Learn to Retrain Muscle Memory with Alexander Technique for Musicians

Who should attend?  Aimed at musicians who recognise their performance is compromised by unhelpful habits, in particular by patterns of overwork and tension

What are the aims?
The aim is for you to learn enough of Alexander's unique and powerful techniques to be able refine your practice:
(a) to avoid building new habits of overwork into your playing and 
(b) to start the process of 'unlearning' habits already acquired 
- in other words to stop making things worse and to start making them better.

Becoming  completely free from such habits can be a lifelong study – the aim of this workshop is to equip you to start this journey in a helpful direction and so that you are able to continue it by yourself.

Is it suitable for singers?
The course is aimed at musicians - and singers are musicians too! So, yes.

What will you (not) learn?
You will not learn playing technique specific to any instrument or voice: Alexander's techniques are very general and, once learned, can be applied to literally any activity including playing an instrument, sports, and daily activities like walking or using a computer.

How large is the class?
Maximum class size will be 8.

Where is it held?
Todmorden Alexander Technique Studio – a purpose built studio for Alexander Technique  two miles from Todmorden and easily accessibly by train (Manchester Victoria 25 mins, Bradford x 29 mins). The studio is equipped with a Bluthner grand piano

What is the cost?
£85 per person/ £65 early bird (deposit paid before July 31st), full time musicians and music students

Is there a residential option?
Yes, there is an option to stay in Bottoms Farm, a self-contained, self-catering property adjacent to the studio. Rates from £50 per night. Please enquire. 

Who is teaching?
Andy Moorhouse is a fully  qualified teacher of the Alexander Technique who has been applying the technique to musical practice since 1992 

Anne Whitehead qualified in 2007 and has since taught many young performers at Chetham's School of Music in Manchester and at Manchester College.

Do I need previous experience?
No previous experience in Alexander Technique is required. Previous work with some other somatic activity like yoga or Pilates will probably be a bit of an advantage if you have learned to observe how your body moves but is not essential. The main thing is that you come with an open mind. 

How do I book?
Please email a.t.moorse@gmail.com or phone/ Whatsapp 07977 598064 to book a place. 

Timetable

Active rest  exercise - (also known as semi-supine position) is a simple and free exercise that anyone can do. It has multiple benefits:

• Gives the back a rest
• Calms down the nervous system to create conditions where musculature can release
• Recalibrates our internal body map (also called body schema).

The teacher will talk through a simple set of instructions to guide your thinking as you lie with your back flat and allow musculature to release. We recommend you do this exercise daily and at regular intervals during practice.

Introduction to Alexander Technique – a brief talk with group participation exercises to introduce the main ideas we will be working with. We will illustrate how habitual overworking is never helpful but becomes baked into the muscle memory through repetition. Habitual tension is often difficult to see and even when it is recognised it cannot be undone by direct means. We will introduce Alexander's techniques of 'Inhibition' and 'Direction' which provide a unique and powerful indirect approach to 'unlearning' the habits you don't want.

Practical anatomy – most people don't know where their joints are! But you can't move freely if you are trying to bend in the wrong place! We will look at key joints making use of Bob the full-sized skeleton. The approach will be practical rather than academic. The aim is to sharpen up your internal body map - knowing accurately where the bits of your body are is important for integrated movement.

Demonstrations –  we will use a volunteer and will demonstrate how, with help from the skilled hands of the teacher, it is possible to perform any action more effectively but with less effort.

Participation exercises – will illustrate key concepts through simple participation exercises.

• Support – knowing where you are supported is important for grounded movement and is simple once you know how
• Inhibition and Direction – these are the key concepts and will be illustrated by simple and (hopefully!) fun exercises 
• The process – applying Alexander's principles to playing your instrument is difficult at first because playing habits tend to be very engrained - so we will run through the process for some completely unrelated activity first, probably writing
• Preparing to play – the final session of the day will be applying the techniques to your instrument. The preparation before you play the first note is the crucial point at which you can influence the muscle memory. Each student will have the opportunity for individual hands-on guidance during this session

What is Alexander Technique?
Alexander Technique is the established technique for learning to move without habits of tension and overwork whether in performance or everyday activities - learn to use yourself with better posture, less strain on joints, more freedom, wider awareness and reduced pain*.
It is usually taught with a combination of verbal instructions and hands-on guidance to help you adopt freer and more efficient patterns of movement. Without knowing it, most of us use more tension than is really needed. Excessive muscle tone causes unnecessary wear on joints, makes us tired and our movements ill-coordinated. But habits of 'overwork' often persist for decades simply because we don't realise that we are better off without them – its as if we are carrying unnecessary baggage into everything we do. 
Around 1900, Alexander developed simple but powerful techniques through which we can 'unlearn' habits of overworking. Taking these techniques into your daily life should, over time, enable you to do what you need with less effort, better posture, more enjoyment and often with reduced pain*. It can take time to unlearn deeply ingrained habits but most students will start to feel benefits after a few lessons or even after a few minutes.
How does it work?
Alexander Technique is a skill that is learned. The learning takes place both at the level of the body and with the conscious mind. With hands-on work the body itself learns, or relearns, rather like muscle memory. We may or may not even be aware that this learning is going on in the background, although most people will notice its effects in terms of lighter and freer movement. At the same time we learn particular conscious ways of thinking that we call 'directing'. When we direct, it has an organising effect on the musculature as a whole - rather than shortening and contracting our bodies by 'trying hard', we experience an effortless lengthening and expansion as we carry out the task. For performers, lengthening and expanding into a movement brings improved strength and flow and seems to give us more time to react - we may even have the sense that the performance has 'done itself'.
The mechanisms behind these experiences are yet to be fully understood but recent research suggests that Alexander training brings about a redistribution of postural muscle tone to the deeper muscles of the neck and back.
Credentials
I am a full registered teaching member of the Society for Teachers of the Alexander Technique (MSTAT) having completed an approved training programme comprising 1600 hours contact time plus private study at the Manchester Alexander Technique Teacher Training School graduating in 2013.
I teach most weeks at the Manchester Alexander Technique Teacher Training School in Wilmslow. I exchange work with other qualified teachers on a weekly basis to further develop my skills. I was a Council member for STAT 2016-2021 and am currently STAT regional representative for North West England. I have a PhD in Science and Engineering from my previous career as a research engineer.