Miracles of Nature and BodyThinking

At Golden Week - BodyChance's annual residential near Mt Fuji - I usually teach a dozen beginners who brave a world of strangers to explore Alexander's discovery.

This year there was only one.

Not because we didn't want them, because we couldn't fit them! BodyChance has expanded to 138 trainees - we simply don't have room to house everyone.

However, Haroko-san managed to gain a spot. She is a young singer from Osaka, about to study in Canada for three years. By the end of the week she told me that when she returned from Canada, she planned to train at BodyChance. I was happy.

The morning group I teach is BodyChance method for beginners.

BodyChance method is:

- Alexander's discovery taught in groups
- always following the student's wish
- interactive: lots of questions.
- talk and touch teaching
- using Yes-Plans and finally…
- based on the innovations of Marjorie Barstow!

What's a Yes-Plan?

A Yes-Plan involves following an activity plan that won't let your old habit take place. Here's how it worked with Haroko…

We started the lesson by asking for her wish i.e. why come to BodyChance? She had a marvellous voice, but explained could not stop getting tighter in head/neck on her high notes. The rest of my group consisted of trainees and teachers, so I particularly remember this lesson.

I taught the lesson, and the meta-lesson of the lesson. Here's both…

I asked her to sing and she was right - she pushed back her neck as her pitch got higher. My "BodyThinking mind" kicked in…

I asked:

"How do you think of breathing for your high notes?"

I wanted to know if it was confusion about her job that brought about the interferences in her mechanism. I come from the premise that she already has the ability - there is no actual problem getting high notes. Just confusion about how.

She indicated with her hand that the air comes up and then forward into the room. Usually singers think this way, and inevitably it results in extra effect just as she reported.

We spent time talking about how breath works, and the special pressure and vocal requirements of high pitched sounds.

I gave her the Yes-Plan… (you might call it new 'directions')

Using my knowledge of BodyThinking, I asked her to align her thinking with the truth of the activity from a basic anatomical level - air, diaphragm, vocal chords, effort of high pitch etc.

Instead of my "don't stiffen, don't pull your head back" instructions of the past - I have been doing this for 40 years now - I have re-engineered my communication based on my understanding of anatomical movement.

I do it, because it works, it's quicker and it assumes there is nothing to fix.

How wonderful - to look at your student and only see the perfection they already have. To see accomplishment, ability and confidence.

She sang again - beautiful sound, no tightness or pushing. The class clapped.

I'd love to take the credit but I can't. It's a miracle of nature and a matter of fact.

This is how BodyThinking Online can help to reshape the way you teach.

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