Movement alteration in flute players: Can it help us understand focal dystonia?

This project examines the extent to which musicians at varying stages of expertise are able to adapt to changes in motor movement (specifically in the kinesthetic sense) while playing an instrument. Eight well-practiced and five beginning flute players were tested on playing a major scale on both a modified flute and a traditional flute. The modified flute had altered key positions so that the participants’ right and left hands were on the same side of the instrument. The two modified conditions involved either playing the modified flute with the same fingers as one would play on a traditional flute (MODI) or playing the same keys one would use (MOD2). The traditional flute was played with standard hand positions and fingerings as a control (CTL). Results show no differences between the two groups, but do reveal differences between the two modified conditions with respect to the control condition across the ten scales, suggesting that new mappings can be learned in the modified conditions. These new mappings may be the first step in designing a therapy for flute players with focal dystonia that works similarly to other already established remapping therapies that have been developed for other instrumentalists.