Customer Reviews

How to Learn the Alexander Technique: A Manual for Students/G6517

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

There seems to be a lot of controversy about whether someone can learn the Alexander Technique without a teacher. My own experience started with taking lessons from a teacher, but I've met several people who learned quite a bit on their own - not just learned it intellectually (which doensn't do much good anyway) but also were able to apply what they had learned to improve their posture, coordation and balance in very concrete ways.

"How to Learn the Alexander Technique" is a great starting-out place for anyone who's interested in the process but either doesn't have a teacher or would prefer to do as much on their own as possible. But it would be unfair to dismiss the usefulness of the Alexander Technique if you don't succeed. After all, most people have lessons in learning how to drive a car and so it's not surprising if you end up needing at least some lessons in learning how to "drive" yourself in a better way.

Ultimately, I think the best place to get a deeper understanding of the Technique is from Alexander's own books. But a very good first step is the Conables' book, "Body Learning" by Gelb and "Fitness Without Stress" by Rickover. Also a book called "Freedom to Change" by Jones.

The title of the book had prompted me to buy it. I had some basic knowledge of the principles of the Alexander Technique and wanted to know more about it both in terms of depth of understanding as well as guidance on what to do. While the book provided a lot of good information on basic concepts it failed to address the one thing that I had bought it for: How to Learn the Alexander Technique. Instead, it kept referring to finding a teacher and learn from this person. I was disappointed about that because I would have liked to have more pointers for myself first and had wanted to try it out without help.

The title is somewhat misleading because in most cases you'll need to have at least some lessons or classes from a qualified Alexander Technique teacher. I purchased the book after I'd had a few lessons because I had to drive 100 miles round trip for each lesson and I wanted to do as much as I could on my own. The book enabled me to find out some very basic anatomical facts about myself that I'd never known before and that made a big difference in how I did things.I'm a viola player and I found the information about where the joints are in my arms and shounder made my playing a lot easier and alleviated to neck pain I'd been plagued with for years. I also found it imporoved the quality of my playing significantly. For me, this information alone was worth a lot more than the cost of the book.If you haven't had any Alexander lessons, I'd get a more basic introuctory book first, probably Fitness Without Stress or the Alexander Technique manual.

I feel moved to respond to some of the reviews below, which seem to me to judge the book more in terms of what it is not, rather than what it is. This is an excellent book to read *as* you're taking lessons; the book provides a wonderful companion to your ongoing learning, offering some fascinating insights on body perception and habits of movement, insights that have stuck with me half a decade after I first read the book. It's a great book to browse through, reading chapters as they relate to your interests. What the book is *not* is an introduction for absolute beginners who've not heard of the technique before; it is intended for people who have taken or will take Alexander lessons, and in this it succeeds admirably.

That's a very interesting book, where you can learn about the importance of knowing your body in order to know how to use it. It can be very helpful if you intend to take Alexander Technique lessons. I bought the book because I thought this was THE book where you can learn something about the technique without taking lessons. That is not the case. The main problem is that Alexander was a fantastic pioneer on the field of sommatics but did not have the conceptual skills to transform its fantastic intuitions in an easily explainable system. If you do not have an Alexander teacher nearby you you should try Feldenkrais book Awareness Through Movement book.

This book is ok, but not the best. Read Pedro Alcantara's Indirect Procedures for better info. Also, Patrick MacDonald's The Alexander Techinique As I See It.

To learn the Alexander technique, you need a teacher. You CANNOT learn it from a book. The technique involves communication of a kinesthetic sense from the teacher to the student through hands-on learning. With that said, this book is a valuable resource to a serious student who already has, or would like to find a teacher. The sections on body-mapping are particularly useful, and can be applied even if one is not studying the Alexander technique.

Body mapping is a practice predicated on the concept that we have concepts of our bodies, body maps, that do not accurately reflect our anatomy. Consequently, when we try to move, we often try to move in ways that we are not constructed to move. By changing our maps of our bodies to accurately reflect our anatomy, we can move and exist in the world with much greater efficiency and ease.

This is the first book I ordered regarding the alexander technique and I have found it to be very useful. I am generally put off by books that only scratch the surface and give you only enough to make you want to contact a teacher - which seems to be the hidden agenda by all of these books published by alexander teachers - but this book does more. Some of the content is a bit fluffy, but a great deal is very useful and can give you the opportunity to get a start on your own. With a simple change to how to carry your head as described in the book - I have already seen a significant reduction in my back pain.

I'm finding this book very helpful for learning about my body & the way it's meant to move & be used. I didn't realise how little I knew even though I've studied anatomy & physiology previously in my life.

After taking 5-6 lessons from an Alexander teacher, I still had trouble "getting it". Many of the concepts and techniques seemed very abstract, and I had a difficult time putting it all together. While this book is no substitute for a teacher, it did help me begin to really understand and apply what I had previously been exposed to. The section on body maps was particularly helpful. I would highly recommend this book.