"After working for a lifetime in this new field
I am conscious that the knowledge gained is but a beginning...."
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I was a graduate student in Biophysics when I first met
Marjorie Barstow in 1973. When I dropped Catherine off in Lincoln,
Nebraska for Marj's summer workshop in something called The Alexander
Technique, I wasn't planning to attend that workshop myself the following
summer, much less every one of 21 summers after that. I recall that I
found in Marj's approach to what she liked to call "the discoveries of FM
Alexander" a new kind of biophysics--a study of the workings of the whole
human person, as a whole--and by that person. What in the world, I
thought, could be a more fascinating field of study than ME. And what
knowledge would be more useful. So in the end I never did get a degree in
Biophysics, though I did eventually get my PhD in Human Learning, and of
course Alexander's work was a central part of my dissertation.
Over the years of working with people engaged in all sorts of
performance (including Performance in many forms) I have enjoyed sharing
their moments of fascination with their own "unity in action." John Dewey
claimed that this work "bears the same relation to education that
education bears to all other human activities." This is a strong
statement. I continue to see my work with the Alexander Technique as a
means of exploring what that statement might mean, and what it might be
like to become educated in that way. In the mean time, though, I find that
the secret compensation for the discipline of practicing the Technique is
that we are allowed to spend moments enjoying the presence of truly
fascinating people--ourselves.
I believe that what best
characterizes my teaching of The Alexander Technique--in my private
lessons and my classes and workshops--is the conviction I share with the
other TPS faculty that it really is a "technique" that a person can learn
to use from the beginning, rather than something that requires them to be
improved by a teacher until they are good enough to practice it on their
own.
In addition to my straightfoward Alexander Technique lessons and
workshops, I offer the following list of "Short Courses." These are
Interactive Presentations on a variety of ways of thinking about and
working with The Alexander Technique and the wider "field of enquiry" of
which it is a part. Each title can also provide a "working theme" for
varying lengths of practical work. If you have a training course, school
or a group of friends, and find any of these intriguing, please contact
me. I love to travel and can adapt them to your
needs.
David's "Short
Courses"
"Kine-Aesthetics"
The art, science and
enjoyment of moving well.
"Thinking in the Space of the Body:
Learning Beyond the Head/Heart Dichotomy"
Experiencing the unity of
the self in action--beyond the separation of thought, feeling and
moving.
"Arpeggios for Actors (and Other Performers)"
A
practical process for exploring human coordination as the foundation for
creative expression.
Guerilla Ergonomics
Lessons in the
art of taking care of ourselves on the job. Basic principles and how to
use them to bring greater ease and comfort to any work situation. (On site
consultation available.)
The Art of Observing
The
Alexander Technique, like any science, begins with observation. Observing
as the art of asking questions--both verbally and with our hands--and
these questions give shape and direction to our observations, and thus to
our learning and teaching.
"A Procedure in Actual
Practice..."
A hands-on exploration of why John Dewey found
Alexander’s work so important and what he saw
it as a means
for.
"A Palpable Philosophy"
More on the Alexander
Technique as a means of experiencing the psycho-physical roots of
Dewey’s philosophical ideas, and meeting them in everyday life.
"The Posture of Anticipation"
An exploration of
constructive readiness and the dynamics of the embodiment of meaning in
personal action. Built on the work of FM Alexander and George
Kelly.
"A Personal Science Lab" (in 3 parts)
Constructing
a science of ourselves, using the Alexander Technique as a primary
research tool.
"Part One-Personal Physics: Support, Balance and Motion"
A
Whole Systems view of human functioning from the inside.
"Part Two-A New Field of Inquiry"
The Alexander Technique
as a Tool for personal science. If Alexander was a new Galileo, then we
can each learn to be our own Newton.
"Part Three-Personal Cybernetics, or Who’s at the Helm?"
A
practical model of the psycho-mechanics of being self-directed.
"Stillness is a Form of Motion"
Learning to be
our own Newton by experimenting with how our movements embody the laws of
motion.
"The Teacher’s Art"
Distinguishing in
practice between principles and the present needs of the
learner.
"Knowledge in the Hands"
Experimenting with the
phenomenology of learning and teaching the Alexander
Technique.
"Mastery is the surface above the depth of
understanding."
"Ease and Comfort: digging among the roots of
meaning"
A hands-on exploration of our use of words in teaching and
learning.
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