Fingerboard

“ Your fingerboard must be at such an angle when the neck is fixed, that the end of it near bridge must measure exactly thirteen-sixteenths of an inch from belly to top of ebony; by this means your bridge, as described, will be just a nice height for clean fingering of the strings. ”

“ Man Chopping Wood,
place the inside of the little finger of the right hand on the inside of the little finger of the left hand, and the inside of the third finger of the right hand over the inside of the third finger of the left hand; then bring the second and [278] third fingers of the right hand up and over the inside of the palm of the left hand, as in Fig. 470. Rest the tip of the second finger of the right hand on the tip of the thumb of the left hand. The second finger is the stick of wood. Strike the wood with the first finger of the left hand (C, Fig. 471) ”

“ The fingers are to be so bent that the tips of them, together with that of the thumb, when extended outwards, may form one right line; and so that the keys may always be struck with the soft and fleshy tips of the fingers, and that neither the nails nor the flat surface of the fingers shall touch the keys. In striking the black keys, the fingers must be stretched out a little more ”

“ This fondness for loading the fingers with an abundance of rings is well displayed on the crossed hands of a figure of a woman (Fig. 82) upon a mummy case in the British Museum. Here the thumbs as well as the fingers are encircled by them. The left hand is most loaded; upon the thumb is a signet with hieroglyphics on its surface; three rings on the forefinger; two on the second, one formed like a snail-shell; the same number [79] on the next, and one on the little finger. The right hand carries only a thumb-ring, and two upon the third finger. ”

“ As you see, it is a little below the knuckle joint. The first finger bends naturally, and rests on top of the holder about one inch from the point of the pen; the thumb rests on the holder nearly opposite the first joint of the first finger, and the third and fourth fingers are bent, touching the paper and forming a movable rest. Whether these fingers bend exactly as the illustrations show will depend upon their shape and length. It does not matter whether they rest on the nails or sides, if they are comfortable and can be used easily as the movable rest.
18
No. ”

“ Pliny’s remarks on rings are as follow:—‘It was the custom at first to wear rings on a single finger only—the one, namely, that is next to the little finger, and thus we see the case in the statues of Numa and Servius Tullius. In later times it became the practice to put rings on the finger next to the thumb, even in the case of the statues of the gods; and, more recently again, it has become the fashion to wear them upon the little finger as well. Among the peoples of Gallia and Britannia, the middle finger, it is said, is used for this purpose. ”

“ The thumb is in a different plane from the fingers; when the hand is laid flat on any surface—as this window-pane, for instance—the palmar surfaces of the fingers touch it, whereas it is the side of the thumb which comes in contact and not the palmar surface. But in this”—he tapped the framed glass with his finger—“the prints show the palmar surfaces of all the five digits in contact at once, which is an impossibility. Just try to put your own thumb in that position and you will see that it is so.” ”

“ Near the bones of the finger was discovered a sapphire ring set in gold, in the centre of which was engraved a hand with the two forefingers extended in the attitude of benediction.
This extension of the two forefingers, in company with the thumb, must have been often observed in Catholic [84] pictures. We see it in the painting of the Virgin and Child in the Düsseldorf collection now in New-York.
The thumb and the first two fingers have always been reserved as symbols of the three persons of the Trinity. [143] When a bishop gives his blessing, he blesses with the thumb and first two fingers. ”

“ The most important of the fingers is the thumb; it must never be allowed to hang down below the key-board; but, on the contrary, it should always be held over the keys in such a way that its tip may be elevated a little higher than the upper surface of the black keys ”

“ A character in the Lord Mayor’s show in 1664 is described as ‘habited like a grave citizen—gold girdle and gloves hung thereon, rings on his fingers, and a seal-ring on his thumb.’
In Labartes ‘Hand-book of the Fine Arts in the Middle [Pg 89] Ages’ is a representation of a fine thumb-ring, of Hindoo workmanship, cut out of a single piece of jade, decorated with gold filagree, and incrusted with rubies. ”

“ Holding the Gage.—The hand serves to keep the cheekpiece against the board, while the thumb pushes the gage forward. The hand must not, under any circumstances, be used to move the gage along. In fact, it is not necessary for the fingers to be clasped around the gage stem, if the forefinger presses tightly against the cheekpiece, since the thumb performs all the operation of moving it along. Naturally, the hand grasps the tool in [Pg 38] order to hold it down against the material, and to bring it back for a new cut. ”

“ You know already that the passing of the thumb under the other fingers, and of the three-middle fingers over the thumb, is absolutely necessary, and that it is the only means by which we are enabled to strike a long series of keys quickly one after the other. ”

“ Taking two strands of fibre between the forefinger and thumb of the left hand, they lay them separated a little along the thigh; a roll downward gives them a twist, and then being adroitly brought together, a roll upwards completes the making of the cord. Fifty fathoms in a day is considered a good day’s spinning. ”

“ Place the thumb of each hand on one side, and the four fingers very firmly fixed on the other side of the staff; raise one finger as high as possible, and let it fall down vigorously, like a hammer, 20 times in succession, while the three remaining fingers, stretched out from one another, like claws, remain immoveable. In the same way exercise the other fingers; firmly, slowly, vigorously, and immediately after the cylinder exercises just described. ”

