For Surya Cox, teaching Alexander Technique and voice coaching/singing is a way of life.

“About 20 years ago I was working for the Wellington City Council as an administrator. I would basically go around the city promoting things like the Botanic Gardens spring festivals or Summer City festival. The job was double-edged; I loved it because it was so exciting and I hated it because I would get so stressed out.

“I remember I had this manager who would pass me in the corridor and say to me, ‘Don’t worry, it might never happen’. I knew I must have always looked anxious for him to be saying that to me.

“Then I became interested in the Alexander technique, which is a natural therapy that re-educates people with their posture and breathing.

“I had heard good things about it through my brother, who is a professional French horn player. He used to get quite tense when he was playing music but through regular Alexander Technique lessons, he changed his way of being. He started to stand quite differently and looked taller because he was standing at his full height. And he looked so much more calm and poised.

“When I first tried it out, I found it had instant results on my body and my whole sense of being. I couldn’t pinpoint why but at the time, I just felt good and I realised that I wanted to take it further. So I decided to travel to England and eventually began to train as an Alexander Technique teacher.

“When you practise Alexander Technique, you must be very calm in yourself to teach it. The method means you are working on yourself as you’re teaching others to unravel and undo tension. So you really need to practise what you preach. It’s a whole way of life for the practitioner and the pupil, and learning it has had a profound effect on my life.

“It is also something I’ve put into practice at a very deep level. Being an Alexander technique teacher is not just a career for me, it is a whole way of being.”