Workshop for Teachers in Galway, Ireland
Jessica Wolf and Art of Breathing senior teacher Pamela Blanc will offer the first European workshop in The Art of Breathing in the summer of 2014.
“We shall probably find the best practical illustration of the need for correct sensory
appreciation in its connexion with the psycho-mechanics of respiration.”
—F.M. Alexander
One of the most important and curiously 
neglected areas of F.M. Alexander’s work is “the art of breathing.” Interfering with the breath compromises our primary control and eventually weakens our overall state of being. This workshop will enable teachers to recognize their habits regarding the breath and to incorporate new and crucial knowledge into their work.
Jessica Wolf’s Art of Breathing is the result of over 35 years of ongoing work as an Alexander teacher and 20 years of study with Carl Stough. Stough revolutionized the field of respiratory science by discovering a way to redevelop the involuntary movement of the diaphragm, facilitating reorganization of the whole respiratory system. Jessica has integrated Carl Stough’s principles with the Alexander Technique. By adding the dimension of the breath, Alexander teachers can impart new skills to help expand their students’ awareness and propel them on their path to full integration.
This Art of Breathing workshop will:
- Explore in depth the whispered “ah”.
- Identify pervasive misconceptions about voice work and breath.
- Review relevant texts by F.M. Alexander and Carl Stough.
- Promote awareness of the breath during chair work to support the fundamental lengthening along the spine.
- Clarify the use of Monkey by regarding the three-dimensional torso as a “breathing container.”
- Further understand the anatomy of respiration to visualize the coordination of muscles involved in breathing.
- Offer specific techniques to manage asthma, low back pain, musculoskeletal pain from scoliosis and osteoporosis, headaches, TMJ, and vocal problems.
- Further develop the diaphragm with the use of sound.
- Clarify – through lecture, observation and experience – the benefits of higher levels of oxygen.
- Understand the diaphragm is the muscle of emotion and recognize the breath as a means of expression.
- Weave the act of breathing into daily activities.
This five-day workshop will take place in Galway, Ireland.
Where: Richard Brennan’s Alexander Technique Centre
When: July 1-5, 2014
Time: 9:30-4:30
Fee: €500 (this includes two private lessons)
A deposit of €300 is requested by May 15th. There will be a maximum enrollment of 15 participants.
Registration: JessicaWolf170@gmail.com
Jessica Wolf, M.AmSAT, ACAT 1977, has had a private teaching practice in New York City for over three decades. She is an Assistant Professor of acting at Yale School of Drama, and is the founder and director of the postgraduate training program called “Jessica Wolf’s Art of Breathing.” In 2013, she created the first three-dimensional animation of the respiratory system and published a collection of her articles. Jessica is responsible for creating the internationally renowned Alexander program at the Aspen Music Festival. She is also a certified Laban Movement Analyst. Jessica travels internationally, teaching workshops and presenting at conferences.
Pamela Blanc, M.AmSAT, certified ACAT-San Francisco, 1979, is a founder, Senior Faculty member and a Director of the Alexander Training Institute of Los Angeles (ATI-LA). Pamela was introduced to the principles of Breathing Coordination by Jessica Wolf in 1998; briefly studied with Carl Stough in 2000; continued private study with Jessica over the years and enrolled in the first postgraduate training program in Jessica Wolf’s Art of Breathing, 2002. Pamela is the senior Art of Breathing teacher on all Art of Breathing postgraduate courses offered to Alexander Technique Teachers. Pamela teaches privately in Los Angeles and in the Music Conservatory at Chapman University.