FM Alexander was an actor in the late 1800s to the early 1900s. He kept having reoccurring vocal problems during performance, but not in everyday life. He went to several doctors and specialists who provided no solution to his problem.
Since there was no apparent medical cause, Alexander thought he might be doing something wrong leading him to strain or ”misuse” his vocal chords.
He observed himself in mirrors when rehearsing for performance and noticed that he stiffened his neck, pulled his head back and down, depressed his larynx and had an audible gasp for air when he opened his mouth to speak.
Continuing to observe himself, he discovered a bigger pattern or habit of tension involving the whole body. Even more profound, is that the tension pattern manifested itself at the mere thought of reciting.
He begin to experiment until he found a method to change this habitual reaction and prevent these harmful misuse patterns. His voice, breathing and stage presence dramatically improved, inspiring others to come to him for help with a multitude of ailments caused by unnecessary muscular tension.
As the public became aware of the many success stories using his technique, the demand for his teaching became so high that he ultimately shifted his professional focus and devoted much of his life to teaching what we know today as the Alexander Technique.
