Orff Schulwerk
Encyclopedia
The Orff Schulwerk, or simply the Orff Approach, is one of several developmental approaches including the Kodaly Method
, Simply Music
and Suzuki Method
used to teach music education
to students. It combines music
, movement, drama
, and speech
into lessons that are similar to child
's world of play. It was developed by the German
composer Carl Orff
(1895–1982) and colleague Gunild Keetman
during the 1920s. Carl Orff worked until the end of his life to continue the development and spread of his teaching method. The Orff Approach is now used throughout the world to teach students in a natural and comfortable environment. The term "schulwerk" is German
for (literally) "school work" or "schooling", in this regard in the area of music
.
uses very rudimentary forms of everyday activity for the purpose of music creation by music students. The Orff Approach is a "child-centered way of learning" music education that treats music as a basic system like language
and believes that just as every child can learn language without formal instruction so can every child learn music by a gentle and friendly approach. It is often called “Elemental Music making” because the materials needed to teach students are “simple, basic, natural, and close to a child’s world of thought and fantasy”.
In order for the Orff Approach to effectively work teachers must create an atmosphere that is similar to a child’s world of play. This allows participating children to feel comfortable learning a new and often abstract musical skill, greater exploration of a musical instrument
or musical skill, and keeps a student from feeling evaluated or judged by his or her peers and teachers. A child participating in an Orff classroom does not feel the pressure of performing that is often in tandem with music because every student in an Orff classroom is treated as an equal, even when performing a solo. The Orff Approach is used by teachers to encourage their students to enjoy making music as individuals as well as in groups. Children realize the joys of group
co-ordination and cohesion. It also involves the participation of other adults and parents in music making. Thus it brings the role of parent
in child education in a central position. From a teacher’s aspect Orff-Schulwerk is also a process of breaking down each activity into its simplest form and then presenting those steps one at a time to eventually become a completed performance.
In the Orff Approach “all concepts are learned by ‘doing'". Students of the Orff Approach learn music by experiencing and participating in the different musical lessons and activities. These lessons stimulate not only the praxial concepts of music like rhythm and tempo, but also the aesthetic qualities of music. “Orff activities awaken the child’s total awareness” and “sensitize the child’s awareness of space, time, form, line, color, design, and mood- aesthetic data that musicians are acutely aware of, yet find hard to explain to musical novices".
Unlike Simply Music
or the Suzuki Method
, the Orff Schulwerk approach is not a method. There is no systematic stepwise procedure to be followed. There are fundamental principles, clear models and basic processes that all intuitive and creative teachers use to guide their organization of musical ideas.
s, are within singing range, can be manipulated to be played in a round or ABA form. “Music is chosen with strong nationalistic flavor, being related to folk songs and music of the child’s own heritage”. Music can also be anything from nursery rhymes to songs that are invented by the children themselves. Orff-Schulwerk music is largely based on simple but forceful variations on rhythmic patterns. This makes for very simple and beautiful musical forms, which are easily learned by young children, and is also useful for adults and thus it has a universal appeal. Composer David Hewson
was exposed to Orff Schulwerk and this influence helped to shape a lot of his later music.
The music is largely modal, beginning with pentatonic (both major and minor) scales. (English version adapted by Margaret Murray) The drone or bordun, is quickly established as the ground bass that supports most melodies and melodic ostinati add energy and colour..
Volume II in Part One, covers hexachordal (added fa)melodies over Major Drone Bass Triads, and then seven notes: Ionian mode. Note, this is not major scale, as the drone bass enforces a non-functional harmony. Parallel thirds and sixths (paraphony) are used liberally here. Part Two introduces the use of triads as following: I - ii, and some I - vi.
Goodkin (p172) discusses the progression of the volumes: I-II-III-IV-V as opposed to I-II-IV-III-V. Volume III introduces Major Dominant and Subdominant triads (That is to say: functional harmony). However Volume IV can be viewed as more logically the next step as it introduces Dorian, Aeolian and Phrygian modes with similar shifting drones and triads to those found previously in Vol II.
