The somatic pioneer, F.M. Alexander suffered from ongoing respiratory and vocal problems starting from birth in 1869, and continuing into his life as an actor in the 1880s. He sought medical advice, receiving some temporary relief, but his recurring vocal problems would immediately return during performances. Frustration, determination, and curiosity led him on a journey of self-observation to gain awareness of his movement habits and in doing so, invite possibilities to change the habit.
Alexander Technique (AT) teachers work with students to provide a more accurate sensory awareness of how our bodies move efficiently. The AT process requires diligence in ‘non-doing’ to allow for a different response to a stimulus. ‘Inhibition’, coined by Alexander, is the process of attending to the awareness of our whole self by momentarily suspending our usual habitual movements and thoughts. Working with the principles, facilitates more kinesthetic and cognitive understanding to use the optimal amount of muscular effort required for a particular activity. The principles support us to make more efficient choices in the moment, by accessing our ongoing support and freedom.
-Suzanne Liska "Choreographic Research Combining Contact Improvisation and the Alexander Technique: Somatic, Practice-Based-Research, and Ethnographic Inquiry" MFA Thesis, York University, 2017.
Scholarship
Alexander, F. Matthias. The Use of the Self. London, Chaterson, 2001 ed (1932).
___________________. Constructive Conscious Control. Mouritz, Lon, 2004 ed (1923).
Bales, Melanie, and Rebecca Nettl-Fiol. The Body Eclectic: Evolving Practices in Dance Training. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2008.
Conable, Barbara, and William Conable. How to Learn the Alexander Technique: A Manual for Students. 1995.
Gelb, Michael. Body Learning: An Introduction to AT. Macmillan, 1995.
Jones, Frank Pierce. Body Awareness in Action: A Study of Alexander Technique. Schocken Books, 1979.
Madden, Cathy. Integrative AT Practice for Performing Artists: Onstage Synergy. Intellect Ltd, 2014.
Meade Andrews, published "An Étude a Day" in Direction, A Journal on the Alexander Technique, 3.6, 2009.
Nettl-Fiol, Rebecca, and Luc Vanier. Dance and the Alexander Technique: Exploring the Missing Link. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2011.
Websites
Susan Sinclair sinclairstudio.com
Sakiko Ishitsubo www.sakiko-alexander.com/home-1
Alexander Technique International ati-net.com/ati-artl.php
Alexander Technique (AT) teachers work with students to provide a more accurate sensory awareness of how our bodies move efficiently. The AT process requires diligence in ‘non-doing’ to allow for a different response to a stimulus. ‘Inhibition’, coined by Alexander, is the process of attending to the awareness of our whole self by momentarily suspending our usual habitual movements and thoughts. Working with the principles, facilitates more kinesthetic and cognitive understanding to use the optimal amount of muscular effort required for a particular activity. The principles support us to make more efficient choices in the moment, by accessing our ongoing support and freedom.
-Suzanne Liska "Choreographic Research Combining Contact Improvisation and the Alexander Technique: Somatic, Practice-Based-Research, and Ethnographic Inquiry" MFA Thesis, York University, 2017.
Scholarship
Alexander, F. Matthias. The Use of the Self. London, Chaterson, 2001 ed (1932).
___________________. Constructive Conscious Control. Mouritz, Lon, 2004 ed (1923).
Bales, Melanie, and Rebecca Nettl-Fiol. The Body Eclectic: Evolving Practices in Dance Training. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2008.
Conable, Barbara, and William Conable. How to Learn the Alexander Technique: A Manual for Students. 1995.
Gelb, Michael. Body Learning: An Introduction to AT. Macmillan, 1995.
Jones, Frank Pierce. Body Awareness in Action: A Study of Alexander Technique. Schocken Books, 1979.
Madden, Cathy. Integrative AT Practice for Performing Artists: Onstage Synergy. Intellect Ltd, 2014.
Meade Andrews, published "An Étude a Day" in Direction, A Journal on the Alexander Technique, 3.6, 2009.
Nettl-Fiol, Rebecca, and Luc Vanier. Dance and the Alexander Technique: Exploring the Missing Link. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2011.
Websites
Susan Sinclair sinclairstudio.com
Sakiko Ishitsubo www.sakiko-alexander.com/home-1
Alexander Technique International ati-net.com/ati-artl.php
