Quick Reactions with a Dalcroze Teacher
This is the inaugural edition of “Quick Reactions with a Dalcroze Teacher”, a new regular feature of the DSA blog. Each month I’ll interview a different Dalcroze teacher. For the premier, I interviewed myself! Q: Give your “Dalcroze Origin Story” in 50 words or less. A: My girlfriend (now wife!) was taking classes with Bob…
Read MoreRemembering Annabelle Joseph
We learned this morning that Annabelle Joseph, our friend and colleague of many years, passed away last evening (11/19/24). Annabelle was an alumnus of Carnegie Tech (Piano Performance, 1953) and taught Eurhythmics and Solfège in the Carnegie Mellon University School of Music from 1989–2016 (27 years). She was the Director emerita of the Marta Sanchez…
Read MoreSabbatical in Switzerland: Institut Jaques-Dalcroze (Part 1)
This article first appeared in The Orff Echo, Volume XVIII, No. 4, Summer 1986. ©1986 American Orff-Schulwerk Association, Mayfield Heights, OH. Used by permission. Émile Jaques-Dalcroze, composer, pianist, and professor of harmony at the Conservatory of Geneva, developed his method of music education over an extended period from about 1900 to the 1920s. He was the greatest exponent…
Read MoreThe Mystery of the Espèce
Introduction Émile Jaques-Dalcroze used the term espèce (French for “species”) to describe all varieties of pitch sets, including dichords, trichords, and heptachords (among others), which outline and define all qualities of seventh chords. To understand the espèces requires a thorough understanding of the do-to-do scales, pitch sets (dyads, trichords, etc.), and the four species of…
Read MoreExecutive Director’s Letter
Welcome to an exciting new year with Dalcroze USA! Earlier this year, we joined together at our 2024 National Conference in Oberlin, OH, and are embracing the momentum it generated. This fall, as we welcome new members and newly inspired volunteers, I look forward to fresh ideas that will expand the reach and impact of…
Read MoreThe Spirit of Play Brings Joy
One summer afternoon, I sat on my porch watching some neighborhood children playing. Their mission was to find roly-polies under a rock, and they had to find a way to move the rock to do so. One pretended he was Superman and tried to lift it. Another tried to push it. The third kicked. Each…
Read MoreThe ICDS Heads to Luxembourg
The International Conference of Dalcroze Studies (ICDS), in its 11 years of existence, has blossomed into an exciting new major event in the Dalcroze world. It attracts Dalcroze, Dalcroze-adjacent and Dalcroze-curious participants from around the globe, enabling practitioners to mix fruitfully with world-renowned performers, clinicians, and scholars in fields from music education to neuroscience. Last…
Read MoreCall for Submissions: Remembering Anne Farber
It is with sadness that we announce the passing of Anne Farber from a heart attack on August 17, 2024. Many of us knew Anne through her brilliant teaching at the Longy School in Cambridge, along with Lisa Parker, and the Lucy Moses School in New York, where she founded the ongoing Dalcroze School. Although…
Read MoreEditor’s Letter
I recently sat down at the piano to noodle. I was having trouble coming up with a topic for an article I was writing, and I hoped that improvising would help the brainstorming process. As the music set in, I found myself revisiting summer Dalcroze memories. The national conference at the scenic and historic Oberlin…
Read MoreIntroducing: Professional Teacher Outreach Support
Are you a DSA member who first learned about Dalcroze Education while attending a professional conference, or a professional teacher who has had the opportunity to teach at a conference? National and state events are one of the best ways we can share our unique work with others. In an effort to help teachers who…
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