Vol IV, Part One: Minor-Drone Bass Triads. Aeolian, Dorian and Phrygian mode, i-ii shifting drones and triads. Part Two: Tonic and Leading Note triads, i-IV and decoration of the third.
Vol III Major Dominant and Subdominant Triads. This harmonic world is more challenging for children and improvising than the modes, hence the importance of leaving until skills have developed appropriately.
Volume V follows III, but explores Minor Dominant and Subdominant Chords.
And finally, almost as an afterthought, Paralipomena which explores the worlds of Lydian I-II, and Mixolydian I-VII.
When interesting original music has been generated by the groups or individual child a desire to record it may arise. Thus, the desire to develop musical skills emerges by itself and the child may be intrinsically propelled to learn formal music.
as a natural basic form of human
expression. Carl Orff and colleague Gunild Keetman co-composed much of the music for the five volume series, Music for Children. These volumes, first published in 1950, are still available and used today. Music played on Orff instruments is often very simple and easy to play even for first time musicians.
Some of the instruments within the approach include miniature xylophones, marimbas, glockenspiels, and metallophones; all of which have removable bars, resonating columns to project the sound, and are easily transported and stored. Orff teachers also use different sized drums, recorders, and non- pitched percussion instruments “to round out the songs that are sung and played”. The Orff approach also requires that children sing, chant, clap, dance, pat, and snap fingers along to melodies and rhythms.
, exploration, improvisation
, and composition. Through imitation, the teacher, group leader, or even the students perform for the class and the class in turn repeats what was played for them. Exploration allows students to seek out the musical aspects that the Orff instruments offer and explore aural/oral
skills and the motions and expressions that the body is capable of. Literacy is taught by learning musical notation and becoming familiar with forms of music like rondo
and ABA. Improvisation is the act of creating something, especially music, without prior preparation. To improvise, a student must have “a preliminary knowledge and comprehension of concepts.” Students of the Orff Approach learn to create their own melodies in a comfortable environment that allows for mistakes and promotes creativity.
, Germany
. Günther “believed that most students did not get enough chances to do art and music and movement activities”. Because of her extensive background in gymnastics and the arts Gunter was able to open the Gunter-Schule in 1924. Even though Carl Orff
never worked with the students of the Gunter-Schule directly, this was the first institution to teach what would later be known as the Orff Approach.
Students of the Günther-Schule later went on to be dancers and teachers of note. One of these students, Gunild Keetman, began as a student and became a teacher at the school. The Gunter-Schule originally only taught older students however, Keetman later worked on developing the ideas of the school to teach younger children as well. Together she and Carl Orff
created the five volume series "Music for Children" which is still used by teachers today. The Gunter-Schule ran until 1944 when Nazis confiscated it. In 1945 the building was destroyed in an Allied bomb attack and all materials (instruments, costumes, photographs, and its library and archives) were destroyed.
After the war, two serendipitous events brought Orff's approach back into the educational field. A series of radio
programs aimed at children was broadcast in Bavaria
. Orff wrote the music and re-united with Keetman to work on these broadcasts. The second event was the Mozartariums' request to have Keetman teach classes to children between 8 and 10 years old. Traude Schrattenecker who was also a graduate of the Gunter-Schule, joined Keetman in running this school.
There are Orff Schulwerk associations in different countries across the world
including America
, Germany
, Australia
, Korea
, the United Kingdom
, South Africa
, France
, Finland
, and Canada
. All of the organizations are adamant about the teachings of Carl Orff
and the spread of the Approach. Through all of these organizations teachers interested in teaching the Orff Approach can become certified in the Approach. The American Orff-Schulwerk Association offers three different levels of training, each of which takes 60 hours to complete. Level one focuses on the “necessary skills to plan and implement a variety of Orff Schulwerk music
and movement activities in the classroom.” “Levels two and three are concerned with development of conceptual understanding of music and movement elements as they are presented in the Schulwerk elemental music context, as well as the skill needed to implement them”.
