Alexander Technique with the European String Teachers Association

I have had a long association with the European String Teachers Association (ESTA) ever since I gave a one-day workshop for them in 2015. This workshop explored ’10 ways the Alexander Technique will improve your string playing and teaching’, and was very well attended. Working with string players and indeed all kinds of musicians is one of my specialisms; the Chair of ESTA UK commented at the time,

I have been to numerous Alexander talks over the past 40 or so years … What Henry’s talk did, though, was to explain the rationale behind the Technique in a way which clarified it for me as never before.

John Shayler, Chair of ESTA UK

Since then I have been invited to present at the ESTA UK Summer School, most recently in 2021 when I lead a series of morning sessions entitled, ‘Wake Up to Natural Movement’. This year, not only string players joined these sessions; clarinettists and saxophonists from the Clarinet and Saxophone Society of Great Britain (CASS GB) also came along to discover how the Alexander Technique could help them.

As well as leading group sessions at the summer school, I also worked hands-on with many of the course participants, helping them to truly embody the Alexander Technique principles.

Steve Bingham of the Bingham String Quartet took some wonderful aerial shots of some of the activities we engaged in outdoors, and I’ll share a few of these as soon as I receive them.