“To make the inconceivable, attainable, the attainable straightforward, and the simple, elegant”-Moshe Feldenkrais

These phrases may properly describe a musician’s targets in utilizing method to appreciate musical inspiration, whether or not or not it’s refining a compositional concept or perfecting a demanding instrumental passage. But they have been written to explain the targets of a Sensory -Motor studying technique that makes use of mild motion and directed consideration to extend ease and vary of movement, enhance flexibility and coordination, and stop and deal with many widespread overuse and misuse accidents musicians encounter.

Tendonitis, Repetitive Stress Syndrome, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, sore backs, necks, shoulders, and so on. are all too widespread amongst musicians. Many situations require medical consideration and it’s smart to seek the advice of a physician when ache or discomfort alerts you to an issue. However treating the symptom might not get on the trigger. Fortuitously, there exist quite a few strategies oriented towards the event of physique consciousness in motion which can be utilized to stop these accidents and, the place they exist already, apply non-medical approaches to enhancing our functioning. Grouped collectively below the title “Somatic Training,” these strategies tackle postural and motion points extraordinarily related to musicians however usually uncared for within the pursuit of instrumental abilities.

Its not stunning that motion training is of worth to musicians. All music manufacturing entails motion, and it follows that listening to the best way we transfer to make music will have an effect on the music we make. Exploring this straightforward connection can have profound impacts on biomechanical well being in addition to growing sensitivity and energy in music manufacturing.

Historic Roots

Somatic (from the Greek work Soma, which means “residing physique”) training could be regarded as a bodily training that doesn’t separate thoughts and physique. The roots of the Somatic method return to the Gymnastik motion of Northern Europe and the Japanese U.S. in the course of the late 1800’s. These lecturers shared concepts about posture and motion, which have been at odds with dominant fashions in classical ballet, bodily training, faith and medication. Gymnastik pioneers rejected the separation of thoughts and spirit from a mechanistically conceived physique, inspired self-developed values over conforming to a super, and approached bodily training as a unity of motion, physique construction, and psycho-spiritual well being. Following the disruptions of two world wars, strands of this shared imaginative and prescient got here collectively as outdated pioneers and new strategies established faculties and unfold their work. At present hundreds of educators follow strategies resembling Sensory Consciousness, the Alexander Approach, Ida Rolf’s Structural Integration, Moshe Feldenkrais’s Consciousness By means of Motion and Useful Integration, Gerda Alexander’s Eutony, in addition to Aston-Patterning, Physique-Thoughts Centering, Trager Work and others. After exploring a couple of widespread threads working by means of these approaches, we’ll take a look at the 2 mostly used with musicians: The Alexander Approach and the Feldenkrais Technique®.

Significance of Motion & Consciousness

Musicians are aware of the notion of our instrument being an extension of ourselves; and in a method, the first instrument is the self. A pinnacle in our species’ evolution of motor abilities, enjoying an instrument calls for a extremely complicated use of the neuromuscular equipment. However treasured little of a musician’s coaching entails refining one’s capacity to maneuver effectively, sense strains, and attend to extra of oneself whereas making music. With out this coaching, we unwittingly develop neuromuscular habits which can be bodily aggravating and enhance our vulnerability to damage. When the motion is poorly organized, forces are created that generate pointless warmth within the joints, with shearing and different stresses within the connective tissue and muscle tissues. Completed repeatedly over time, harm and damage usually tend to happen. Postural issues from sitting and standing for lengthy intervals, instrument-specific issues (resembling ache in a choosing hand) and easy rigidity resulting in pointless muscular contraction are widespread outcomes of inefficient motion patterns.

Step one to recognizing dangerous habits is to seek out out what we do already, that’s, turn into conscious of our motion. After we exert numerous muscular effort, it’s inconceivable for our mind to make the sensory distinctions wanted to enhance our neuromuscular group. With this in thoughts, many Somatic strategies use gentleness, delicacy and slowness of motion to note what is definitely taking place. It’s analogous to the best way a sluggish ballad tends to disclose many nuances of the sound: tone, intonation, and time all turn into straightforward to note after we sluggish every little thing down. In the identical method, listening to refined distinctions turns into simpler after we sluggish our motion and keep away from extra effort and pressure.

