[Fwd: Re: [SCA-Dance] Haut Barrois branle]

Alex Clark alexbclark at pennswoods.net
Thu Jan 11 17:09:04 EST 2007


At 03:15 PM 1/11/2007 +0100, Mikuláš wrote:
>Kirsten Garner wrote:
>>Greetings all,
>>
>>I'll admit to being a bit confused at the moment. I
>>went back and had a look at the original. According to
>>Arbeau, when one does a "pied largis gaulche", "le



>>pied gaulche se repose obliquement, et le pied droicte
>>soustient le corps" (the left foot rests to the side
>>and the right foot holds the body). That seems to me
>>to be saying that your weight should be on your
>>*right* foot, not your left. This is borne out in the
>>diagram just beneath it in which the gentleman
>>labelled "pied largis, oblique gaulche" clearly has
>>his weight on this right foot with his left foot
>>setting out to the side.
>>Likewise, in other movements, the foot signified in
>>the name of the step is the foot *doing the movement*,
>>not the foot supporting the body (reverence, ruade,
>>rue de vache, marque pied, marque talon, pied croise,
>>etc.).
>>The way I've always done bransles and seen them done
>>now seems incorrect. The weight has always been on the
>>leading foot, whereas it seems Arbeau wants the weight
>>on the trailing foot, somewhat behind the motion. Have
>>we been doing it wrong all this time? Or is it just
>>me?
>>
>>Julian
>>Gleann Abhann
>Ay!
>
>I strongly believe that "pied largy gaulche" and pied largy oblique 
>galuche" are two very different things! There is a "pieds largis" with 
>weight on both feet. You cant get to that position with stepping one of 
>your feet sidaways - that makes them "pieds largis gaulche" or "pieds 
>largis droicte". If you would transfer your weight on active foot and turn 
>body out a bit, it would make "pieds largis obliques" right or left. In 
>branles you are (ad far as I can remember) never asked to have "pieds 
>largis obliques". Only "pieds largis".
>
>The question is why he, for gods sake, describes position that is never 
>used? Well, I don't know. But he desribes Ru de vache too...

I think that it makes the most sense when one keeps them separate as 
*three* different kinds of things.

"Pieds largis" (in the plural): both feet apart, weight on both.

"Pied(s) largi(s) oblique (droict/gaulche)" (either plural or singular): 
one foot placed to the side, turned out a bit, not supporting one's weight.

"Pied (gaulche/droit) largi" (in the singular): a step with one foot, 
moving that foot out to the side, placing it there and taking weight onto it.

I doubt that any of these three has much to tell us about how weight is 
carried in either of the other two, so I base my conclusions about weight 
on information about each one by itself, without reference to the others.

-- 
Henry of Maldon/Alex Clark 




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