In these last weeks, I have been teaching a series of lessons on Anatomy for Musicians. A little anatomical visit to the area, finding it on yourself, and then a Feldenkrais lesson to help free it up. This week we’ve been looking at the chest. As a Feldenkrais teacher who works with musicians, I see … More Can you feel your ribs move when you breathe?
The last week since coming back from Holland has sped past. I wanted to write a little about my experiences. After my travel disaster, (my passport whilst valid, was over 10 years old. Since 2018, this is no longer valid for the EU. And I only found out the day before my flight. Which meant … More What are your limits?
This week, I’m getting ready for a trip to the Netherlands, where I’ll be presenting a session called Feldenkrais in Practice at the ESTA (European String Teachers Association) conference. Each year, ESTA chooses a theme—and this time, it aligns beautifully with the Feldenkrais approach: From the Inside – Out. My presentation is based on a 4-week course I … More How long is short enough for a new practice?
How do you respond when you reach your limits? I was teaching some of my small (6 year old) violin pupils this week how to synchronise the finger notes together with the bowing. It’s one of the trickiest transitions, as you put two things together that a beginner might still find tricky. The difference in … More What are your limits?
In the Feldenkrais Method if awareness is King, the skeleton is the Queen. In every lesson, we keep part of our focus on the skeletal system. It does so much for us. Just some of them: I was excited to come across a recent article, that tells us of newer research on bones. It seems … More What’s your skeleton ever done for you?
As musicians, our physical self is the primary instrument. And I write”physical self”, rather than “body” because the brain and body work together. All of the time. They never act separately. It’s simply not possible. And whether you’re a musician or not, every movement we make is together with a thought, an emotion, and a … More The brain and body work together.
Over the weekend, I’ll be teaching at Limmud, in Birmingham. It’s a Jewish learning festival, usually held over the Christmas period, where I started introducing Feldenkrais 7 years ago. It’s a festival that has it’s own flavour. There is a massive range of topics, and sessions run alongside each other. One of ideas is that … More Learning
How do you think of posture? For many people, it’s a thing. Good posture or bad. People with good posture have their shoulders back, and head up. Bad posture is associated with slouching. Good is a perfect ratio between the head, neck and shoulders. Something to get, to have, to keep. Shoulders and head not … More On Posture
Shoulder problems are one of the common reasons people come to see me. The shoulder joint is a work of art. It’s fixed to the skeleton via the collar bones at the front. And has a large range of fascia and muscles attaching it at the back, sides and front. It’s massive range of movement … More Exploring the Shoulders
The other day, I saw some of my favourite Heifetz pictures. They’re photos taken with a light at the end of his bow. And you can see the sheer amount of different movements he makes to move the bow in different patterns. And I assume, different pieces. Sadly he had passed away, so I never … More Movement in every moment
the Feldenkrais Method with Emma Alter 