About a year ago I cut my left index finger with a hatchet. Now I have scar tissue build up around the tendon of my finger which make is near impossible to play in first position with any smoothness. Anyone here have any ideas how to fix th without surgery or therapy visits?
My son lost his left index finger in a work-related accident many years ago. I taught him partial chords that he could make. He could do some fingerpicking using thumb, middle and index. Barre chords were almost beyond his ability, so again, partial chords.
You might experiment with different ways to make the chords that are causing you problems.
I had a somewhat similar injury many years ago. The tendon had been partially cut through, and had to be sewn back together.
It took a long time to start playing again. At first, I could barely move the finger, and it wouldn't bend more than 10 degrees. The doc told me I would make slow, gradual progress, but after a year, I wouldn't see any more improvement. He was wrong. I made more improvement in the second year than in the first, went back to music school, and started a performing career that lasted over 30 years.
The key was exercise, patience, and persistence. The more I used the finger, the better it got, and I eventually got full range of motion back.
I see you are within driving distance. If you want to, you can pm me, and I can give you some exercises that can help.
Think of this as a challenge to innovate. Django did fine with 2 fingers.
