Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 2013 When the mouse meets the elephant : a manual for string bass players with application of the philosophy and principles of the F. M. Alexander Technique Yun-Chieh Chou Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations Part of the Music Commons Recommended Citation Chou, Yun-Chieh, "When the mouse meets the elephant : a manual for string bass players with application of the philosophy and principles of the F. M. Alexander Technique" (2013). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 1689. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/1689 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. WHEN THE MOUSE MEETS THE ELEPHANT: A MANUAL FOR STRING BASS PLAYERS WITH APPLICATION OF THE PHILOSOPHY AND PRINCIPLES OF THE F. M. ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE A Monograph Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in The School of Music by Yun-Chieh Chou B.M., Tunghai University, Taiwan, 2001 M.M., Louisiana State University, 2007 August 2013 This monograph is dedicated to my beloved mom (Ms. Hui-Yu Chuang) who provides love, endless support, and encouragement. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First of all, I must offer my heart-felt thanks to all my committee members, Professor Yung-Chiao Wei, Dr. Jane Cassidy, Professor Patricia O’Neill, Professor Dennis Parker, Professor Espen Lilleslatten, and my Dean’s Representative Dr. Jan Hondzinski, who spent time to review and offer valuable comments regarding the content of this monograph. Also, I obtained very useful input from accomplished scholars who assisted me to form my research methodology of this study: Dr. James Byo, Dr. Jane Cassidy, and Dr. Elizabeth Menard. I am most thankful to my incredible Alexander Technique teacher, Prof. Patricia O’Neill, who provided me her whole-hearted support and exerted her entire lifetime wisdom in all aspects, to assist me in refining and shaping this Alexander study. No words can fully describe how profoundly Prof. O’Neill has benefited me as an Alexander Technique philosopher in teaching, an accomplished artist in performing, and by being a decent and sincere human being in life. Finally, I want to thank my dearest parents, my brother Blake, my aunt Mary, my uncle Yong-Ming, and my cousin Betty. Thanks for all your love, support, and inspiration. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................................ iii LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................................... vii ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................. xi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................... 1 Background of the Study ................................................................................................ 1 Organization of the Study ............................................................................................... 6 2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ...................................................................... 9 Credit for Alexander Technique from Various Fields ................................................ …9 The Written Works of F. M. Alexander ....................................................................... .14 A Scientific Study about the Alexander Technique ..................................................... .15 Literature about the Application of the Alexander Technique to String Playing.............................................................................................................. ..16 Studies of String Pedagogy ........................................................................................... 18 Other Works by Important Alexander Technique Figures ........................................... 20 Need for the Study ........................................................................................................ 20 Research Questions ....................................................................................................... 22 3 F. M. ALEXANDER AND THE ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE ................................. 23 The Origin of the Alexander Technique ....................................................................... 24 F. M. Alexander ............................................................................................................ 26 The Alexander Technique ............................................................................................. 28 Use of the Self ...................................................................................................... 30 Primary Control ................................................................................................... 31 Faulty Sensory Perception ................................................................................... 34 Kinesthesia and Proprioception ........................................................................... 35 Inhibition .............................................................................................................. 38 Direction .............................................................................................................. 40 End-Gaining ......................................................................................................... 42 Means-Whereby ................................................................................................... 43 Constructive Conscious Control .......................................................................... 43 Unified Field of Attention .................................................................................... 44 iv 4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .................................................................................. 47 Research Design ............................................................................................................ 49 The Need for the Expertise of an Alexander Teacher ................................................... 54 Documentation of Data Collection ............................................................................... 57 5 THE FUNDAMENTALS OF DOUBLE BASS PLAYING IN RELATION TO THE PRINCIPLES OF ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE ......................................................... 60 Balanced Body Posture in Standing and Sitting ........................................................... 62 Standing ............................................................................................................... 62 Sitting Position ..................................................................................................... 64 Breathing ....................................................................................................................... 77 Exercises for Sensing the Natural Breathing Process .......................................... 80 Body Freedom ............................................................................................................... 83 Neck Tension ....................................................................................................... 84 Tension in Abdominal Muscles ........................................................................... 89 Focusing and Directing Energy .................................................................................... 91 Hand and Arm Structure and Movement ...................................................................... 94 Back Support ............................................................................................................... 102 Achieving a Full Tone ................................................................................................ 103 Vibrato ........................................................................................................................ 110 Alexander Technique Procedure to Release Tension ................................................. 114 Constructive Rest ............................................................................................... 116 Position of Mechanical Advantage (Monkey) ................................................... 121 6 THE APPLICATION…………….………..…………....………………...…. ........... 128 Summaries of My Two Interviews ............................................................................. 129 From Professor Patricia O’Neill………………..…………….…….… ........... 129 From Professor Yung-Chiao Wei ..................................................................... 130 The Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto……………………………...….…… ............. 132 Brahms’ Cello Sonata in e minor………………………………………...…............. 147 The First Movement of the Sonata……………………………….…… .......... 147 The Second Movement of the Sonata………………………………… ............ 168 The Third Movement of the Sonata……………………………........... ............ 174 7 CONCLUSION ..........................................................................................................