Dear friends,

It is with profound sadness that I inform you on behalf of my sisters that our beloved father, Al Pesso, died suddenly on May 19th after a long illness and seven months hospitalization. There will be a joint memorial service for both our mother and father in Cambridge, MA in late summer at a time and date to be determined.

Extending a warm hug to all who loved him and will miss him,

Tana Pesso

(Al’s eldest daughter)

Albert Pesso, beloved husband of Diane Boyden Pesso & son of Esther Albala & Bohor Ben Saba Pincas Pesso, died after a long illness on May 19, 2016 in Boston, MA. Born Sept. 19, 1929 he leaves 3 daughters, Tana Pesso, Tasmin Pesso, & Tia Pesso Powell, 4 grandchildren, Chris F. Edley III, Kyra Chu Pesso, Jonathan Pesso Chu, & Xoren Pesso Powell, brother Sam Pesso, & sister Sylvia Waldner. 

With his wife, Al created Pesso Boyden System Psychomotor, a widely respected interactive technique that helps clients create new memories to compensate for emotional deficits in the past.  He has been called one of the 3 living masters of body-based psychotherapy and was chosen in 2012 to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award by the U.S. Assoc. for Body Psychotherapy.

Al began his career as a dancer & choreographer, studying under Martha Graham and May O’Donnell. He & Diane met as Bennington College students, then married & danced in NYC. Al received his B.A. from Goddard College. In 1956, they established a dance center in Quincy, MA & within 5 years developed the foundational theory of PBSP. Encouraging dancers to allow their bodies to act out their inner feelings, they observed that the resulting emotional outpouring was cathartic, but did not help the individual heal their emotional scars. They went on to develop an interactive model that drew on spatial relationships, specific wording, & physical touch to provide a response from the outer world to each of the inner needs expressed. This facilitated the creation of new body-based memories to counteract memories of past emotional deficits. Al was a tenured assoc. professor & dir. of Emerson College’s dance dept. while he & Diane developed, practiced, & began teaching their new form of body-based psychotherapy.

Al served as dir. of Psychomotor Therapy at McLean Hospital & the Pain Unit of the N.E. Rehabilitation Hospital; adjunct prof. at Fielding Inst.; & consultant in psychiatric research at the Boston VA Hospital. He also taught PBSP at Harvard’s continuing education program & at other educational & medical institutions abroad. He has written & contributed to many books & more than 50 articles, & led hundreds of seminars around the world.

Al was a featured speaker at many psychology conferences, such as: the American Academy of Psychotherapists; the Assoc. of Humanistic Psychology; the National Inst. for Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine; the Berlin Psychoanalytic Inst.; the European Congress on Body Psychotherapy; & the American Assoc. of Marriage & Family Therapy. He also presented at medical schools & hospitals, including Grand Rounds at BU’s Medical School.

Considered a uniquely gifted ‘therapists’ therapist’ Al helped thousands of clients to achieve lives of greater happiness, satisfaction, & meaning. He established PBSP training centers around the world which have certified hundreds of PBSP therapists & trained an excellent cadre of PBSP trainers & supervisors who carry on the work to the highest standards. It brought Al & Diane deep gratification in their final days to know that they left had their life’s work in such capable hands.

Like his wife, Al had a deeply compassionate wish to heal all the wounds of the world. He will be sorely missed by friends & family who remain inspired by his life's work, fierce dedication, playful spirit, & unique soul.

A joint memorial service for Al & Diane will be held in Camb., MA TBD. See http://www.forevermissed.com/albert-pesso/#about for tributes.