Frederick Matthias Alexander was born in Tasmania in 1869. In his twenties he moved to Sydney and became a professional reciter of dramatic pieces. After almost completely losing his voice he pioneered a method of improving the 'use'
of his body musculature in all positions and movements. Having cured his vocal problems without medical aid, he began to look around him and discovered that the majority of people stood, sat and moved in an equally defective manner. It ocurred to Alexander that the incorrect 'use of the self' might be the cause of much human suffering. Encouraged by doctor in Sydney, he set out to teach his methods and became a kind of missionary. He moved to London and established a school, publishing several books and achieving some success, with recommendations from
famous contemporaries such as Aldoux Huxley and Sir Stafford Cripps. Alexander died in 1955 but his 'principles lives on throught the work of many teachers of his method.
From ' The use of the self ' F. M. Alexander
