3 ms·

There is a rumor that Schumman ruined his hand by getting surgery to free up his tendons but there doesn't seem to be any proof of that.

• CliffStoll 6y ago
  From the NY Times of 1885, October 24: There is no saying to what extent martyrdom in the cause of art will go. It has just been discovered that nature, when designing the human hand, forgot to make allowances for the invention of the pianoforte, and that, consequently, all who are anxious to excel on that instrument must undergo an operation known as digital tenor-my, or the severance of the tendons which prevent the fingers from being stretched very far apart from one another. Doctors have, naturally enough, expressed their approval of this proceeding, considerately adding that there is certainly some chance of the wound thus inflicted not healing by first intention, and therefore patients should be warned of the risk they undergo previous to the operation. This is, perhaps, not quite so bad as putting out a horse's eyes in order that he may pump up water properly, but it is a step in the same direction. and it is scarely to be expected that in these days of infant prodigies such a royal road to success will be confined to those who are old enough to fully understand the steps they are taking.