“ Continued practice with the thumb will form two grooves on the under side of the thumb, exactly the width of the strings apart; when this comes about, no inconvenience will be experienced either in rapidly sliding along the strings, or in putting on sufficient pressure. A common experience with students first learning thumb positions, is the feeling that the fingers are too long. To remedy this and also to gain sufficient weight on the fingers, some young players will allow the knuckles to protrude and the finger joints to bend inwards. ”

“ Finger-pegs, little plugs of wood or ivory to give more certain grip for the fingers and to prevent their slipping. The devices for the fingers are the more necessary where the hands are cold and everything is covered with grease.
6. Finger-tip cavities, excavations on the front face of the implement, into which the tips of the three last fingers descend to assist in grasping and to afford a rest on the back of these fingers for the weapon shaft.
7. Index-finger cavity or hole, provision for the insertion of the index finger, which plays a very important part in the use of the throwing-stick. ”

“ A capital small blade, set in a ring for the middle finger, or the thumb, was a much better contrivance than the common penknife, or the sliding blade; because their right hand can be employed in cutting, and grabbing the money at one and the same time, whilst the left is engaged no less usefully in bothering his gob. ”

“ You should place your fingers and thumb on five consecutive white keys, and, keeping the thumb, first, second, and fourth finger down, repeatedly strike the note that is under the third finger. If this monotonous exercise is persevered in, the third finger will gain strength. ”

“ We draw the finger more carefully, marking the wrinkles on the upper part, and the corresponding curves on the lower; then we notice the way in which the loose flesh folds in springy curves, joining thumb to forefinger in a useful hinge. ”

“ In forcing matched boards together, do not pound directly upon the tongue edge of the board, but upon a waste piece of the same material, as the tongue will be bruised so that the next board will not form a good joint. Care should be used that the hammer does not strike the edge of the board when the nail is driven home. To guard against this, a nail set should be used to sink the head beneath the surface, as in Fig. ”

“ To prevent the rubbing together of two rings worn on the same finger, and the resulting attrition, which in the lapse of years sometimes wears down a gold ring until the hoop becomes so thin that it may crack, a simple device has been patented. This is a narrow circlet which may be made of ivory or any other suitable material. ”

“ To operate the trick, grip the stick firmly in one hand, and with the forward and backward motion of the other allow the first finger to slide along the top edge, the second finger along the side, and the thumb nail will then vibrate along the notches, thus making the arm revolve in one direction. ”

“ After playing these exercises for an hour, including the Halir legato studies, pages 1 to 4, Tonleiterstudien, the wrist and forearm are supple for the daily work, while the left hand falls easily into line. In all technical work the left hand must be trained to anticipate the bow-arm. More depends upon the left hand than upon the bow-arm, hence the necessity of strong fingers and an ample technic. ”

“ The chief difficulties and impediments to be overcome in teaching the piano, the violin, and almost all other musical instruments, are muscular, and lie in the joints of the fingers and wrists; and the very best method of rendering them strong and flexible is frequently and perseveringly to move the fingers up and down on the instrument, preserving the hand in the same position. ”

“ One example of the ease of making good, but not permanent impressions, is found, and should be tried, by pressing the bulb of a finger against well-polished glass, or against the highly-polished blade of a razor. The finger must be very slightly oiled, as by passing it through the hair ”

“ Sometimes these are quite clearly seen to be moulded with the aid of human fingers, the nails only making a clear mark, but in other cases the finger furrows are prominently indented in regular patterns, which cannot, I think, be distinguished from those made by men of our own race and time. In the formal Japanese ceremony of social tea-drinking, or Cha-no-yu, pottery of this Archaic kind, with finger patterns indented in the clay, is highly esteemed. ”

“ When the wheel is in motion, this tool, moistened with water and bent to fit the curves of the piece, is held in the right hand at right angles with the piece, while the left hand supports the wrist of the right. ”

“ Occasionally these two fingers will act in concert or opposition, according to the requirements of expression and phrasing. When playing loudly it becomes necessary that a more decided purchase of the bow be maintained, especially in rapid forte passages. Then the inner fingers come into play and hold the bow firmly against the thumb. The two outer fingers then are solely concerned with regulating the pressure and preserving the elasticity of the stroke, which is lost in a firm grip only. ”

“ When the performer is standing, the instrument may be supported by the thumb, either by pressing the inside of it against the under part of the brass rail, which is fixed and runs along at the back of the keys, or by passing the thumb so far into the loop as will enable the fingers to reach the extreme keys with ease and facility. ”

“ Roll the first finger down the ball of the thumb about half an inch, carrying the thread with it, and with the second finger push the knot thus formed to the end of the thread. If a larger knot is required, wind the thread around the finger twice. ”

“ This small pinion carries a finger, M, which is arranged to catch against the finger, G, when moved up to it. Consequently as the lever, J, turns, the finger, M, revolves, and is stopped when it reaches G. The sleeve of the pinion which carries M also carries the dial finger, and if the dial is properly graduated its finger will indicate the weight. The box, I, has a hinged bottom with a projecting click finger which, as the box descends, plays idly over the staves of a ladder arc. ”