, dexterity, and concentration
the technique is often used to teach individuals with special needs
. The simplicity of the technique allows all ranges of handicapped
students to participate in the learning process. Mentally handicapped students can easily perform the tasks without fear of being ridiculed or being left behind. The visually impaired/blind
who tend to have “hesitant, jerky, and over controlled” movements because they “often breathe quite shallowly” can use the different breathing and movement exercises to relax their body and breathing. Students with a hearing impairment
can use the Orff Approach by feeling the vibrations that are created by different instruments
. Since music is mostly resilient students who have had injuries that have mentally impaired them can use the Approach as a form of therapy
. Even elderly individuals who often become weak with old age can use the Orff Approach to help with memory
, dexterity, and agility
Kodály Method
The Kodály Method, also referred to as the Kodály Concept, is an approach to music education developed in Hungary during the mid-twentieth century by Zoltán Kodály...
, Simply Music
Simply Music
Simply Music is a playing-based music education institution. The program is primarily based on creating, developing and presenting playing-based piano and keyboard programs. The organization licenses its proprietary, Australian-developed programs to trained Simply Music Educators, and currently the...
and Suzuki Method
Suzuki method
The Suzuki method is a method of teaching music that emerged in the mid-20th century.-Background:The Suzuki Method was conceived in the mid-20th century by Shin'ichi Suzuki, a Japanese violinist who desired to bring beauty to the lives of children in his country after the devastation of World War II...
used to teach music education
Music education
Music education is a field of study associated with the teaching and learning of music. It touches on all domains of learning, including the psychomotor domain , the cognitive domain , and, in particular and significant ways,the affective domain, including music appreciation and sensitivity...
to students. It combines music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, movement, drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
, and speech
Speech
Speech is the human faculty of speaking.It may also refer to:* Public speaking, the process of speaking to a group of people* Manner of articulation, how the body parts involved in making speech are manipulated...
into lessons that are similar to child
Child
Biologically, a child is generally a human between the stages of birth and puberty. Some vernacular definitions of a child include the fetus, as being an unborn child. The legal definition of "child" generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger than the age of majority...
's world of play. It was developed by the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
composer Carl Orff
Carl Orff
Carl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...
(1895–1982) and colleague Gunild Keetman
Gunild Keetman
The German educator Gunild Keetman was the primary originator, along with Carl Orff, of the approach to teaching music known as Orff Schulwerk...
during the 1920s. Carl Orff worked until the end of his life to continue the development and spread of his teaching method. The Orff Approach is now used throughout the world to teach students in a natural and comfortable environment. The term "schulwerk" is German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
for (literally) "school work" or "schooling", in this regard in the area of music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
.
Foundations of the Orff Approach
The Orff Approach of music educationMusic education
Music education is a field of study associated with the teaching and learning of music. It touches on all domains of learning, including the psychomotor domain , the cognitive domain , and, in particular and significant ways,the affective domain, including music appreciation and sensitivity...
uses very rudimentary forms of everyday activity for the purpose of music creation by music students. The Orff Approach is a "child-centered way of learning" music education that treats music as a basic system like language
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
and believes that just as every child can learn language without formal instruction so can every child learn music by a gentle and friendly approach. It is often called “Elemental Music making” because the materials needed to teach students are “simple, basic, natural, and close to a child’s world of thought and fantasy”.
In order for the Orff Approach to effectively work teachers must create an atmosphere that is similar to a child’s world of play. This allows participating children to feel comfortable learning a new and often abstract musical skill, greater exploration of a musical instrument
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
or musical skill, and keeps a student from feeling evaluated or judged by his or her peers and teachers. A child participating in an Orff classroom does not feel the pressure of performing that is often in tandem with music because every student in an Orff classroom is treated as an equal, even when performing a solo. The Orff Approach is used by teachers to encourage their students to enjoy making music as individuals as well as in groups. Children realize the joys of group
Group (sociology)
In the social sciences a social group can be defined as two or more humans who interact with one another, share similar characteristics and collectively have a sense of unity...
co-ordination and cohesion. It also involves the participation of other adults and parents in music making. Thus it brings the role of parent
Parent
A parent is a caretaker of the offspring in their own species. In humans, a parent is of a child . Children can have one or more parents, but they must have two biological parents. Biological parents consist of the male who sired the child and the female who gave birth to the child...
in child education in a central position. From a teacher’s aspect Orff-Schulwerk is also a process of breaking down each activity into its simplest form and then presenting those steps one at a time to eventually become a completed performance.
