simply “putting in” practice hours alone has never made anyone a master. Incidentally, the reason the figure of 10,000 became so widely known is thanks to the American writer Malcolm Gladwell. In his book “Outliers”, he referred to a study by two American psychologists who found in the early nineties that you need to spend at least 10,000 hours on something to become a specialist in it – regardless of talent or special physical attributes. The simplified conclusion that there is, so to speak, a world-class dancer, singer, acrobat, instrumentalist or elite athlete in everyone, and that practically anything can be learned, has since been disproved on numerous occasions.
One American psychology professor found, for example, that some musicians had become masters of their craft after fewer than 5,000 hours of practice, while others had put in well over 10,000 hours and still only reached mediocrity. The sobering news for all those who over-practise: the probability that someone who practises for 10,000 hours will reach truly masterful levels is just over 12 percent.
Practice makes perfect
Be that as it may. Anyone who wants to become good at their craft has to practise a lot – and the figures available do at least give a good idea of roughly how much that might be. In terms of hours spent sitting, it means: far too many. Most people will also have to do other things while sitting besides practising their instrument: going to school, for example, or working. That makes it all the more important that the chair a musician practises on can be ideally adapted to the needs of the respective instrumentalist.
As an aspiring professional bassoonist, Leonhard has between four and five hours of practice on his schedule every day – on average. If performances, recordings or orchestra tours are added, the workload increases. Then he may spend ten to twelve hours in the studio or rehearsal room. The student at the Munich University of Music and Performing Arts spends a large part of his time sitting down. “At home, I use a normal desk chair for practising; at concerts, we do in fact use more specialised chairs,” says the 24-year-old. “Three things are important: that they can be adjusted in height, that they have an adjustable backrest, and that the tilt of the seat can be changed.”
Height, seat tilt and backrest are features found on most office chairs as well adjust – yet specialist retailers still offer dedicated chairs for instrumentalists. Although “chair” hardly does them justice: these are standing or seating aids with several footrests and a saddle-shaped seat. They do not have a traditional backrest; instead, they feature more of a height-adjustable support for the lower back. Musicians with postural problems in particular swear by chairs like these.
A saddle for the guitarist, a high stool for the double bassist
In addition to specialist chairs for double bass players, which come with special footrests and a comparatively extreme height adjustment range, there are also specialist chairs for conductors, guitarists and, of course, drummers. Speaking of drummers: there is hardly any instrument that is so immediately associated with prolonged sitting as the drum kit. Whether in jazz, rock, pop or, naturally, in an orchestra: percussionists put in an enormous physical effort that, depending on the genre, borders on sport. Unlike chess, which also falls under the heading of a “sitting sport”, a certain degree of physicality is inherent in playing the drums. One look at photos of hard rock or heavy metal bands is enough to make it clear that the men and women behind the drum skins have trained themselves into impressive physical shape – at the latest after a few years of practising their craft. Jazz drummers may be more concerned with subtle nuances and finely chiselled groove – but fine motor skills also place demands on the body. Above all because, with the exception of a few exotic acts from the rockabilly scene, the drums are played sitting down.
As a member of a globally touring percussion show troupe, Jürgen is constantly on the move on stage. But as a studio owner, producer, composer, teacher and member of several bands, he often sits for long periods. It is hardly surprising that he himself has already experienced problems caused by prolonged sitting and forced postures. So his opinion carries weight when he talks about the right approach to playing the drums. In his view, a suitable stool, a drum kit that grows with the player and the right way of sitting at the instrument form the three key elements of back-friendly drumming. Naturally, he is speaking as a drum instructor when he insists that a good teacher adjusts the student’s instrument properly and makes sure they learn good seated posture. But of course, the 46-year-old says, the same applies to all kinds of instruments.
Health problems caused by office work, not by playing the drums
“As a general rule, both the instrument and the chair in front of it must be able to grow with the player. Pupils between 10 and 14 in particular grow a great deal – and it goes without saying that a drum kit played by a 10-year-old has to look different from one played by an adult.” When it comes to the stool, a lot also comes down to personal preference. “I’m not a fan of overly comfortable drum stools; there are models with backrests,” says the professional. “But the posture of the drummer in a typical pop or rock band tends to be one that supports alertness and awareness – and that certainly does not mean a bent spine in the lower pelvic area.”
After all, the flow of energy runs through the spinal cord and should not be interrupted by a bend. “You know it from road traffic,” he says. “Even a so-called recumbent rider automatically sits upright in a critical situation. It’s similar with drumming: you’re practically transmitting all the time and need 100 percent attention.” Accordingly, he recommends chairs that allow an upright posture. “They should be infinitely height-adjustable and swivel – and, depending on personal preference, have an outwardly rounded seat in the shape of a wagon wheel or a saddle.”
One thing is important to the 46-year-old: “The health problems I have don’t come from playing the drums, but from studio or office work.” As a result, he got himself an ergonomic office chair. Here you will find a wide selection of suitable chairs such as work chairs and stools!