Introducing VertiJam: A Solution for Bass Players to Combat Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI)

[TalkBass]

PFP Kinetics, a startup focused on musical instrument ergonomics, is announcing a Beta program for VertiJam, a solution designed to address Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI) among bass players.

Repetitive Strain Injuries, commonly experienced by musicians who engage in prolonged and repetitive motions, can impact a bass player's well-being and performance. VertiJam is designed using accepted principles of ergonomics to minimize twisting, flexing, over-extension, and weight-loading of joints of the hands, wrists, elbows, and shoulders.

Key Features of VertiJam:

• Vertijam attaches to your bass and places it in a vertical position resting on an endpin; it can be played sitting down, like a cello, or standing, like an upright bass. Having the instrument in a vertical orientation means the bassist no longer has that long reach to the low notes. The fretting hand is held in a more neutral position without as much twisting and strain. The weight of the instrument is supported by the end pin so it’s not bearing down on the shoulder. The plucking hand is more relaxed.
  
  
• The key to VertiJam’s playability is the way in which the instrument is supported against the player:
  
  
• – For sit-down playing, a curved support arm wraps around the lower leg to hold the bass in position, and keeps the instrument from rotating.
  
  
• – For standup play, a support block rests against the upper leg and can accommodate different playing positions.
  
  
• Vertijam is hand-crafted from beautiful and durable hardwood such as Maple or Walnut, and can be built from other hardwood species to match a player’s instrument.
  
  
• Easy Installation: No modification is needed on most basses to install VertiJam, it attaches using the existing strap button hole near the bridge.
  

PFP Kinetics was founded to extend the joy of making music to the widest possible audience. Whether someone has a disability or injury that keeps them from playing; if they need a way to practice long hours with less fatigue; or just want to try a lower impact approach; we hope that VertiJam can help reach their goals.

PFP Kinetics Founder and Product Designer: "When I was in college, a friend of mine had to drop his major in bass performance because of RSI injuries. I remember the heartbreak he endured, not being able to pursue his dream. Fast-forward many years and I was facing the same situation: chronic pain in my wrists, hands, and elbows, and inability to tolerate the weight of a bass hanging from my shoulder for more than a few minutes, threatened to put an end to my bass playing days. I developed VertiJam to let me continue playing the instrument I love. I hope that it can do the same for other players."

PFP Kinetics is building a limited number of VertiJam for a Beta program, to learn whether it can help other players and to gather feedback. Email [email protected] to learn more.

Watch our product demo

About PFP Kinetics:

PFP Kinetics is a San Leandro-based company dedicated to providing ergonomic solutions for musicians. With a focus on quality, playability, and performance, PFP Kinetics strives to make the musical journey accessible to all.

 

[MarkA]

Interesting.

I don't know if it would be for me (both because of the playing position, which is pretty different from what I'm accustomed to, and because of ego -- which is related to pride, which goeth before a fall...), but I applaud the builder for a thoughtful and innovative approach to tackling a real problem for a lot of players (and simply offering an alternative that some might find preferable, even if the standard playing position doesn't present any particular issues).

I am a little bit intrigued -- I've dealt with (and worked hard to overcome) RSI before -- and I suppose that I already angle up more (nothing radical, but at a bit more vertical of an angle than your typical Fender seems to seek) than a lot of players (albeit on a standard strap) when I play.

Best of luck to the builder -- if there are people whom this will help (and I don't doubt that they're out there), I hope it finds them!

 

[Jazz Ad]

It's reminiscent of the way Barker basses were built.

 

[Snaxster]

Interesting.

I don't know if it would be for me (both because of the playing position, which is pretty different from what I'm accustomed to, and because of ego -- which is related to pride, which goeth before a fall...), but I applaud the builder for a thoughtful and innovative approach to tackling a real problem for a lot of players (and simply offering an alternative that some might find preferable, even if the standard playing position doesn't present any particular issues).

I am a little bit intrigued -- I've dealt with (and worked hard to overcome) RSI before -- and I suppose that I already angle up more (nothing radical, but at a bit more vertical of an angle than your typical Fender seems to seek) than a lot of players (albeit on a standard strap) when I play.

Best of luck to the builder -- if there are people whom this will help (and I don't doubt that they're out there), I hope it finds them!

Hi Mark. Long time. Happy New Year!

Mostly I echo your comments. Hopefully that excludes your point about pride. But I would find out, wouldn't I?

As a player who also suffered from RSI, in my right wrist, I can relate. Many years ago I was the bassist and MD for a pop band in that episode. I remember actually crying during a rehearsal, due to despair and intense pain. Not cool.

All that said, I will add that the playing position this device imposes effectively precludes some playing techniques. Palm muting, the best of double thumbing, and any inherently multi-finger style up to and including such as the Matt Garrison 4 finger technique will not be possible, I believe.