In the Orff Approach “all concepts are learned by ‘doing'". Students of the Orff Approach learn music by experiencing and participating in the different musical lessons and activities. These lessons stimulate not only the praxial concepts of music like rhythm and tempo, but also the aesthetic qualities of music. “Orff activities awaken the child’s total awareness” and “sensitize the child’s awareness of space, time, form, line, color, design, and mood- aesthetic data that musicians are acutely aware of, yet find hard to explain to musical novices".
Unlike Simply Music
Simply Music
Simply Music is a playing-based music education institution. The program is primarily based on creating, developing and presenting playing-based piano and keyboard programs. The organization licenses its proprietary, Australian-developed programs to trained Simply Music Educators, and currently the...
or the Suzuki Method
Suzuki method
The Suzuki method is a method of teaching music that emerged in the mid-20th century.-Background:The Suzuki Method was conceived in the mid-20th century by Shin'ichi Suzuki, a Japanese violinist who desired to bring beauty to the lives of children in his country after the devastation of World War II...
, the Orff Schulwerk approach is not a method. There is no systematic stepwise procedure to be followed. There are fundamental principles, clear models and basic processes that all intuitive and creative teachers use to guide their organization of musical ideas.
Orff Schulwerk music
The music generated in the Orff Approach is largely improvisational and uses original tonal constructions that build a sense of confidence and interest in the process of creative thinking. Students of the Orff Approach sing, play instruments, and dance alone as well as in groups. Songs are usually short, contain ostinatoOstinato
In music, an ostinato is a motif or phrase, which is persistently repeated in the same musical voice. An ostinato is always a succession of equal sounds, wherein each note always has the same weight or stress. The repeating idea may be a rhythmic pattern, part of a tune, or a complete melody in...
s, are within singing range, can be manipulated to be played in a round or ABA form. “Music is chosen with strong nationalistic flavor, being related to folk songs and music of the child’s own heritage”. Music can also be anything from nursery rhymes to songs that are invented by the children themselves. Orff-Schulwerk music is largely based on simple but forceful variations on rhythmic patterns. This makes for very simple and beautiful musical forms, which are easily learned by young children, and is also useful for adults and thus it has a universal appeal. Composer David Hewson
David Hewson (composer)
David Graham Hewson is a British composer of scores for television and films.Hewson began composing at the age of 11, influenced by his primary school music education, which had been based entirely on the Schulwerk. This influence stayed with David and shaped a lot of his much later music...
was exposed to Orff Schulwerk and this influence helped to shape a lot of his later music.
The music is largely modal, beginning with pentatonic (both major and minor) scales. (English version adapted by Margaret Murray) The drone or bordun, is quickly established as the ground bass that supports most melodies and melodic ostinati add energy and colour..
Volume II in Part One, covers hexachordal (added fa)melodies over Major Drone Bass Triads, and then seven notes: Ionian mode. Note, this is not major scale, as the drone bass enforces a non-functional harmony. Parallel thirds and sixths (paraphony) are used liberally here. Part Two introduces the use of triads as following: I - ii, and some I - vi.
Goodkin (p172) discusses the progression of the volumes: I-II-III-IV-V as opposed to I-II-IV-III-V. Volume III introduces Major Dominant and Subdominant triads (That is to say: functional harmony). However Volume IV can be viewed as more logically the next step as it introduces Dorian, Aeolian and Phrygian modes with similar shifting drones and triads to those found previously in Vol II.
Vol IV, Part One: Minor-Drone Bass Triads. Aeolian, Dorian and Phrygian mode, i-ii shifting drones and triads. Part Two: Tonic and Leading Note triads, i-IV and decoration of the third.
