Renaissance dances

Galliard

Renaissance dances

Dance, during the Renaissance period will reach a great importance, especially among the higher classes, since in all celebrations will be present. But in addition to the court dance, there will be another dance that is less refined and much more joyful, which is going to be that of the common people.

+ info

Passamezzo

Saltarello

Pavana

Although the source of the name is clear, the history of the dance itself is not. The Saltarello takes its name from the Italian verb saltare, meaning ‘to jump’, and it was the peculiar jumping step used in the saltarello that led to its name. This dance originated around Rome and was described in the early 19th century as the ‘most danced’ in Rome at the time. The characteristic step was executed by jumping from one foot to the other, with the dancer either remaining on the spot, moving backwards and forwards, or turning around on oneself. The only compulsory move, the “salto”, the jump, gradually becomes more and more lively and underlined by a more decisive beat of the drum. It’s not just the feet that were moving – the arms were held in the air or, for women, held at the side with the apron held in one hand or with both hands. In Rome, the pair of dancers faced each other and in the Roman countryside, they might dance side by side, resting their arms around each others’ shoulders, or interweaving their arms around each others’ bodies. The majority of the dance was improvised except for the jump.

Saltarello

Galliard was a Renaissance musical and dance form, popular throughout Europe in the 16th century.

Galliard was one of the main dances of the time. It was performed with leaping step. This dance was in ternary time signature and cheerful step. It was usually performed after the pavana. The oldest examples of this dance are preserved in the city of Paris.

Galliard was an athletic dance, characterised by leaps, jumps, hops and other similar figures. The main feature that defines a galliard step is a large jump, after which the dancer lands with one leg ahead of the other. Although it was danced in pairs, each dancer danced separately, not always the dance partners held hands while dancing.

Passamezzo

The dance called “Passamezzo” was dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance, in the 16th and 17th centuries. This dance was very similar to another dance called “pavane”, but the difference between them is that while the pavane is a much slower dance, the passamezzo was a faster-paced dance that was usually paired with other dances such as the galliard or the saltarello

During the Renaissance dance lived a new boom and became one of the most appreciated social and entertainment activities, forming part of numerous celebrations. In addition, the creation of new repertoires for dance also boosted the development of instrumental music. According to the customs of the time, every educated person had to have dance knowledge, which led to the increasing professionalization of dance and the appearance of dance teachers. Dance during the Renaissance is the first to have manuals and detailed instructions to perform the steps and movements due in a type of dance. The advent of the Renaissance brought a new attitude towards the body, the arts and dance.

Pavana

pincha aquí para ver el baile hecho por uno de los integrantes del grupo.

The pavana is a type of slow, processional dance that uses mostly a continuous repetition of basic step schemes: two singles and one double forward followed by two singles and one double back.

Artículo original: Huffpost.com