Maggy Burrowes
VocalDynamix Holistic Voice work and The Feldenkrais Method
The Feldenkrais Method came as an exciting discovery for me in 1986 in my home town of Brighton. Years of dance classes had left me with sciatica - intermittent leg pain from a trapped nerve - and I had taken up Tai Chi instead, a much safer discipline for someone with my youthful lack of body awareness. Regular practise of the form had made great improvements to my posture and stamina, but sciatica was still a regular problem, usually leaving me limping for a week or so. I was amazed and delighted when a sciatic attack that came on the night before my first Feldenkrais workshop had completely cleared up by the end of the day. I realised that this was the method I was looking for to help me develop my own holistic vocal training process and thus make jazz singing more viable as a career. Once I embarked on the four year training I realised I had found a life's work as rich and satisfying as singing.
This method stimulates our nervous system's natural ability to organise itself more efficiently, freeing us from the chronic muscular tensions that are a major cause of pain and poor posture, and the unhealthy physical habits that perpetuate these problems. We spend our first few years entirely immersed in the wonderful world of sensory awareness, acquiring new abilities daily, but by adulthood we are often simply getting by, delighted by the grace and skill we see in dancers and athletes, with little idea of how much more we could be enjoying moving ourselves with the greater awareness Feldenkrais work can bring.
Awareness Through Movement (A. T. M.) lessons are most usually taught as weekly classes and themed workshops; they provide a great introduction to the method and are an effective way to achieve all the benefits it can provide, including greater mobility, flexibility, grace and agility, fuller breathing, relief from tension and pain, improved performance in sport, dance, music and drama, and reconnecting with a younger self. Functional Integration (F. I.) lessons are hands-on individual sessions and are more suitable for those with injuries, chronic pain anywhere in the body, problems with long-term use like R. S. I., or more serious problems such as M. S., Parkinson's Disease, or brain damage of various kinds, including Stroke and Cerebral Palsy.
A.T.M. lessons take familiar movement patterns - e.g. rolling out of bed, getting up off the floor, twisting to look behind you, reaching upwards etc. - and break those patterns up into smaller sequences that stimulate new learning in your sensory motor system. Improvements are usually noticeable by the end of your first lesson. F. I. lessons tailor this process very precisely to your individual needs. You are learning a new way to be, there is no quick fix for these kinds of problems and permanent improvement only comes with regular practise and a clear commitment to change, however new students can usually tell very quickly if the method is working for them. Most lessons take place on the floor, so you need to wear loose, comfortable clothing and bring something to lie on.
I have applied the method to state-of-the-art vocal training techniques developed by Jo Estill and Alison Bagnall and designed VocalDynamix, a comprehensive vocal awareness system suitable both for professional performers and for anyone who would like to experience full pleasure from their voice. For more information see my website - www.vocaldynamix.com
Autumn/Winter Workshops
VocalDynamix: Whole Self Breathing & Vocal Power. This workshop will feature Awareness Through Movement lessons designed to greatly improve the fullness, depth and ease of your breathing, and to connect this fuller breathing to greater vocal control and power. Sun 7th Dec
VocalDynamix: Conscious Voice - Resonance & Mobility. This workshop features lessons designed to greatly improve your understanding and awareness of how your voice works, enabling you to safely explore a greater vocal range and to connect the vocal sounds you already use to bring softness, mobility and flexibility to your jaw, lips, tongue and larynx. Sun 11th Jan
VocalDynamix: Concious Voice - Power & Stamina. This workshop we will explore the full range of possible internal adjustments of the true and false vocal folds, pharynx, larynx and soft palate to begin the development of a completely conscious voice able to produce all possible vocal qualities. Sun 15th Feb
Time 12.00pm - 6.00pm. £45 (Concessions £35)
Feldenkrais: Balance & Core Mobility: Internal Reconnections Sun 22nd Feb
Feldenkrais: Moving with Ease: Freeing Your Neck, Arms and Shoulders Sun 18th Jan
Feldenkrais: Moving With Lightness and Grace Date tba
For more on the Feldenkrais workshops, please click here. I also offer private Feldenkrais lessons at the Centre on Thursday afternoons.
Please call me directly to book for the workshops, to discuss private lessons, or just to chat about the methods - 07976 640737.
