Eurhythmics

"In evolving the educational system of Eurhythmics some twelve years ago I certainly did not realize the great influence that this new system would have in restoring man to knowledge of himself. I thought only of making my pupils better musicians."

Emile Jaques-Dalcroze: Preface to La Ryhthmic 1917.

With eurhythmics we confront the body by means of special exercises that strengthen, relax, and align.  Eurhythmics allows the musician to work toward a better awareness, control, and unification of the mental and physical faculties i.e., memory, concentration, coordination, the efficient use of body weight and energy, the effective use of time, an acute awareness of space, and a firm understanding of the creative powers.  Eurhythmics permits the infusion of the human body into every aspect of music learning and music making.  It is not a means in-itself but rather a means to-an-end.  This involvement of the human body is the hallmark of the method, and makes the Dalcroze approach unique among all others.


"We have two ends in view with our exercises [in eurhythmics]: firstly to create numerous automatic actions and to insure a complete muscular response, and secondly to establish a sure relation between mind and body.  One of the first results of these exercises is to teach the [student] to know and to control himself.  Knowing something about the marvelous mechanism of the body; that body which was given us not to be despised but to be made a fit dwelling-place for the soul; knowing also that he is able to carry out with ease movements suggested by others or willed by himself, the [student] develops the desire to make use of the many forces at his disposal, and as a natural result of his mind being freed from physical restraint, his imagination develops."

"All the exercises of Eurhythmics aim at strengthening the power of concentration, at keeping the body under control while awaiting orders from the intellect, at turning conscious action into subconscious, and at deliberately training and developing the subconscious faculties. Further, these exercises tend to create more motive habits, new reflexes, to obtain the greatest result with the least effort, and so to tranquilize the spirit, to strengthen the will, and to establish order and clarity in the organism."

Rhythm, Music, and Education: Emile Jaques-Dalcroze , Dalcroze Society, London .

Emile Jaques-Dalcroze (1865-1950) the Swiss musician and educator who founded and developed this work, adopted the principle that music and movement are related, from a Greek axiom which states that music and movement are one and inseparable.

Body movement is the predominant experience.  Listening is the key to this experience since the individual's sensitivity to sound determines the sensitivity of the physical response.  It is the essence of music, which he must respond to, and when he uses time, space, and energy in correct proportions, the response or the movement is in ballance.

The eurhythmics class fosters, and nurtures creativity in a variety of forms.  There is respect for the ability of each individual, and for his or her differences.  All students are encouraged to improvise in movement, thereby paving the way for creative expression through other media (e.g., voice, percussion instruments, piano, winds, and strings).  The students learn to work together in a variety of ways.  There is interplay among individuals, which results in group-improvisations that provide creative ensemble experience. 

 Dalcroze taught us:

"The aim of Eurhythmics is to enable pupils, at the end of their course, to say, not "I know," but "I have experienced," and so to create in them the desire to express themselves; for the deep impression of an emotion inspires a longing to communicate it, to the extent of one's powers, to others."

The following is a list of the eurhythmics subjects, which form the basis of the various Dalcrozian teaching techniques.

JAQUES-DALCROZE EURHYTHMICS SUBJECTS

1. Time plus Energy equal Space.

  • Space equals Time plus Energy [Form the musician's point of view] 
    The experience of awakening the muscular and nervous systems so that one may discover a physical act and/or sensation for each agogique nuance, melodic contour, and dynamic force found in music, and thereby marrying each music parameter to a physical movement gesture and/or sensation.
  • Time equals Space plus Energy [Form the dancer's point of view.]
    The experience of awakening the hearing organ and listening mechanism so that the appropriate music symbols and technical terms for each physical agogique nuance and dynamic force may be formulated and learned, thereby marring each physical sensation to a music parameter.

2. Social Integration

  • The integration of oneself into a group, which will come to function as a responsible and productive artistic ensemble.

3. Body Technique (balance, alignment of the anatomy) 

  • The study of the elimination of the elimination of extraneous gesture and locomotion that may prevent the fruition of the link between the physical sensation and the music parameter. The study includes balance, displacement of weight, and the force of gravity against the human body in motion.
  • The execution of techniques in movement and gesture, physically starting, stopping and maintaining a stable equilibrium regardless of the body's position; developing and maintaining proper physical alignment while performing all possible manners of locomotion, sitting and standing.

4. Movement Independence

M. Jaques taught us :

"A special form of movement is needed, assuring not only perfect muscular control, contraction and relaxation at will, but also the ability to remain relaxed when the need of the complete movement is involved.  One of the best ways of ensuring the isolation of an independent movement is by raising the same exercises with other limbs and other contrasting movement, without these affecting the original movement.  It really involves the canalization of man's living forces, enabling him to control unexpected disturbances, turning them towards a definite aim, this aim being a will organized and independent life."