Vol III Major Dominant and Subdominant Triads. This harmonic world is more challenging for children and improvising than the modes, hence the importance of leaving until skills have developed appropriately.
Volume V follows III, but explores Minor Dominant and Subdominant Chords.
And finally, almost as an afterthought, Paralipomena which explores the worlds of Lydian I-II, and Mixolydian I-VII.
When interesting original music has been generated by the groups or individual child a desire to record it may arise. Thus, the desire to develop musical skills emerges by itself and the child may be intrinsically propelled to learn formal music.
Orff instruments and tools
Orff considered the percussive rhythmRhythm
Rhythm may be generally defined as a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions." This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time may be applied to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or...
as a natural basic form of human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
expression. Carl Orff and colleague Gunild Keetman co-composed much of the music for the five volume series, Music for Children. These volumes, first published in 1950, are still available and used today. Music played on Orff instruments is often very simple and easy to play even for first time musicians.
Some of the instruments within the approach include miniature xylophones, marimbas, glockenspiels, and metallophones; all of which have removable bars, resonating columns to project the sound, and are easily transported and stored. Orff teachers also use different sized drums, recorders, and non- pitched percussion instruments “to round out the songs that are sung and played”. The Orff approach also requires that children sing, chant, clap, dance, pat, and snap fingers along to melodies and rhythms.
Four stages of Orff Schulwerk
In America there are four stages in the Orff Approach: imitationImitation
Imitation is an advanced behavior whereby an individual observes and replicates another's. The word can be applied in many contexts, ranging from animal training to international politics.-Anthropology and social sciences:...
, exploration, improvisation
Improvisation
Improvisation is the practice of acting, singing, talking and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of one's immediate environment and inner feelings. This can result in the invention of new thought patterns, new practices, new structures or symbols, and/or...
, and composition. Through imitation, the teacher, group leader, or even the students perform for the class and the class in turn repeats what was played for them. Exploration allows students to seek out the musical aspects that the Orff instruments offer and explore aural/oral
Oral
The word oral may refer to:As an adjective:* the mouth, the first portion of the alimentary canal that receives food and saliva* speech communication as opposed to writing* oral administration of medicines...
skills and the motions and expressions that the body is capable of. Literacy is taught by learning musical notation and becoming familiar with forms of music like rondo
Rondo
Rondo, and its French equivalent rondeau, is a word that has been used in music in a number of ways, most often in reference to a musical form, but also to a character-type that is distinct from the form...
and ABA. Improvisation is the act of creating something, especially music, without prior preparation. To improvise, a student must have “a preliminary knowledge and comprehension of concepts.” Students of the Orff Approach learn to create their own melodies in a comfortable environment that allows for mistakes and promotes creativity.
Spread of Orff Schulwerk
In 1923 Carl Orff met Dorothee Günther while working at a theater in MunichMunich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Günther “believed that most students did not get enough chances to do art and music and movement activities”. Because of her extensive background in gymnastics and the arts Gunter was able to open the Gunter-Schule in 1924. Even though Carl Orff
Carl Orff
Carl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...
never worked with the students of the Gunter-Schule directly, this was the first institution to teach what would later be known as the Orff Approach.
Students of the Günther-Schule later went on to be dancers and teachers of note. One of these students, Gunild Keetman, began as a student and became a teacher at the school. The Gunter-Schule originally only taught older students however, Keetman later worked on developing the ideas of the school to teach younger children as well. Together she and Carl Orff
Carl Orff
Carl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...
created the five volume series "Music for Children" which is still used by teachers today. The Gunter-Schule ran until 1944 when Nazis confiscated it. In 1945 the building was destroyed in an Allied bomb attack and all materials (instruments, costumes, photographs, and its library and archives) were destroyed.
After the war, two serendipitous events brought Orff's approach back into the educational field. A series of radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
programs aimed at children was broadcast in Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
. Orff wrote the music and re-united with Keetman to work on these broadcasts. The second event was the Mozartariums' request to have Keetman teach classes to children between 8 and 10 years old. Traude Schrattenecker who was also a graduate of the Gunter-Schule, joined Keetman in running this school.
