[SCA-Dance] Pinagay bransle

Fri Sep 27 11:03:52 EDT 2013

Sending again  (it bounced on the list)

On Fri, Sep 27, 2013 at 11:01 AM, David Learmonth <
david.a.learmonth at gmail.com> wrote:

> Interesting.  Yes, I've always wondered a bit about Triory.  I personally
> do dance it to 7 counts  (or 14, I think one musician told me once).  I do
> 2 variants myself, the first one you mentioned (3 pied en l'air), and the
> second I do is 3 quick heel swivels while raising my left foot for pied en
> l'air in time with the 3rd swivel.  And I suppose the pied en l'air, and
> the swivels, I am doing all quickly, which then leaves me half a beat of
> the 7 as a rest at the end.
>
> As for the arrangement, a suite proposal is reasonable I would think.
>  I've only guessed at what exactly they meant in the description.  One
> guess was to alternate between various versions, as desired, or perhaps at
> various points in the music.  Another thought I had was that, being that
> this bransle was another one that appeared to be a folk dance brought in
> from another region and framed as a bransle, that perhaps Arbeau starts by
> describing the dance in a manner that his students would be used to, i.e. 3
> pied en l'air, because it is easier to wrap their heads around the pattern
> initially.  And then once they understand the dance, with its interesting
> timings and weight transitions, then he throws in the extra curveball of
> pointing one's heels, instead of / as well as the kicks.
>
> As for the timing of 7 counts, it is a bit unusual, but then, bransles are
> all rather unique in having very specific music, of varying lengths.
>  Cassandra would be an even number of beats, but not really whole number of
> bars, in the way we dancers think of them.  (I'm sure that the musicians
> would frame it the other way, but that would make for an odd number of
> bars).  Pinagay, with its kicks, is another interesting one.  Though I'm
> not certain if any other dances are quite as abrupt as Triory.  :)
>
> Darius
>
>
>
> On Fri, Sep 27, 2013 at 3:46 AM, Garden, John (DPS) <
> John.Garden at aph.gov.au> wrote:
>
>> I'd also suggest another branle 'suite' is hidden in Arbeau's description
>> of Triory de Bretagne. Although Arbeau's entry on this dance is notoriously
>> problematic, as I discuss in my entry on the dance in Historic Dance Volume
>> II (1550-1600) (
>> http://www.earthlydelights.com.au/books-cds/Historic-Dance-II-1550-1600), Arbeau would seem to be describing 3 different variants that can all go
>> to the same tune (which I believe is intended to have an 8th count in the
>> tune). The variants vary in how they end- one ending with 3 pied en l'air
>> (2 fast, 1 slow), one with  2 quick marque pied and 1 slow pied en l'air,
>> and one with 2 quick heel swivels and 1 slow pied en l'air. I'd suggest it
>> might have been appropriate to do each variant a few time then progress to
>> the next-dancers taking their lead from the dance leader. It's not strictly
>> a medley of sequences to different tunes, as with the Double suite or the
>> Branle d'Ecosse, but it is a dance suite nevertheless which can develop
>> from the simple to the more flashy.
>>
>> John Gardiner-Garden.
>> www.earthlydelights.com.au
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: sca-dance-bounces+john.garden=aph.gov.au at sca-dance.org [mailto:
>> sca-dance-bounces+john.garden=aph.gov.au at sca-dance.org] On Behalf Of
>> David Learmonth
>> Sent: Friday, 27 September 2013 3:33 PM
>> To: Charlene C
>> Cc: sca-dance
>> Subject: Re: [SCA-Dance] Pinagay bransle
>>
>> Grinning, I have to mention a small correction.  There is 1 suite at least
>> besides Double Bransle suite where we know some of the dances:  The
>> Scottish Bransle Suite.  :)   Of course, we just tend to dance Scottish
>> Bransle as a single dance, instead of 2 separate bransles, out of who
>> knows
>> how many that are otherwise unfortunately unlisted.
>>
>> Oh, and interesting tidbit of info here, that the pattern of doing the two
>> Scottish Bransles, is remarkably similar to the fast part of War bransle.
>>  :)  I didn't notice until one class where I taught them together.
>> (depending of course on your repeat structure, and the end is a bit
>> different.)
>>
>> Darius
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Sep 26, 2013 at 1:17 PM, Charlene C <charlene281 at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> > On Thu, Sep 26, 2013 at 5:51 AM, David Learmonth
>> > <david.a.learmonth at gmail.com> wrote:
>> >
>> > > Sorry about that, I always thought that all 5 were part of the suite,
>> and
>> > > that there were others as well that just weren't listed, just that we
>> > > didn't know what they were.  But it has been a while since I'd gone
>> back
>> > to
>> > > this suite from the very start and looked at the original french
>>  (this
>> > was
>> > > the first set I looked at, and thought I had finally sorted out most
>> of
>> > the
>> > > details).  :)
>> >
>> > Arbeau mentions the concept of doing branles in suites, he just
>> > doesn't identify any suites other than double-single-gay-Burgundian.
>> > We do Cassandra-Pinagay-Charlotte-War-Aridan together because (say it
>> > along with me :-) ) "that's the way it is on the recording."
>> >
>> > >From the Sutton version:
>> >
>> > p 129 -  ... All musicians are in the habit of opening the dancing by
>> > a double branle which they call the common branle, and afterwards they
>> > play the single branle and the gay branle and at the end of the
>> > branles of Burgundy, which some people call branles of Champagne....
>> >
>> > p 137 - The musicians call them mixed branles of Champagne, and, with
>> > a view to orderly classification, these branles have been arranged in
>> > numbered series. Our musicians in Langres play ten in succession which
>> > they call mixed branles of Champagne; they play another number in
>> > sequence known as Camp branles and yet other have named branles of
>> > Hainaut and branles of Avignon. And, as fresh compositions appear and
>> > novelties appear, so they devise new series and bestow upon them what
>> > names they wish.
>> >
>> > p 137 - I shall not give you any tabulations but will leave you to
>> > memorize them yourself under the guidance of the master musicians or
>> > from your companions. And when you are proficient enough to wish to
>> > dance them at some festival you will ask the musicians for the suite
>> > you require by name and they will play it for you. In the meanwhile, I
>> > will warn you that if you aspire to dance these branles well you know
>> > know the tunes by heart and sing them in your head with the violin.
>> >
>> > [Capriol then requests the tabulation for two or three to make
>> > understanding the concept easier and Arbeau obligizes.]
>> >
>> > p 137 - Very well, here are the tabulations for the branles of
>> > Cassandra and Pinagay, first and second in the suite of the mixed
>> > branles of Champagne, ...
>> >
>> > p 140 - ... In those days of yore we danced, among other mixed
>> > branles, the branle of war, the branles of Aridan and of Charlotte and
>> > an infinity of others.
>> >
>> >
>> > --Perronnelle
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