“By means of gradual, well prepared work program of each muscle, involving every state of grade of voluntary effort in contraction and relaxation, muscular and nervous consciousness of both strength and weakness is gained, and man becomes master of himself, capable also of eliminating all nonessentials." 

  • Associations - performing two or more similar acts simultaneously
  • Dissociations - performing two or more dissimilar acts simultaneously
  • Re-associations - (the goal)
  • Quick Reactions 
    • The immediate performance or execution of an act or acts upon a given tactile, visual or an aural stimulus; the simultaneous performance of two acts in related or unrelated parts of the body.
    • Inhibition - sudden retreat from the flow of energy
    • Excitation - sudden burst of energy

5. Concentration /Memory 

  • The execution of specific teaching techniques in listening that will challenge the memory and the power of concentration such as canonic imitation, melodic sequence, and repetition. 

 6. Corporal Schema

  • the construction of a mental image of one's body and its parts (inner video)
  • developing the awareness of the position each parts of one's body assumes in space and the function each part is performing at all times (inner video)
  • developing the awareness of the difference between the left side and the right side of one's body
  • moving of one's body in the three registers of space (gesture), and realizing how each part of the body relates to the other in size and shape
  • the utilization of the breathing mechanism in concert with the body's movement

 7. Breathing – use of the life force

  • the awareness of the breath stream as the force that propels the body through space and time,
  • the awareness that the breathe lies at the base of all movement and gesture
  • connecting the breath to the crusic and anacrusic phrase structures
  • connecting the breath to rhythmic, melodic, and harmonic patterning
  • The most important aspect in the use of the human body in any art form is the effect of breathing on performance.  Students of movement tend to experience two common breathing problems: holding the breath, and breathing erratically, causing over-work and shortness-of-breath.

    The answer to these problems lies in coordinating the breath stream in strict rhythm with the movement itself.  Once the breathing is working in consort with the movement, the body is able to receive the appropriate amounts of oxygen needed for the activity.  Thus, the body operates more efficiently, conserves energy, and minimizes fatigue.

    When teaching music however, breathing has an additional role in a eurhythmics class.  Although the breath should function in concert with the rhythm of movement, this rule cannot always prevail in relation to the study and performance of music.  Musicians must also account for the phrase length and the articulation with the phrase. 

    The rhythm, living within the phrase, is the physical impulse carrying the musician to the cadence.  Therefore, the breath must not only link to the physical gestures but also to the musical lines and phrases.  It is the eurhythmician's goal to link the breath stream with the physical execution not only of the gestures but also the music.

    Because the sensitive balance between the kinetic and musical uses of breathing varies, the concept of breathing becomes a subject for study within each music parameter.  The essential point for the eurhythmician is the need to be ever conscious of the breathing mechanism and it function as one experiences the physical sensation of music.

8. Spatial Orientation 

  • understanding how the subject (oneself) and the objects (other people and/ore things) relate in positive and negative space with gesture and locomotion
  • developing awareness of the energy required to adapt the same gestures within the same time limit but in a variety of spaces (larger spaces will require more energy while smaller spaces will require less)

CONCLUSION

Eurhythmics is it not an end in itself although it may certainly be viewed as such.  From the quote at the beginning of this section it is clear that it was not M. Jaques ’ original intent, but many of his disciples have seen the benefits of eurhythmics and have created courses of study that use music to achieve specific goals in eurhythmics.  In fact, Clair-Louise Detoit , a one-time director of the Institute Jaques-Dalcroze in Geneva , developed an entire curriculum leading to the Jaques-Dalcroze Diplôme Supérieur in Psychomotor behavioralism.  Even though the College Jaques-Dalcroze no longer recognizes that Diplôme, it did produce a few very gifted teachers in the discipline who continue to influence the work now offered in Geneva .  At one time M. Jaques himself granted the Diplôme Supérieur in chorography, which is certainly another direction where Eurhythmics can lead. 

Nevertheless, the College,  leery of what may come of the “method” if various types of degrees and emphases began cropping up, they decided in 1973, to return to the root of the methodology and grant the Diplôme Supérieur in Music exclusively.  Therefore, the study of music remains at the core of the method, it is what Dalcrozians teach. In other words, the Jaques-Dalcroze Educator uses eurhythmics as a set of teaching tools and techniques in order to teach music theory, form and analysis.  Europeans call this study solfege, which is the second branch of the “method.”

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