Gerda Alexander

Life and work

The story behind the role.

German / Danish teacher (1908-1994).

Gerda Alexander (February 15, 1908 – February 21, 1994) was a dancer, director and teacher of Dalcroze Eurhythmics who was born in Germany and later got a Danish citizenship. Gerda Alexander was involved with the avant-garde movements in the arts, education and body culture in Germany during the early decades of the 20th century, and later settled in Copenhagen, Denmark. Her research into tension and relaxation led her to coin the term ‘eutony’, which was subsequently also used to identify her work (known as Eutony or Eutonie Gerda Alexander®). In developing a lifelong research on muscle tone, Gerda Alexander has collaborated with medical, educational and arts training institutions across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Oceania, and South, Central and North America. Gerda Alexander was a pioneer in somatic education studies, and her school in Copenhagen trained professionals for 45 years. The term ‘eutony/eutonia’ has attracted widespread interest, and related methods are taught in professional training schools in several countries around the world.

Encyclopaedic excerpts from Gerda Alexander; shortened for length and available under CC BY-SA 4.0.