The contact person for the Section for Art of Eurythmy, Speech, Drama and Music is 

Mike Burton   

Eurythmy 

"Art does not reproduce the visible; rather, it makes visible." - Paul Klee

Eurythmy reveals through movement what we hear in language and music. It is not only the sounds resounding into the surrounding space that we hear, we also experience the inner soul language, the mood carried in the music or the words. There is a constant balancing between what streams out into the world and the inner quality that touches us; between that which resonates and the silence, the intervals and pauses.

The eurythmist gives expression to these inner and outer qualities through movement. As the ear receives sound, eurythmy transforms what sounds into movement, making the audible visible. This may be expressed in a small gesture or movement involving the whole body. There is nothing random, the movement and gesture relate directly to what is sounding.

Eurythmy as visible speech differs from that of visible singing. As sounds are formed and sculptured on the breath to create words that flow into language, in the eurythmy gestures, the vowels and consonants are formed and sculptured. The whole is given movement in the rhythms and enlivened through the transitions. Choreography portrays the essence of the poem or prose.

In visible singing the gestures for notes and intervals make visible the melody that is what is audible and inaudible in the music. Pitch, rhythm, beat and harmony also come to expression through movement. The gesture for a string instrument will vary from that of a wind or brass instrument. Again the choreography aims to express the essence of the music. As pieces may be written for solo instruments or a full orchestra, eurythmy performed as an art can be done as solo, duo or group pieces.

There are also times when eurythmy is performed in silence. At such times the audience can live totally into the movement, experience the eurythmy for itself.

Brief history and development

Eurythmy is based on an understanding of the human being as one in whom the soul-spiritual is intimately woven with all the processes that take place in the physical body. Eurythmy was first developed as an art in consultation with Rudolf Steiner. Later educational, social and therapeutic eurythmy was developed.

The first artistic performance was held in 1910. Since then eurythmists have performed and toured across the world.

It was integrated into the Waldorf School (Rudolf Steiner School) Curriculum as it was formed in 1919. Since then it has been taught in schools around the world.

In 1921 the therapeutic aspect of eurythmy was founded. In the area of health and healing eurythmists work with doctors, in medical practices, therapy centres, independently and with special needs children and adult communities.

In more recent years the social therapeutic aspect of movement has been strengthened and developed for the workplace. Eurythmists are increasingly active in industry and a variety of institutions, gaols and supporting management.

New Zealand

Eurythmists are working in a number of centres in New Zealand; in Auckland, Titirangi, Hamilton, Tauranga, Hawkes Bay, Wellington, Kapiti Coast and Christchurch.

"If a human being reveals through eurythmy gestures what his being inherently possesses as language, and enables the entire soul experience to become visible, then the mysteries of the world may be artistically expressed".

 Rudolf Steiner