Hi, good to see you here!
8 years ago by A Pianist
I'd be interested to hear if anyone on the forum has tried Alexander Technique and how it differs to Feldenkrais. Perhaps it needs its own thread too?? Andrew
8 years ago by A Pianist
Alexander Technique is one of the prime sources of Feldenkrais Method. They are very similar. The differences lie in the thought process that developed the two techniques. Matthias Alexander was an elocutionist, an actor who arrived at his conclusions through intuitive investigation, trial and error. Moshe Feldenkrais was a physicist, mechanical and electrical engineer, a Judo master and extremely wide-read in all areas of anatomy, physiology, psychology and neurophysiology. And interestingly enough, he was a student of Alexander in London in the 1940's. I believe that when he created his method he simply saw what Alexander was doing through the eyes of a scientist, and modified it - taking out the bugs in the system and extrapolating the potential of the technique exponentially along the way. One small practical example of the resulting difference: whereas an Alexander teacher will have you "think forward and up" to lengthen your spine and make it more functional, Feldenkrais Method teaches your to "think forward and up" even when you are busy doing something else - like being involved in whatever activity you're in. To be sure, in the Alexander lesson the teacher does indeed work, very effectively and elegantly, to have your neuromotor system better achieve "forward and up." But when they encourage the mind to continue to try to cultivate that intention consciously, the result can be a stiff holding of the position instead of a functional use of the position. This has been so characteristic of Alexander students that someone even coined the term 'Alexandroid.' (Moshe addressed this problem for instance by coining the word 'acture' as a replacement for 'posture.') Thus it is that oftentimes when an Alexander student the lessons, she or he finally gets the full benefit of the work, and starts to move really nicely. AFF
