Shaping the future together.
Elementary music is always connected with movement, dance and language. All these means of expression are inherent in humans from birth. Children at play in particular spontaneously and naturally combine speaking, singing, moving and dancing into an inseparable whole. The Orff Schulwerk takes up this innate need for expression in a special way. It supports and encourages creative activity in play-oriented situations and gently leads to conscious music-making without sheet music.Rhythm is the connecting element between music, language, movement and dance. In the Orff Schulwerk, language becomes rhythm and music, rhythm and music become language. Making music with gestures and conducting, playing instruments and dancing movements are integral parts of this approach. According to Orff, melody also arises from rhythm: there is no melody without rhythm, but there is certainly rhythm without melody.
»Music begins in people, and so does teaching.«
– Carl Orff –
The Orff Schulwerk focuses on people and their abilities, skills and potential. Being creative is central to this approach. Individual abilities determine improvisation and the creation of music. This means that creative musical expression is not only possible after long periods of practice. Through playing together and interacting, children, young people and adults are encouraged to discover, try out, change, imitate, contrast, compare, practise and repeat music.
As with learning a language, musical and dance improvisation in the Orff Schulwerk develops in stages: individual words and short rhythms are followed by longer motifs. By understanding the connections, musicians can combine music in new and free ways until music is finally created spontaneously, flexibly and consciously.
© COS/Archiv: OZM, Carl Orff beim Komponieren am Flügel 1917
