Charlotte Selver
Encyclopedia
Charlotte Selver was a German music educationalist.
The central point of Charlotte Selver's work was "experience through the senses". Charlotte Selver was convinced that the well-being of the individual, the society as a whole and even the worries about our environment depend on how far we find new confidence in organic processes.
With her work, "Sensory Awareness", Charlotte Selver had a deciding influence on the "Human Potential Movement", which also came out of the Esalen Institute
, where she taught as of 1963. Because of that, she also had influence on Humanistic Psychology
and the therapies based on it. Aspects of her work, especially the conscious sensing of the body and the following of physical sensations (Sensory Awareness), flowed into many of the methods of physical work, physical therapy, physical psychotherapy and psychotherapy which still exist today.
in Berlin
, who together with the students in her courses, researched how the natural gifts of people could be developed, even at an adult age. Up until she emigrated to New York
in 1938, she studied with Elsa Gindler and the music teacher, Heinrich Jacoby
, and she reestablished contact with them in the 1950s.
In 1971, the "Sensory Awareness Foundation" was brought into being. Its goal is to preserve and document Charlotte Selver's life work. In 1995, the "California Institute of Integral Studies" in San Francisco awarded her an honorary doctorate.
Charlotte Selver died on August 22, 2003, at her home in Muir Beach, California, among her closest friends and students at the age of 102.
(1885–1961), and the Swiss music teacher, Heinrich Jacoby
(1889–1964). They never gave their 'work' a formal name. The fundamental objective of the Jacoby/Gindler approach is the development of the person (integral unfolding as development and growth to meaningful being). Charlotte Selver was Gindler's student in Berlin before she emigrated to the USA in 1938 and she introduced this work under the name of Sensory Awareness.
The central point of Charlotte Selver's work was "experience through the senses". Charlotte Selver was convinced that the well-being of the individual, the society as a whole and even the worries about our environment depend on how far we find new confidence in organic processes.
With her work, "Sensory Awareness", Charlotte Selver had a deciding influence on the "Human Potential Movement", which also came out of the Esalen Institute
Esalen Institute
Esalen Institute is a residential community and retreat in Big Sur, California, which focuses upon humanistic alternative education. Esalen is a nonprofit organization devoted to activites such as meditation, massage, Gestalt, yoga, psychology, ecology, and spirituality...
, where she taught as of 1963. Because of that, she also had influence on Humanistic Psychology
Humanistic psychology
Humanistic psychology is a psychological perspective which rose to prominence in the mid-20th century, drawing on the work of early pioneers like Carl Rogers and the philosophies of existentialism and phenomenology...
and the therapies based on it. Aspects of her work, especially the conscious sensing of the body and the following of physical sensations (Sensory Awareness), flowed into many of the methods of physical work, physical therapy, physical psychotherapy and psychotherapy which still exist today.
Biography
In the 1920s, Charlotte Selver encountered Elsa GindlerElsa Gindler
Elsa Gindler was a somatic bodywork pioneer in Germany.Born in Berlin, gymnastics teacher, student of Hedwig Kallmeyer ....
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, who together with the students in her courses, researched how the natural gifts of people could be developed, even at an adult age. Up until she emigrated to New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1938, she studied with Elsa Gindler and the music teacher, Heinrich Jacoby
Heinrich Jacoby
Heinrich Jacoby , originally a musician, was a German educator whose teaching was based on developing sensitivity and awareness. A great role in his researches played the collaboration with the colleague Elsa Gindler, whom he met in 1924 in Berlin...
, and she reestablished contact with them in the 1950s.
In 1971, the "Sensory Awareness Foundation" was brought into being. Its goal is to preserve and document Charlotte Selver's life work. In 1995, the "California Institute of Integral Studies" in San Francisco awarded her an honorary doctorate.
Charlotte Selver died on August 22, 2003, at her home in Muir Beach, California, among her closest friends and students at the age of 102.
