What Is Eurythmy?

Every moment we breathe is filled with pulse . . . rhythm. It permeates the substance we are made of. Physical form is built out of movement come to rest. So too our feelings, thoughts, and inspirations have gestures that are matched in the forms we find in the world. It is one of the great mysteries that inner experience and outer form come from the same source.

Recognition of this connection sits just beyond our conscious awareness. Yet, we depend on it to make our way through life. We learn to read the world and other people through the language of movement . . . alongside the language of sound. Form – movement – language, all “sound” the essential nature of the world in different ways. Eurythmy is a movement art that brings all three together. It gives expression to the whole voice of the human being and world language, through movement, color, and form. When this integration takes place through eurythmy, the spiritual nature behind each living thing begins to have a clear voice – a visible reality. The living mysteries that form our body, our soul, and the stars speak their names in the gestures of language and life. Eurythmy brings these gestures into a rich, expressive art form.

The Inner Sources of Sound Become Visible

When the earliest human beings began giving names to people, objects, and experiences, they understood that the sounds in each name were a reenactment of the unique spiritual and physical qualities of the named person, animal, or thing. The sounds chosen held the essential qualities of the thing itself.

Even as this reality has receded from our everyday consciousness, it remains true that the human voice has the capacity to transform our inner experiences into the medium of sound. The acts of speaking and singing set into motion unique invisible gestures. Artistically expressed, the sounds reveal the specific gestures belonging to each consonant and vowel, each musical tone and interval. The shaping power of speech and music is then made visible as movement, color, and form in eurythmy.

Resources

Eurythmy Association of North America www.eana.org

Association for Eurythmy Therapy in North America (ATHENA) www.eurythmytherapy.org

Anthroposophical Society in America www.anthroposophy.org

Association of Waldorf Schools of North America www.waldorfeducation.org

Section for the Performing Arts (Dornach, Switzerland) srmk.goetheanum.org/en/

Learn More

For more on the history and early days of eurythmy, visit this page. The story of Eurythmy Spring Valley can be found here.