Thoughts, Physique And Atmosphere-A Useful Complete

Motion happens by means of an data suggestions course of between our senses, muscle tissues and central nervous system. As we transfer, our senses of contact, stability, sight and sound ship our mind details about our place and muscular exercise and it responds by modifying the outgoing messages to our muscle tissues. All this happens in response to the challenges of our surroundings. You play a word, hear the sound, and make adjustments or changes for the subsequent assault, all whereas contemplating the surroundings or context (the type of the music, the room or viewers, different musicians). These components exist as a useful whole–one by no means happens within the absence of the others.

Equally, the supply of a given downside is commonly a mixture of a bodily limitation, psychological, or emotional angle, and the particular challenges of the instrument itself. Every factor might contribute and dealing in a single space can have ends in one other. The pianist’s sore wrist could also be associated to a number of of the next: a shoulder that doesn’t transfer freely, a psychological angle that ends in working towards too lengthy with out breaks and/or a bench top stopping snug arm place. Therapies that concentrate on one among these components to the exclusion of the others are sometimes restricted in effectiveness.

The holistic method acknowledges that difficulties are sometimes a part of a basic underlying dysfunctional motion sample. The manifestation of the issue could also be removed from its supply and enhancing the overall sample usually improves particular grievance.

Discovering Our Personal Method

Simply as totally different kinds of music name for various instrumentation, aesthetic decisions, and musical values, somatic educators acknowledge that context and individuality play a big position in figuring out applicable motion. For that reason, Somatic educators keep away from basic prescriptions for all to observe. Moderately than espousing anyone ‘proper’ method of doing one thing they encourage people’ in growing the flexibility to sense, uncover, and determine what’s finest for themselves. They promote our capacity to belief our subjective and fast perceptions of ourselves and domesticate the capability to differentiate between performing to evolve to an “exterior splendid,” and spontaneous pure motion born of understanding oneself.

Let’s take a look at these rules in motion within the work of two towering figures in trendy training, F.M. Alexander and Moshe Feldenkrais.

Alexander Approach

F. Mathias Alexander (1869-1955) was an Australian-born actor who discovered himself shedding his voice throughout performances. After medical doctors have been unable to supply something however relaxation as a therapy he started an intensive research of himself which continued over a ten-year interval. This research revealed that he pulled his head again when talking which led to strain on the larynx, and vocal chords and ensuing hoarseness. This head and neck place additionally brought about him to elevate his chest, slim his again and grip the ground along with his ft. He thereby realized his speech organs have been influenced by misusing his entire self. Alexander went on to refine these insights right into a extra environment friendly use which he known as “main management”. This consisted of getting his head ahead and up along with lengthening and widening his again. But despite having discovered a extra environment friendly group he confronted an impediment: overcoming the drive of behavior that regularly reinstated motion patterns deep within the nervous system. He noticed that specializing in the top consequence was obscuring the “means whereby” his motion befell. Alexander went on to refine a way of “inhibiting” all computerized impulses simply in the intervening time of motion and changing this with “aware constructive management.” He overcame his ordinary fallacious use and never solely his voice downside however his nasal and respiratory difficulties vanished too. The tip of his experiment was the start of a lifetime’s work refining and educating his method first in Britain and later everywhere in the world. Endorsed and supported by such influential individuals as Aldous Huxley, John Dewey, and George Bernard Shaw, the Alexander method proved particularly useful to vocalists (and has been on the curriculum of performing faculties and music conservatories for many years.) In a typical Alexander session, the trainer makes use of mild handbook steerage to extend the coed’s bodily consciousness in primary actions resembling sitting-to- standing, and strolling. College students shall be educated to inhibit ordinary patterns and acknowledge good coordination of the top, neck and trunk.

Gary Burton and the Alexander Approach Berklee School of Music Government Vice President and vibraphonist Gary Burton credit an injury-free musical profession to consideration to his personal biomechanics and classes with an Alexander trainer. His curiosity in these issues got here early in his improvement: “In my teenagers and early 20s,” Burton states, “after I practiced, I did numerous excited about how I used to be shifting and what was shifting and noticing rigidity. Through the years, I made adjustments as I turned extra conscious of what was concerned bodily.” After a 12 months of learning the Alexander method, Burton developed a way of how one can maintain his neck and head which felt appropriate. He developed a long-lasting physique consciousness and new habits yielding advantages that transcend enjoying the vibraphone. “I’ve at all times had the unprovable assumption,” he says, “that the explanation I’ve by no means had any again issues, after years of lugging a vibraphone round, lifting it out and in of automobile trunks, is as a result of I am fairly conscious how I transfer, after I decide one thing up the place the pulls and strains are, and how one can do it rigorously.”