There are Orff Schulwerk associations in different countries across the world
World
World is a common name for the whole of human civilization, specifically human experience, history, or the human condition in general, worldwide, i.e. anywhere on Earth....
including America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. All of the organizations are adamant about the teachings of Carl Orff
Carl Orff
Carl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...
and the spread of the Approach. Through all of these organizations teachers interested in teaching the Orff Approach can become certified in the Approach. The American Orff-Schulwerk Association offers three different levels of training, each of which takes 60 hours to complete. Level one focuses on the “necessary skills to plan and implement a variety of Orff Schulwerk music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
and movement activities in the classroom.” “Levels two and three are concerned with development of conceptual understanding of music and movement elements as they are presented in the Schulwerk elemental music context, as well as the skill needed to implement them”.
Other methods for the Orff Approach
The Orff Approach was originally intended to teach music to children but because of the different benefits that it offers with coordinationMotor coordination
thumb|right|Motor coordination is shown in this animated sequence by [[Eadweard Muybridge]] of himself throwing a diskMotor coordination is the combination of body movements created with the kinematic and kinetic parameters that result in intended actions. Such movements usually smoothly and...
, dexterity, and concentration
Concentration
In chemistry, concentration is defined as the abundance of a constituent divided by the total volume of a mixture. Four types can be distinguished: mass concentration, molar concentration, number concentration, and volume concentration...
the technique is often used to teach individuals with special needs
Special needs
In the USA, special needs is a term used in clinical diagnostic and functional development to describe individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. For instance, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the International...
. The simplicity of the technique allows all ranges of handicapped
Handicapped
Handicapped or handicap may refer to:*Handicapping, various methods of leveling a sport or game**Golf handicap, a sport-specific handicapping method**Go handicaps**Handicaps in shogi**Asian handicap, bookmakers technique to level odds...
students to participate in the learning process. Mentally handicapped students can easily perform the tasks without fear of being ridiculed or being left behind. The visually impaired/blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
who tend to have “hesitant, jerky, and over controlled” movements because they “often breathe quite shallowly” can use the different breathing and movement exercises to relax their body and breathing. Students with a hearing impairment
Hearing impairment
-Definition:Deafness is the inability for the ear to interpret certain or all frequencies of sound.-Environmental Situations:Deafness can be caused by environmental situations such as noise, trauma, or other ear defections...
can use the Orff Approach by feeling the vibrations that are created by different instruments
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
. Since music is mostly resilient students who have had injuries that have mentally impaired them can use the Approach as a form of therapy
Therapy
This is a list of types of therapy .* Adventure therapy* Animal-assisted therapy* Aquatic therapy* Aromatherapy* Art and dementia* Art therapy* Authentic Movement* Behavioral therapy* Bibliotherapy* Buteyko Method* Chemotherapy...
. Even elderly individuals who often become weak with old age can use the Orff Approach to help with memory
Memory
In psychology, memory is an organism's ability to store, retain, and recall information and experiences. Traditional studies of memory began in the fields of philosophy, including techniques of artificially enhancing memory....
, dexterity, and agility
Agility
* Agility is a physical trait of an animal or person, and a component of physical fitness. It is the ability to change the body's position and direction with speed and precision.Agility may also refer to:In Sport:...
External links
- American Orff Schulwerk Association
- Victorian Orff Schulwerk Association, Australia
- Australian National Council of Orff Schulwerk
- Orff-Schulwerk Association (Singapore)
- MagicaMusica - an italian blog dedicated to musical propedeutical metodologies
- ORFF SCHULWERK Italian Wiki dedicated to Orff Schulwerk
- Dutch Wikipedia: Pierre van Hauwe
- The Institute for Music and Dance Pedagogy-Orff Institute of the University Mozarteum Salzburg
- Orff Center - Munich
- Carl Orff Foundation
- Orff-Schulwerk Forum