Dalcroze

Kodaly

Orff

Suzuki

Émile Jaques-Dalcroze, (1865-1950), was a Swiss musician and music educator, who developed eurhythmics, a method of learning and experiencing music through movement.
Dalcroze began his career at the Geneva Conservatory, where he taught harmony and solfege. It was in his solfege courses that he began testing many of his influential and revolutionary ideas. By 1906, Dalcroze had begun giving public presentations of his method. In 1910, with the help of German industrialist Wolf Dohrn, Dalcroze founded a school at Hellerau, outside of Dresden, dedicated to the teaching of his method. With the outbreak of World War I, in 1914, the school was abandoned.

Dalcroze is a method of teaching musical concepts principally through movement. A variety of movement analogues are used for musical concepts, in order to develop an integrated and natural feel for musical expression. Dalcroze felt, turning the body into a well-tuned musical instrument, was the best path to generating a solid and vibrant musical foundation, on which to further build fine and versatile musicianship.

The Dalcroze Method consists of three equally important elements: eurhythmics, solfege, and improvisation. Together, according to Dalcroze, they comprise the musicianship training of a complete musician. In an ideal approach, elements from each subject are blended together, resulting in tuition rooted in creativity and movement.

A “complete” musician, who has been exposed to the Dalcroze method, is more able to freely express themselves through the music they play, with the added ability of communicating both physical and emotional expression. Thus the overall musical performance is made alive, and becomes an independent voice, or character.