Alexander Technique

[hyrst]

Hi,
I attended an introductory session on the Alexander Technique this week.  It was interesting and left me things to think about. 

I was wondering if anybody intergrates the AT into their teaching processes with technique and if you find it is worth while?  If you do, what sorts of things do you do?  Does it make a difference to how you and your students play? 

Since control of tension is an issue I ignored when I was learning, it is something I work on these days.  It seems that the AT offers ideas for focusing how to manage tension, rather than just attempting to 'relax' (which is very ambiguous an insruction if you don't already know how to do that) - but I am wondering if it gets very involved and specific with piano playing or is just a general idea that can help with body awareness.

Thanks

[ramseytheii]

Hi,
I attended an introductory session on the Alexander Technique this week.  It was interesting and left me things to think about. 

I was wondering if anybody intergrates the AT into their teaching processes with technique and if you find it is worth while?  If you do, what sorts of things do you do?  Does it make a difference to how you and your students play? 

Since control of tension is an issue I ignored when I was learning, it is something I work on these days.  It seems that the AT offers ideas for focusing how to manage tension, rather than just attempting to 'relax' (which is very ambiguous an insruction if you don't already know how to do that) - but I am wondering if it gets very involved and specific with piano playing or is just a general idea that can help with body awareness.

Thanks

I studied AT for 2 years, and found it very, very helpful for everyday life, but never got too interested in applying it to piano playing.

If you are going to play AT to piano playing, you first have to know about piano playing.  AT teaches you how to be more efficient at movements that you already do.  It won't teach you how to make efficient leaps, play pearly scales, or fast repeated notes.  It probably would aid you, if you already have the basis for doing those things.

The Technique can really do wonders for body awareness, and after I had studied it for a long time the comment, "You seem taller somehow," started to trickle in over and over.  I probably had gained in height a little bit just by adjusting the way I was standing and moving, but also the increased awareness adjusts your psychological carriage, and you may have more confidence in the things you do.

Walter Ramsey

[hyrst]

Thank you, Walter.  That was a very helpful response.

Annah

[danny elfboy]

After learning Alexander Technique (from a certified teacher) I really wonder how can people live their daily routine without it
Alexander says a very simple (yet so important) thing: the head leads the movement, the spine follows; each body part transfers its weight to another and eventually the feet tranfer it to the floor. All these body parts (head, spine, pelvis, legs) are perfectly sustained by gravity when they're aligned optimally. We don't need any kind of muscular effort to sustain the weight of our body and sit or stand, that's the gravity job.

Now think of the human body which is supposed to stand effortlessly by the action of gravity and whose movements are possible because there's no muscular tension. Suppose you have the opposite. Suppose you have a cronic muscular tension just to keep your body erect and you have to add to that tension your daily movements. Suppose that when you lye down or sit you keep that very same tension. Can you imagine the hundreds of ramification of this? Can you imagine how any kind of free process (including free thought)  is sabotaged by this? Can you imagine what's like to never know relaxation, to never let go of the accumulated tension ... year after year after year?

Alexander said to always observe young children (3 - 5 years old)
They use their body perfectly. They have a perfect balance and use no kind of muscular effort in their movement or standing. You can see that when they move the head always leads and the spine follows (likewise for all vertebrated including snakes)
These same children are able to remain focused without looking fatigued by the effort (being an information sponge, being in awe) and they're spontaneous and very optimist and adaptable in nature. Compare that to the awkward movements of the 16 years old
I do believe there's a very strong link between the tensioless use of the self and the attitude of the person. Alexander oberved that often shyness, fears, low self-esteem, procrastrination all disappeared thanks to the recovery of perfect body balance and tensionless movements

The Alenxader Technique is as much powerful when applied at the piano
The most common problem of bad use of the body is the unit head-neck
By becoming aware of the occipital joint, the movement of the jaw and the connection of the head to the first vertebra at the center of the body, a wonderful sense of freedom in the head movements is gained. In piano playing the unit head-neck has the most impact in playing and release of accumulated tension. The majority of pianist when raising the forearms lock the head. Bypassing this misuse of the body has profound extraordinary effects on piano playing.
Other than that Alexander can be applied to unlock the waist and allow better movement at the hip joint. It can be used to perfect the kinestetic sense of balance at the piano. It can be used to maintain effortlessly the arch of the hand and to avoid the deviation at the ulna bone. The best sound is achieved by avoiding any sort of tension but allowing a short contraction coming from the torso and going back at the torso immediately after. This is the only way to play according to our anatomical structure and laws and not against it (the number of pianists who have never suffered hands or tendons injuries is ridicolously low)
Alexander can help in allowing contraction without tension (co-contraction)

One of the late Alexander word dealed with philosophical matter and the worl.
Aftern seeing the effect of his teachnique and understanding the importance of body-balance and effort-less movements in nature he began considering most of the problems of the world as a direct results of chronic tension. He went so far as claiming ever rage spikes, violence, paranoia and other problems were a direct results of the insane way we used our body.
In the last chapter of the book he claimed that he did believe that if he could teach his technique to the whole world it would become totally different and stress, violence, pain and even closed mindedness would decrease exponentially

I've always thought he was definitely onto something