The Feldenkrais Technique®

Moshe Feldenkrais was a Russian-born engineer, physicist and athlete who labored with Nobel Prize winner Joliot-Curie in early nuclear analysis. As one of many first Europeans to earn a Black Belt in Judo (1936) he launched this Martial Artwork to the West by means of his educating and 5 books on the topic. Within the early 1940’s, after struggling a sequence of crippling sports-related knee accidents, he was given a 50- p.c probability that surgical procedure may restore his knees. However the medical doctors warned that if the surgical procedure failed, he may find yourself with crutches or in a wheelchair. Feldenkrais selected to not bear the proposed surgical procedure and as an alternative be started to check neurology, anatomy, biomechanics, human motion improvement, and techniques concept. Utilizing his personal physique as his laboratory , after two years of analysis and experimentation, he taught himself to stroll once more. Feldenkrais continued his research and examined his concepts with pals and colleagues, treating their aches and pains, muscle and joint issues, and even critical neurological situations. By accessing the facility of the central nervous system and our extraordinary capacity to study, he discovered he may obtain enchancment in individuals the place many different approaches had failed. He continued to refine his concepts right into a system referred to as the Feldenkrais Technique, ultimately coaching practitioners in Israel and the U.S. At present, there are literally thousands of practitioners worldwide and the Feldenkrais Technique is taught in quite a few bodily rehabilitation facilities, universities, theater and music packages and group training facilities.

Whereas Alexander had targeted on the head-neck relationship, Feldenkrais– along with his background as a Judo master–was particularly fascinated by how the central, highly effective muscle tissues surrounding our pelvis and trunk correctly do the laborious work whereas the extremities fine-tune our motion. When, because of rigidities in trunk and pelvis, the smaller muscle tissues are compelled to take over work extra effectively achieved at our heart, pressure and damage usually observe.

The Feldenkrais Technique is taught in two codecs. In group lessons, known as Consciousness By means of Motion®, the Feldenkrais trainer verbally leads college students by means of actions which steadily enhance in vary and complexity. Based mostly on developmental actions, atypical actions, or extra summary explorations of joint, muscle, and postural relationships, the emphasis is on studying which actions work higher and noticing the adjustments in your physique. As college students turn into extra conscious of their ordinary neuromuscular patterns and rigidities, they develop new options with improved flexibility and coordination the consequence.

Personal Feldenkrais classes, known as Useful Integration®, are tailor-made to every pupil’s particular person studying wants. Carried out with the coed absolutely clothed (normally mendacity on a desk or in sitting or standing positions) the practitioner, by means of mild touching and motion, communicates the way you set up your self bodily and the coed learns how one can reorganize his or her physique and conduct in additional expanded useful motor patterns.

Studying Not Therapeutic

Whereas there are clearly therapeutic advantages to each the Alexander Approach and the Feldenkrais Technique, they’re instructional in nature and obtain their outcomes by tapping our huge potential for self-awareness and self-direction. The educational course of used will not be goal-oriented however exploratory, and works very like the best way we realized as infants to sit down, stand and walk–essential skills that all of us realized with no trainer. With out the thought of feat (and the judgmental exercise that accompanies it,) college students are free to find what they’re doing (not what they’re “purported to be” doing) and from there discover different prospects.

Studying this manner reduces compulsive, self-destructive motion patterns. Practitioner Paul Linden’s remark exhibits the outcomes: “he did not really feel that he had realized a static method which dictated the fitting solution to play, however that he had elevated his consciousness so he was higher at studying the cues his physique and the sound of the music have been giving him.”

Each Feldenkrais and Alexander refused to just accept the opinion of consultants and rejected the Western cultural emphasis on one appropriate method for everybody. Moderately, by paying cautious consideration to their motion, they realized what they wanted to enhance their use of themselves. By means of the strategies they based they demonstrated their implicit belief within the people’ capacity to seek out his or her personal solution to higher coordination.

Any program of therapy for overuse and misuse accidents ought to reap the benefits of the facility of Somatic Training which is the facility of studying that’s each individual’s birthright.

1 Don Hanlon Johnson, Physique 2 Paul Linden Physique Consciousness Training for Musicians: A Case Research Illustrating Primary Workouts and Rules

Copyright © 1996 by Richard Ehrman