Sensory Awareness
Sensory Awareness has its origin in the work of the gymnastics and exercise teacher, Elsa GindlerElsa Gindler
Elsa Gindler was a somatic bodywork pioneer in Germany.Born in Berlin, gymnastics teacher, student of Hedwig Kallmeyer ....
(1885–1961), and the Swiss music teacher, Heinrich Jacoby
Heinrich Jacoby
Heinrich Jacoby , originally a musician, was a German educator whose teaching was based on developing sensitivity and awareness. A great role in his researches played the collaboration with the colleague Elsa Gindler, whom he met in 1924 in Berlin...
(1889–1964). They never gave their 'work' a formal name. The fundamental objective of the Jacoby/Gindler approach is the development of the person (integral unfolding as development and growth to meaningful being). Charlotte Selver was Gindler's student in Berlin before she emigrated to the USA in 1938 and she introduced this work under the name of Sensory Awareness.
Influences on dance therapy and psychotherapy
- Charlotte Selver touched and encouraged thousands of people in the USA, MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in her 80 years of work, among them influential personalities, such as psychoanalyst Erich FrommErich FrommErich Seligmann Fromm was a Jewish German-American social psychologist, psychoanalyst, sociologist, humanistic philosopher, and democratic socialist. He was associated with what became known as the Frankfurt School of critical theory.-Life:Erich Fromm was born on March 23, 1900, at Frankfurt am...
, the ZenZenZen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...
philosopher Alan WattsAlan WattsAlan Wilson Watts was a British philosopher, writer, and speaker, best known as an interpreter and popularizer of Eastern philosophy for a Western audience. Born in Chislehurst, he moved to the United States in 1938 and began Zen training in New York...
, his teacher Daisetz Teitaro SuzukiDaisetz Teitaro SuzukiDaisetsu Teitaro Suzuki was a Japanese author of books and essays on Buddhism, Zen and Shin that were instrumental in spreading interest in both Zen and Shin to the West. Suzuki was also a prolific translator of Chinese, Japanese, and Sanskrit literature...
and the founder of Gestalt therapyGestalt therapyGestalt therapy is an existential/experiential form of psychotherapy that emphasizes personal responsibility, and that focuses upon the individual's experience in the present moment, the therapist-client relationship, the environmental and social contexts of a person's life, and the self-regulating...
, Fritz PerlsFritz PerlsFriedrich Salomon Perls , better known as Fritz Perls, was a noted German-born psychiatrist and psychotherapist of Jewish descent....
, as well as Moshe FeldenkraisMoshé FeldenkraisMoshé Pinchas Feldenkrais was an Israeli physicist and the founder of the Feldenkrais Method, designed to improve human functioning by increasing self-awareness through movement.-Biography:...
, Ida Rolf and others who taught at the Esalen Institute. Because of that, she indirectly made a central contribution to physical therapyPhysical therapyPhysical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
. - Sensory Awareness constitutes the basis of Esalen Massage.
Literature
- Brooks, Charles: "Erleben durch die Sinne". DtV, Munich 1991, ISBN 3-423-15085-8. (Charles Brooks describes courses of his wife and colleague, Charlotte Selver. 230 pages with photographs, original English title: Sensory Awareness.)
- William C. Littlewood, Mary Alice Roche: Waking Up: The Work of Charlotte Selver. Autor House, Bloomington 2004, ISBN 1418493759
- Charlotte Selver: Every moment is a moment In: Deutsches Yoga-Forum, 3/2005
- Sensory Awareness - zur Arbeitsweise von Charlotte Selver In: Feldenkrais Forum, 4/2005
External links
- Jacoby/Gindler work. Sensory Awareness in German
- Sensory Awareness Foundation
- Return to Our Senses Website - About Charlotte Selver
Sources
- Broadcast of WDR, Friday, October 14, 2005 "Neugier genügt - Starke Frauen" (11:30 - 11:50, WDR 5) in German