Development of Photogrammetry Techniques to Assess Musicians’ Posture (2024)

Musicians have a high rate of performance-related injuries, and posture is thought to be one critical contributing factor. Although research in musician populations is limited, posture has been extensively studied in other areas such as sports. Photogrammetry techniques have been used to analyze athletes’ movements to identify kinematic parameters, quantify physical load, and identify potential risk factors associated with injury. For this project, photogrammetry techniques used for movement analysis in sport were used to analyze musicians’ head posture to determine feasibility. Initial results indicate that photogrammetry is a relatively quick and efficient way to obtain meaningful information regarding musicians’ posture and position. Work is currently underway to assess other postural angles of interest and to develop musician-specific interventions (e.g. strength training; stretches; proprioceptive training) to facilitate improved posture and ergonomics in practice and performance.