While working with one of the new pieces tonight, I was playing in front of a mirror. Noticing that I was slumping over the guitar, I paused and thought about my use. Where was I too relaxed that was allowing this slump to occur? I came into a relationship with the space about me, then directing up and wide, something let go and realigned in my torso. Staying with the space I became aware of the front of me and the back of me. I noticed that I was no longer sitting on my stool, but rather that the stool was supporting me. Subtle but vital differences in how I was now using myself to play.
When I returned to the music I was working on, a dynamic shift occurred with a new section arising out of the blue. As if my slightly freer pyscho-physical relationship also allowed a musical connection to be made that mirrored the dynamic tension of my sitting. As I continued to work on myself by inhibiting my movements and inviting in the Alexander Technique directions, my whole approach to the piece shifted in a more musical way. Exciting and pleasing playing ensued.
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