Alfred Wolfsohn

Alfred Wolfsohn
Alfred Wolfsohn
Born23 September 1896
Berlin, Germany
Died5 February 1962(1962-02-05) (aged 65)
United Kingdom
OccupationSinging teacher

Alfred Wolfsohn (23 September 1896 – 5 February 1962) was a German singing teacher who suffered persistent auditory hallucination of screaming soldiers, whom he had witnessed dying of wounds while serving as a stretcher bearer in the trenches of World War I.[1][2] Wolfsohn was diagnosed with shell shock, but did not respond to treatment. He subsequently cured himself by vocalizing extreme sounds, bringing about what he described as a combination of catharsis and exorcism.[3]

Inspired by the range and flexibility of his voice, which developed as a consequence of the exercises and experiments he pursued, Wolfsohn began teaching others to use his vocal techniques as a form of therapeutic expression, which were later incorporated into drama therapy and music therapy. Meanwhile, some pupils of Wolfsohn used the extraordinary vocal range they developed to create performing arts productions, which influenced avant-garde theatre and experimental music.[4]

After Wolfsohn died in 1962, many of his long-standing pupils formed a theatre company called the Roy Hart Theatre, under the direction of South African actor Roy Hart, who had studied with Wolfsohn for fifteen years, which continued to influence practices within expressive arts therapies and the performing arts.[5][6]

  1. ^ Wolfsohn, A., Die Brücke. London 1947 (Manuscript). Trans. Marita Günther and Sheila Braggins. Repository: Joods Historisch Museum, Amsterdam.
  2. ^ Wolfsohn, A., Orpheus, oder der Weg zu einer Maske. Germany 1936–1938 (Manuscript). Trans. Marita Günther. Repository: Joods Historisch Museum, Amsterdam.
  3. ^ Newham, P. The Prophet of Song: The Life and Work of Alfred Wolfsohn. London 1997. Tigers Eye Press.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).