Music Professor Hosts Area Educators for Orff Workshop

Participants on day 3 of the workshop.

Participants sing in rounds.

Participants sing in rounds.

Participants sing in rounds.

Participants involved in a creative movement exercise.

Participants involved in a creative movement exercise.

Learning new ways to involve children in music.

Learning new music teaching strategies.

Learning new music teaching strategies.

Photo Submitted

Orff workshop participants involved in a creative movement exercise.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Dale Misenhelter, associate professor of music and coordinator of the music education program in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, is hosting educators from five states for their fourth recent two-week Orff Training Workshop.

“The Orff approach has developed into an internationally recognized way of actively and joyfully involving children with music,” said Misenhelter. “The goal of the training is to develop teachers' ability to lead children in singing, playing children’s instruments, creative movement and dance.”

Orff is a type of music teaching named after Carl Orff, the Bavarian composer and music and movement teacher who was known to a generation of German children in the 1940’s. When Orff was exploring his method with children, little but radio was available in the way of electronic media, especially to the students in the damaged and barely functional schools of Munich and the surrounding areas in the period just after World War II.

The training in techniques that Orff and colleagues developed is available in only a select number of locations around the country.  There are three levels of training acquired over three summers via intensive two-week courses. The workshop began Monday, June 17, and will continue until Friday, June 28.

“We have more than 30 participants this year, and many are sponsored by their schools and districts to receive the training” said Misenhelter. “The teachers work throughout the day on pedagogical strategies, recorder and drum playing techniques, and improvisation.  Much of their training will connect to other classroom subjects as well, and they will leave with a much broader approach to all their teaching.”

Misenhelter is an active researcher in music teacher education and social functions in music programs. He has presented in a variety of academic venues, including the National Music Therapy Conference, American Orff Schulwerk Association National Conferences, the International Society for Music Education, American Educational Researchers Association Conferences, as well as state, regional, and national Music Education Conferences.