Books
Your Body, Your Voice – The Key to Natural Singing and Speaking, by Theodore Dimon, Jr.
An innovative guide to the underlying design principles of the human voice, Your Body, Your Voice explains patterns of vocal misuse and how to restore the voice to its full potential. Unlike manuals that focus on specific techniques, this book demonstrates how the voice functions as part of the total musculoskeletal system. Drawing on his expertise in the field of education and mind/body approaches, as well as his own training as a singer, Dr Dimon asserts that unless the musculoskeletal system works as a coordinated whole, traditional forms of vocal training will not be effective. Enhanced with over fifty detailed full-color illustrations, and covering topics that include breathing, voice placement, vocal registers, and freeing the voice, Your Body, Your Voice is an invaluable reference for singers, actors, educators, public speakers, and anyone interested in improving vocal performance.
“Mystery turned into purest common sense. Indispensable”
Alan Rickman, actor (Snape in the Harry Potter films)
“Anyone who is genuinely serious about singing will find extraordinarily simple and liberating truths about how the body can embody the voice in the most spontaneous and natural manner.” Malcolm Walker, professor of Voice at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris
_________________________________________________________________________________
The Body in Motion: Its Evolution and Design, by Theodore Dimon, Jr.
The human body is the most marvelous and versatile moving machine in the world. But do you know how it got this way, or the various things it is actually capable of doing? In The Body in Motion, Dr. Dimon explores the various systems that make up the human body, making sense of our wonderful anatomical design in a completely down-to-earth way that is enlightening–and understandable–to the expert and layperson alike.
With over 100 color illustrations, The Body in Motion is clearly and beautifully illustrated. Over the course of twelve concise chapters, the author confidently guides the reader through all of our anatomical systems, revealing how each one works and how it evolved. And the author doesn’t just stop there, but shows how the different systems cooperate to form an upright, intelligent, tool-making marvel–the most remarkable machine on the planet.
“With beautiful illustrations and free from technical jargon, The Body In Motion moves away from being just another book on anatomy to provide a deeper understanding of our functionality. Highly recommended.”
Yoga Magazine, UK
The Undivided Self, by Theodore Dimon, Jr.
Based on Alexander’s discovery of “use,” the author argues that a unified concept of mind and body, in contrast to other mind/body theories, points the way to a truly educational approach to health based on conscious prevention and control. The book begins with the author’s narrative account of how he arrived at his theory, and concludes with a review of mind/body techniques. Foreword by Walter Carrington.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Anatomy of the Moving Body: A Basic Course in Bones, Muscles, and Joints, by Theodore Dimon, Jr. (2nd edition)
A complete, lecture-based course in bones, muscles, and joints designed specifically for dancers and movement educators. With thirty-one elegantly illustrated chapters, each covering a distinct region of the body. Dimon simultaneously demystifies and brings to life the structure and mechanics of the human body. Topics discussed are: etymology of anatomical terms; origins and attachments of muscles and related actions; discussion of major functioning structures such as the pelvis, shoulder girdle, ankle, and hand; major landmarks and human topography; and structures related to breathing and vocalization.
“More than just clear, concise, and accurate, Dimon’s Anatomy of the Moving Body also wonderfully expresses the joy of musculoskeletal anatomic understanding—its marvelous vocabulary and endlessly fascinating relations of structure and function.”
John H.M. Austin, M.D.
Professor Radiology,
College of Physicians and Surgeons
Columbia University, New York, NY
The Elements of Skill: A Conscious Approach to Learning, by Theodore Dimon, Jr.
Much more than another how-to book, The Elements of Skill advances a new approach to learning based on the awareness and control of action. Dimon argues that the most important element in skilled performance is neither practice nor mechanical drilling but an understanding of one’s habitual ways of doing and thinking. He clearly describes principles that can help children and adults alike overcome learning difficulties by breaking skills down into manageable elements and removing harmful habits. Of fundamental use to teachers and parents, The Elements of Skill presents a bold new thesis on learning based on the functioning mind and body as “the central instrumentality upon which all learning depends.”
“Addresses an essential but neglected aspect of education . . . a necessity for teachers, parents, and all who are committed to learning.”
Dr. Seymour Simmons III
Professor of Art and Art Education, Winthrop University
Frank Pierce Jones: Collected Writings on the Alexander Technique, edited by Theodore Dimon, Jr. and Richard Brown
A compilation of 40 scientific and humanistic papers on the Technique, including some never published before. The collection includes an introduction on the life and work of Frank Pierce Jones, and each paper is introduced with explanatory notes. Foreword by Professor Alexander Murray.
The Undivided Self, Anatomy of the Moving Body, and The Elements of Skill can be purchased through:
Amazon.com
North Atlantic Books
Random House
Frank Pierce Jones: Collected Writings on the Alexander Technique can be purchased through:
Mouritz Books