But for a player who can't afford to care, this device could be just the thing.

 

[vokain]

https://www.talkbass.com/threads/mbrace-guitar-support-system-review.1411388/

 

[yodedude2]

i'm more than a little intrigued, i sent them an email. i have plenty of ego issues, but not onstage

 

[yodedude2]

https://www.talkbass.com/threads/mbrace-guitar-support-system-review.1411388/

i tried the m-brace twice, but i could never make peace with it. it was too insubstantial to work for me.

 

[vokain]

i tried the m-brace twice, but i could never make peace with it. it was too insubstantial to work for me.

I just know of the MBrace because of the Fearless Flyers

 

[VertiJam]

Interesting.

I don't know if it would be for me (both because of the playing position, which is pretty different from what I'm accustomed to, and because of ego -- which is related to pride, which goeth before a fall...), but I applaud the builder for a thoughtful and innovative approach to tackling a real problem for a lot of players (and simply offering an alternative that some might find preferable, even if the standard playing position doesn't present any particular issues).

I am a little bit intrigued -- I've dealt with (and worked hard to overcome) RSI before -- and I suppose that I already angle up more (nothing radical, but at a bit more vertical of an angle than your typical Fender seems to seek) than a lot of players (albeit on a standard strap) when I play.

Best of luck to the builder -- if there are people whom this will help (and I don't doubt that they're out there), I hope it finds them!

Thank you! I look forward to having others try VertiJam and seeing if it benefits them as it did me.
Bill Wyman notably played with his bass fairly vertical, though on a strap. For a few years I relocated strap buttons on several basses to get more vertical positioning - that helped with hand and wrist strain, until finally my left shoulder wouldn't allow me to wear the bass for long periods of time...

 

[VertiJam]

It's reminiscent of the way Barker basses were built.

Barker made some beautiful instruments, though I've never had a chance to play one

 

[VertiJam]

Hi Mark. Long time. Happy New Year!

Mostly I echo your comments. Hopefully that excludes your point about pride. But I would find out, wouldn't I?

As a player who also suffered from RSI, in my right wrist, I can relate. Many years ago I was the bassist and MD for a pop band in that episode. I remember actually crying during a rehearsal, due to despair and intense pain. Not cool.

All that said, I will add that the playing position this device imposes effectively precludes some playing techniques. Palm muting, the best of double thumbing, and any inherently multi-finger style up to and including such as the Matt Garrison 4 finger technique will not be possible, I believe.

But for a player who can't afford to care, this device could be just the thing.

Absolutely - as someone who used to do a lot of palm muting, that's something I miss. I'm not much of a slapper so can't speak to that, but I do use a thumb + forefinger approach that works well vertically. And as you'd expect, it's easy to get a very meaty index finger pluck. Not sure about two finger plucking, I gave that up a while ago in favor of index-only (unrelated to vertical play, sort of Jamerson inspired I guess).

 

[tedw]

I like this idea better than Barker Bass because you can keep playing your favorite instruments.

 

[yodedude2]

It's reminiscent of the way Barker basses were built.

here's a pic of me with 'skully', one of my two barker basses.

 

[Dincrest]

A very cool concept. I like the idea that the bass isn't locked into one position, that it can still kinda move with you.

I'm curious what a player like Derek Boyer (Suffocation) would make of this, since he adopted his own version of a freestanding vertical stance due to a bad injury. Watch what he does in the first minute or so of the video and you'll see what I mean:


I wonder if he'd think, "Wow, I wish I had one of those all those years ago when I had that injury and couldn't hold my bass at all."

 

[KidAmnesia]

Do upright and cello players never get repetitive strain injuries?

 

[monsterthompson]

Disabled bassist here. I'm always curious what's out there. I tried another mic stand based holder and it didn't work for me. I need to sit to play, so this has my attention.

 

[Lance Bunyon]

Do upright and cello players never get repetitive strain injuries?

There's whole playing techniques and regimens for upright designed to avoid injury (Simandl).
I can't speak to cello but I'm guessing it's got similar right hand technique designed to avoid injury.

 

[VertiJam]

A very cool concept. I like the idea that the bass isn't locked into one position, that it can still kinda move with you.

I'm curious what a player like Derek Boyer (Suffocation) would make of this, since he adopted his own version of a freestanding vertical stance due to a bad injury. Watch what he does in the first minute or so of the video and you'll see what I mean:


I wonder if he'd think, "Wow, I wish I had one of those all those years ago when I had that injury and couldn't hold my bass at all."

that's a cool video, thanks for sharing!

 

[MarkA]

Hi Mark. Long time. Happy New Year!

Mostly I echo your comments. Hopefully that excludes your point about pride. But I would find out, wouldn't I?

