What is Dalcroze Eurhythmics, exactly? Dalcroze (pronounced DAL-crohz) is a whole-body musical education created by Swiss composer, musician and educator Émile Jaques-Dalcroze in the early 1900s. “I know, because I have experienced.” This famous quote from Dalcroze embodies the core of music education, and even education in general. It is through ear, mind and body working together that we truly understand a musical concept.
We all have natural rhythms existing within our body. Heartbeats, breathing, walking feet. The children are asked to perform a multitude of activities, such as matching their walking feet to the beats Alex plays on the piano—to speed up to running feet when the music gets faster, jump in the air when she plays chords, twirl when she trills—to follow whatever the music tells their bodies to do!
By moving the music from the ear all throughout the body, we are learning how to listen. We are learning how to resonate with what we hear. By holding space for the decision of how fast or slow to go, we are helping children grapple with their decision-making abilities, and they are able to see a direct consequence from their actions. They are making art in a different, unseen way— a form of dance and listening combined with music and moving forward to the beat of their own feet. This is freedom.