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Serena Woolf – Musicians’ Health Specialist
https://www.healthymusician.uk
Technique and performance challenges, stress, and pain can all be part of a musical career.
You’ve probably spent decades in intense study and performance to get to this point, with everything that comes with it – travel, long days, heavy schedules. Musicians often define themselves through their profession and the instrument they play, so when things start to go wrong – when playing-related stress or pain creeps in – it can be hard to know where to turn. Performing arts medicine, in which I specialise, is a relatively new discipline that helps musicians solve playing-related problems in total confidence and offers solutions that maintain peak form.
I work with the complete musician, addressing any or all of the issues you may be facing as a player, singer, conductor, or teacher. Over the years I’ve developed a large palette of techniques to help musicians with problems. After listening to you and identifying your concerns, we work together to find durable solutions to problems rather than just treating symptoms.
I work as both a clinician and performance coach, addressing issues such as pain, movement, posture and technique.
These are all closely linked to other factors I cover, such as practice regimes, mental and physical preparation, managing a career, and the pressures of life as a performer. I offer a single point of contact for problems that are often referred to different practitioners — because in practice, these issues are often closely related.
My experience includes more than 12 years as an Alexander Technique teacher specialising in hypermobility and chronic pain — in New York, London (where I taught at LAMDA), and now in Folkestone. As a BAPAM-registered practitioner, some of that time has been spent working with musicians on problems related to playing and performance that don’t fit neatly into any one specialism.
Before any of this, I trained as a double bass player to diploma standard and spent several years playing as an orchestral musician whilst also managing an orchestra. After that I moved into the business side of classical music — artist promotion at Decca International and Nimbus Records, working with top roster musicians and singers. Later I ran my own artist communications agency in Paris.
All this means that I understand the pressures of a professional music career: I have lived it — on stage, backstage, and as part of the industry.
