Evening star., 1915-01-03


And if you ask me why there is more
grace to the square inch in Lausanne
than In Paris and London combined, 1
answer that quantities of the mar
riageable girls here, when they were
little, danced and sang he rounds and
gesture songs of Jaques-Dalcroze,
which have since been adopted by the
maternal schools of Paris and the
Berlin High School.
Surely, you remember all those photo
graphs of the vaudois festival and
girls rampaging through the fields, the
higher branches of eurythmics. leap
ing In a ring. heels kicking back and
faces upturned to the sun?
The whooping leaps. perhaps. were
photographed at Hellerau, but 1
speak of the pure Dalcroze graces. be-
fore German culture Whlsked their
Jaques away from Lausanne on
magic carpet.
It was an artistic and financial loss
to Lausanne, and corresponding gain
to Hellerau, because Dalcroze, undis-
puted inventor of rhythmic gymnastics,
musical composer of original genius,
talented symphonist in lyric drama, in
comparable in childish rounds and
scenes and pedagogue of the first or
der, attracted to the Institute Jaques-
Dalcroze of Hellerau thousands not OF
fists and dancing masters of all ma
tionaIities. ages and sexes, to drink.
as it were, at the genuine. fountain of
physical emotional grace.
A child, you understand, brought up
on Dalcroze rounds. has something of
a veritable cinch to start in life with,
for the little song and dance scenes
are at once seeing-and NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. IN
grace and manners-"We DESIRE TO
Dance- The Visit to the Lady," ''The
Proud Duck etc etc.
On which came the war.
They continued singing and dancing
in Germany. Dalcroze could scarcely
obtain his vacation in August-Septem-
ber.
He was home in Lausanne when Lou
vain was burned and looted. He was
troubled, but he waited. He felt sure
1t must be some immense mistake-he
had not taught the burning of uni
versition and libraries. "or anything
approaching it," in his eurythmics.
During the bombardment of Rheims
Cathedral, Jaques was at Geneva. This
time there could be no douht-euryth-
mics were in danger. He ran his mn
gers through his hair. to give his BRAIN
more air. What would the world think?
He, Dalcroze. responsible for Hellerau,
must disengage eurythmics. Do you
understand. eurythmics are his child.
his love. So, with fevered pen. he
sat down and signed the protest OF
Swiss intellectuals and artists:
I'VE. the undersigned, Swiss citizens.
violently moved by the unjustlf1ed bonn
bardment of the Cathedral of Rheims
coming after the willful burning of the
historic and scientific riches of Louvain
-reprove. with all our forces, an act
of barbarism which strikes at humanity
entire in one of the noblest witnesses
Of it's moral and artistic greatness.
Some one said to JaQues:
Look out. You've got a big stake in
Germany.
He smiled superior.
"At Hellerau," he said. they UNDER
stand eurythmics."
Now comes the queer part
Two weeks later. there arrived in
Lausanne six men in black frock coats
from the inward parts of Germany. and
three from Hellerau.
The delegation went in taxicabs to
Dalcroze's home and told him that he
ought to sign another paper
Which they brought out from their
pockets
1t was a retraction, an apology and
regretting of the error by which Jaques
Dalcroze had stuck his nose into the
cutting of the Rheims Cathedral.
But said Jaques, its all against
eurythmics."
On which they brought out another
paper from their pockets. 1t was what
the old-time rovers used to call the
black spot" 1t deposed DalGroze; I,o7tau.,, 1t
They served it on him. and returned
home by the night traiE.
Three days later the Frankfurter
Zeitung published the following notice
from the institution:
"In consequence of the numerous at
tacks of which Jaques-Dalcroze has
been the object because of his sigma
ture attached to the regrettable (sic)
former artistic director occupied only
the position of an employe in the In
stitute, and that we decline all re-
sponsibility for his errors and lack OF
of the value of his method. it had been
sought previously, from Berlin, to
bring Dalcroze into Germany. Dr. Doh
rem and his friends finally succeeded
was born, thanks to German capital
and idealism (sic), an enterprise which.
in short time, favorized the adoption
of the method in the greater part OF
and the important conservatories. and
which. after the representation of
'Orphee.' won the unanimous sunrages
of press and public. We should re-
member all this and separate. the more
willingly, the person and the thing, for
the reason that the institute and its
German pupils are ready for such
separation (sic!D We may add that
Germany will have no more to do with
Dalcroze, because he refused. in spite
of all the enlightenments given him,
to withdraw his signature. In Ger
many we shall simply group together
an association of teachers who profess
the method of Hellerau."
Jaques-Dalcroze is still bewildered
when he lets his mind dwell on 1t.
Regularly. he is too busy.
Grace Is on tap again at Lausanne.
His native town is delighted A musi-