As a player who also suffered from RSI, in my right wrist, I can relate. Many years ago I was the bassist and MD for a pop band in that episode. I remember actually crying during a rehearsal, due to despair and intense pain. Not cool.

All that said, I will add that the playing position this device imposes effectively precludes some playing techniques. Palm muting, the best of double thumbing, and any inherently multi-finger style up to and including such as the Matt Garrison 4 finger technique will not be possible, I believe.

But for a player who can't afford to care, this device could be just the thing.

Hello, Snaxster,

Thanks for the kind wishes -- a happy and prosperous New Year to you as well! I am sorry to hear of the troubles you had, but glad that you came out the other end of them and are still playing. I won't get into mine too much in this post except to say that there was over a year that I couldn't play and that the road back was neither easy nor free of bumps. My hands are fast and strong, now, and I can generally play for a long time, but I still deal with the occasional tweak or flare-up (for lack of a better term).

"Pride" is an interesting word (I wanted to say "foible") and sometimes you stumble upon (or, in my case, trip over) it in surprising places.

You did a better job of articulating the kind of technical considerations/adaptations/tradeoffs that I had fuzzily in mind when I referred to "playing position." I play cello and doublebass (though I don't play DB as often as or at the level that I used to) along with electric bass and there is some cross-pollination between how I approach the bowed strings and the EB and the different playing positions (along with other factors) certainly make some techniques harder/less practical and others easier.

I usually play standing, even to practice, but I did goof around for a minute, sitting on the couch and holding my Fender vertically -- I think that, overall, the left hand (particularly with extended/stretched fingerings) felt easier for me and certain right-hand techniques felt clumsier (which is not to say that I couldn't get used to them). I did try palm-muting and it felt pretty do-able, but that might have been because, on the couch, the bridge was up near my belly button, instead of a half-foot or foot lower (as it appears to be in the demo vid). Of course, this puts the nut and the first few frets up that much higher (there are parallel considerations with finding one's ideal strap height and playing position). I have not, to date, developed a good double-thumb or Matt Garrison or Gary Willis-style right hand technique (though I do employ my thumb and ring finger in other ways and slap a fair amount -- not as much as in high-school, but more than a few years ago ;-)).

I'll have to goof around with vertical/vertical-ish playing more.

...Bill Wyman notably played with his bass fairly vertical...

He was the first person I thought of when I saw the still for your video! The video made me think of classical guitarist Paul Galbraith, who plays an 8-string classical guitar, with an endpin, rather like a cello. Apparently, he went through a transition period, pre-endpin, with how he held his guitar.

For a few years I relocated strap buttons on several basses to get more vertical positioning - that helped with hand and wrist strain, until finally my left shoulder wouldn't allow me to wear the bass for long periods of time...

I've not done much strap-button relocating (though I did move the bottom strap button on one bass in an attempt to shift how it hung -- it was somewhat but not entirely successful), but I've noticed that some basses that place the top button close to the neck and up at or past the 12th fret hang better at steeper angles (I had a five-string fretless Clement bass that placed the button, if I remember, in the neighborhood of 11th fret -- of the basses I've owned, it probably required the least work to keep "up" and was one of just a few that would stay comfortably put above 45 degrees.)

Do upright and cello players never get repetitive strain injuries?

They do.

There's whole playing techniques and regimens for upright designed to avoid injury (Simandl).
I can't speak to cello but I'm guessing it's got similar right hand technique designed to avoid injury.

Doublebass and cello technique has a long development and a lot of history -- there are some different schools of technique (Simandl vs. Rabbath, for instance), too -- some similarities and differences in the utilization of both right and left hands... lots of left hand extensions expected of cellists. Lots of thought (I've got books...) given to ergonomics (certainly these days) and technically sound, body-friendly technique on/approaches to both instruments, but also some pretty high musical and physical demands made on the players, at least in certain contexts.

 

[VertiJam]

Do upright and cello players never get repetitive strain injuries?

Every instrument seems to have its unique challenges that cause strain for the player. Upright bass for example, the high string tension and high action (especially when setup for bowing) requires extreme strength in the fretting hand (is it still the fretting hand if there are no frets?). Playing with a bow causes strain in the wrist of the bowing hand due to twisting and the pressure that has to be applied. Lot of upright players use the German bow, which I think was developed to reduce strain.
Lot of people are able to play into their 70's and 80's, seemingly without issue. Others run into problems early on and have to give up playing or switch instruments. Good technique definitely helps, my bass teachers always emphasized how to minimize strain; just like a sports coach will train someone for injury prevention.
I hope I didn't give the impression that VertiJam is a surefire way to eliminate pain. Good ergonomics - minimizing over-extension, over-flexion, and twisting in joints - can be helpful but so much depends on the individual and technique.