Pécs 1 December 2016
Flow movements and artistic postures, voice training and body drumming – all of these could be experienced at the Music of Our Age – Musical Feet experimental workshop held last year between 29 November and 1 December in Pécs. Hosted by Philharmonia Hungary in cooperation with the EEA Grants, the workshop aimed to develop new approaches in music and dance teaching to bring classical music closer to schoolchildren applying elements of contemporary dance and eurythmics.
The program consisting of three workshops altogether and sponsored by the EEA Grants has twenty-two young participants representing various fields of music and dance. Kodály Centre and Zsolnay Cultural Quarter provided inspirative venues to the creative workshops. Offering outstanding concert experiences, the Philharmonia Hungary Non-profit Ltd contributes to the musical education of nearly 280 000 children every year. As Szabolcs Szamosi executive director pointed out: „The three-parted course that comes to an end in this spring is focused on developping a new practical educational model based on the experimental team work. Music and dance teachers, performers and students all can be found among the participants. The results of their creative work will be presented this spring at the Music of Our Age Festival.”
Csaba Horváth director-coreographer, professor of University of Theatre and Film Arts physical theater choreographer and director specialization who had created several iconic contemporary dance theatre performances and won several awards, was invited to be the art director of the project with the assistence of great coreographers, musicians and professors. By forming a new modell based on movements, gestures, body language and dance, this project can revitalize improvisation skills and unspoiled consciousness of body that young children naturally possess; this is why it attracts a special interest on the parts of pupils and teachers alike. Csaba Horváth underlines that „since young children are not really familiar with the expressive power of music and dance it is an exciting challenge to involve them into this activity. Our goal is to help them to reveal their inner world by music and movement improvisations.”
The methodological project supported by Philharmonia Hungary Non-profit Ltd is highly recommended to students with a special interest in contemporary arts, classical music and with a commitment to teaching. On the ending day of the course, one of the twenty-two participants, Rozi Kemény actress, teacher of theatre pedagogy said: „My primary goal here is getting a kind of toolbox for arts education I can successfully use in the classroom. I deeply believe in experience-based education by wich children have the opportunity to acquire knowledge through their own perception.”
The courses include a dance seminar led by Livia Fuch dance historian and a body-drumming program instructed by András Dés jazz musician. Additionally, Evelin Tóth singer and actor will present the new SoindSearch method in action and all participants are invited to try their skills in dance improvisations and in dramatic situations, under the guidance of Csaba Horváth, Norbert Nagy, Barnabás Horkai and Kristóf Widder.
The methodology experiment with two new workshops in January and in March offers an outstanding opportunity to practice classical music and contemporary dance in an uniquelly imaginative way while children and teacher can discover together the joyful world of self-expression.
