My name is Elli Deutsch.
I study in the Music and Movement Education / Rhythmics programme with a specialisation in movement and contemporary dance. I’m in my 9th semester in terms of the time I’ve put in, and I’m on track to earn my bachelor’s degree by next summer. Whoop whoop!
My favourite places at the mdw are the movement studios on Rennweg, the University Library on the Campus, and the cafeteria (hot take: ours is the best of any university in Vienna—I dare you to change my mind!)
What do you wish you’d known at the outset of your studies?
That the stress and pressure I constantly put myself through were totally unnecessary—and that it can be really fun to improvise using my voice. And in general, it was only as I progressed through my studies that I figured out what direction I wanted to go in, what areas I wanted to dive deeper into.
How would you describe your studies to an outsider in just a few sentences?
It’s all about the direct connection between music and movement, and it’s an artistic and pedagogical programme of study that brings together artistic doings and training as a teacher at a deep level. We do a lot of work with improvisation in the most varied forms, with sensory, bodily, and spatial perception, and with creative expression as well as various group configurations and group dynamics. Those are the points I find most important, though I could list a whole lot more—and descriptions of rhythmics and/or our programme will probably always differ a bit depending on whom you ask. In any case, it’s very practically oriented—with small graduating classes and lots of mandatory onsite presence (which is both a blessing and a curse but ultimately very, very valuable).
What should students in this programme definitely bring along with them?
A huge desire to be creative, an urge to experience music and movement, and a bit of endurance. Everything else comes together as you study.
