Learning the Alexander Technique Without a Teacher
My Alexander Technique students sometimes ask if I think it's possible for someone to learn the Technique on their own, without the help of a teacher. Sometimes they have a person in mind who lives in an area where there are no teachers.
My answer is a definite "Maybe!"
F. Matthias Alexander, the developer of the Alexander Technique was his own teacher and the process he went through to make his discoveries and then put them into practice was pretty impressive, to say the least. (See "About the Alexander Technique" at http://www.alexandertechnique.com.au/abo... and "About FM Alexander at http://www.alexandertechniqueconsultants... for two excellent accounts of his discovery process.)
But he was fond of remarking, "Anyone can do what I did, IF they will do what I did."
We also know that he received many written requests for help, and that he took them very seriously. Several years ago I met a lady, who grew up in the north of England during the 1930's and 40's who told me of her father's correspondence with Alexander. The two men exchanged letters on a regular basis over a period of many years. Her father had been interested in putting into practice the ideas he had read about in Alexander's books and Alexander spent a considerable amount of time and effort to help him in this project, even though the two men never met.
Alexander was very clear in his published writings that a serious student of his work could accomplish a good deal without the assistance of a teacher. "Anyone who will follow me through the experiences I have set down...cannot fail to benefit" he wrote in the 1945 preface to the new edition of Use of the Self, his third book.
It is now nearly half a century later and we've learned a lot more about the process of teaching the technique. We also have new tools, like portable audio and video equipment, that were not available in Alexander's time. Yet very little has been done to encourage and empower the beginning student prepared to work on his own, or with only occasional hands-on help. Here are my suggestions for someone seriously motivated to work on his or her own:
Start by reading Use of the Self, Alexander's third book, particularly Chapter 1, "Evolution of a Technique". As with all of Alexander's writings, these pages must be read carefully and with a great deal of thought. I would also strongly suggest buying and carefully reading two contemporary books which I've listed at the end of this article.
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