Reflections on Summer Dalcroze Training

I first encountered Dalcroze through weeklong workshops in Lima, Peru, taught by Jeremy Dittus. I attended as a participant and also served as his Spanish/English interpreter for several workshops beginning in 2017. From the start, I was awed by the full-body, joyful approach to learning music. I had played the violin for most of my life and had already spent over ten years teaching both children and adults, yet Dalcroze introduced me to an entirely new way of understanding music. I loved the excitement of trying something unfamiliar, and the laughter that followed when it didn’t work on the first try. It felt as though I was experiencing musical concepts in a completely different way—one I was eager to bring back to my own students and colleagues.

For more than seven years after that first encounter, I hoped I would one day be able to pursue this training in full. It is hard to believe that I am now two years into the certificate program!

 The growth that happens during the two-week summer intensive course is amazing. Concepts I once assumed I would never fully grasp began to make sense, and a big part of what made this possible was the environment itself: supportive, energetic, and full of people who were genuinely excited to learn and to try new things, even when trying means failing first.

Improvisation, and the uncertainty that comes with it, has always been intimidating to me. But the teachers in this program create a space where that fear feels manageable. They offer small, deliberate steps that make experimentation feel safe rather than exposing. Each time I return to the program, I am reminded why I chose this path. It is a multifaceted process that pushes me to grow as both a musician and a teacher. It challenges me to improvise, to express myself, and to understand music in ways I hadn’t considered before. It asks me to confront the fears and limitations I have carried for years without knowing quite how to address them.

I can already see how much I have grown since I began. I move differently, listen differently, and think about music differently than I did two years ago. I look forward to the day when I can do all of this with the same fluency and confidence as the students who are further along this journey than I am. For now, I am grateful simply to be on the path and learning, one step at a time.