Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
Entertainers including minstrels who wandered from castle to castle brinigng the latest
news, fashions, dances were popular at various castle celebrations, as well as gleemen and
gleemaidens who were professional entertainers and singers in Saxon, England. Troubadours
and court jesters were also part of the entertainment during this period.
Family troupes of players were descendant of the Byzantine mimes who had settled in
Italy. Comedia troupe performers improvised plays in which stock characters enacted a
sketchy plot which they posted on the side of their wagons.
In the 15th century, social dancing was the standard for training gentlemen and women
in the social behaviors, so that they could conduct their lives with grace. Dancing masters
taught dancing and social etiquette to the nobility. They would also teach the men fencing.
Dance in the Middle ages can be categorized as associated with the church (liturgical
or sacred) or society (secular). Feudal life was hard, with few amenities.
Amusements and court entertainers were produced by the court or by performers who were attached
to the noble household. During the Renaissance the relationship between
dance and the church faded. Religious dance in the Middle Ages were ceremonial
in nature, showing beautiful figures, solemn movements and symbolic poses.
Please look at the famous Los Seises dance (attached as a YouTube link) which is still
performed in Toledo Spain. The Los Seises ( the dance of six was performed when the
Moors invaded Toledo, young boys in two rows of five or six danced before the altar, playing
castanets, to delay the attack and allow the priest to hide the treasure of the church.
Although the book gives various examples of dances that were done in the church, the church
did not condone the Dances of Death, which were often performed in the medieval church
yards. People believed that the dead danced and medieval beliefs centered on the idea
that all people were equal when they met death, so they needed to make the most of their lives.
Carmina Burana, composed by Carl Orff, has a dance of death at the beginning and ending
of this gorgeous orchestral and choral masterpieces. The composers creation was inspired by 25
poems that were found at a medieval monastery in Germany. I have choreographed and performed
in Carmina Burana on several occasions and find it the most moving musical compositions
for dance. Dance manias took various forms as a mass
psychosis resulting from peoples response to war, plague, famine, and religious persecution.
The Tarantella was the most famous dances associated with dance mania. Supposedly, someone
bitten by a tarantula would dance until exhausted as a way to rid the body of the poison. The
dance has survived over the years as a folk dance and even as a famous pas de deux that
was choreographed by George Balanchine. Watching Shellie Nielsen perform this technically challenging
pas de deux for the Dayton Ballet makes it one of my favorites.
Secular dance in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance sprang from sacred dance. It celebrated life-span
events and calendar occasions. Two important dances during the Middle Ages
became the foundations for the other dances. Nobility and peasants performed them indoors
and outdoors. The Carole was originally a hymn and processional
dance, which was performed on church holy days and festival such as New Years, May Day
and midsummer. Caroles had both a religious and secular connections and emerged in the
10th century. One of the many chain dances was popular throughout
Europe. It was an important part of social life for courtiers and peasants.
Sword dances from ancient times continued in the Middle Ages, either as solos or group
dances. In Scotland the sword dances were considered a test of skill and agility. Often
clans would compete. Only men performed sword dances during this period. I found a unique
performance of the sword dance performed by women and consider it one of the most difficult
ones I have seen to date. Please observe the links I have provided and
be prepared to know what qualities and movements were used in those dances for your exam.
Court dance is a term which applied to three types of dances performed in medieval Italy
and France. The first was an entry dance, the second type was the basse dance, a ceremonial
dance to display the noble’s grace and etiquette. And the last was a spectacle, a ball that
entertained the nobility on auspicious occasions. The following Saltarello was performed predominately
in Italy and Germany. The round dance used three steps and a hop or schottische step
. Please observe this you tube example and be
able to compare the movements with the Pavane link
Banquets, spectacles, dramatic episodes, pageants, masked entertainments and interludes amused
the nobility during the Middle ages and became crystalized as the Renaissance mascaraed.
Please observe the link to the masked ballet in Zefferelli’s Romeo and Juliet.
Movements changed according to the class dances. Exuberant outdoor peasant dances yielded to
those performed in stately court halls. Men wore belted tunics and stockings with
short breeches under the tunic in the 10th -12 century. Women wore high necked long sleeved
chemise under a dress. The over dress which could be either loose or snug, showed the
chemise Country people wore similar garments made
of coarser fabrics. Note that as the fashions changed as well as the weight of the material,
so did the movements. Please e-mail me on BlazeView a YouTube link
from that you have found that reflects the Medieval /Renaissance chapter review. Please
turn this in by the end of the week.