LGM Classical – “You Can’t Dance To It”
By In the comment thread to my first post in this series, Erik comments that you can’t dance to classical music.
Well.
Music and dance are intimately intertwined. Always have been.
The waltz, like twerking, was a scandal of its time and felt to be corrupting of the youth. The first piece I think of when I think of dance and classical music is Maurice Ravel’s La Valse. Ravel wrote it for orchestra some time after the waltz was new to be choreographed for ballet.
With a contrabassoon, even, at 1:45, 9:45, and 12:00!
Glenn Gould introduces and plays his own transcription
Or we can think about the Strauss family and their waltzes and polkas. Here’s one of my favorites, from Eduard. Extra points if you can tell me what radio personality used this as a theme!
Bach’s French and English suites are all dance forms. They have a particular order. For the French Suites, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Bourée, and Gigue. All of those were dances of Bach’s time. Modern people have reproduced them for YouTube. Here’s more about baroque dance suites.
Allemande
Courante
Bach’s Courante in his French Suite No. 5 in G is faster than that. Some of the sources I checked say we don’t really know how the Courante was danced.
Sarabande
Bourée
Looks like it’s still a thing.
Gigue
Don’t tell me you can’t dance to classical music!