The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-02-14
THE ORIGIN OF THE WALTZ.
An Evolution From Religious
Dance-HOSv IL Became Fashionable
in Germany. arcr

century ana among many beliefs this con-
| tans the most truth; but the justice of at
| tributing 10 Germanic influence the re-
naissance of the waltz in France does not
of necessity verify ethe statement that it
| had its origin in Germany. n- a.
Like everything else that touches hui
mainly where nothing is born spontane-
ously but everything is the product of a
series of successive evolutions, the waltz
| did not emanate in its present form from
the brain of dancing master. Long be,
| fore 1880, the time when we find it first
| mentioned under his name, it's graceful
| curves and cadences were displayed ON che
| village greens, as well as in the golden sa-
Ions of palaces; it had it's alternatives of
vogue and neglect, its supporters and de-
| tractors.
The waltz, like many other secular
| things. we find first in the church, 1t serves
to trace the union between ancient civili-
zation and that of the middle ages. The
sacred dance of the pagans is preserved to
| a certain point in Christian rites it is
transformed TO a series of revolutions
made TO the sound of the tambOuTine. ST.
| Isidore, archbishop of Seville, born about
| A. D. $780, was intrusted by the Council
| of Toledo with the revision of the liturgy
| as il was then Apracticed in the Roman
| Church, in which there was a tambourne
| dance. The council decided to ADOPT the
Isdorian liturgy in all Spain, and it diff
| fered but little from that used in other
/ countries at that time. This rite, oeiebrat-
ed before the eighth century when the
Moors first invaded Spain, was still cele-
| brated by the Christians in the seven
churches of Toledo, which the Moors aban-
doned after their capture of the city, and
" as after that time called the Moorish
! rite.
This was known and employed in Pro-
| vence and Italy. The tambourine in use
| in this religious dance was called st.
Isidore "moitie de symphonic" and evil
| IDENTIFY correspondent to the instrument.
| which, in the ancient sacred dances, ac-
companied the flute, a sort of bag-pipe,
| invented two centuries b. G. And thus
as the religious dance Of the middle ages
| is allied to the ancient sacred DANCE, so
the waltz is an evolution of this religious
| dance, having passed through many
changes before arriving at its present
| form.
In the eleventh century, when the Greg
| orian rite supplanted the Moorish rite, the
| dance disappeared from the church. 1t ap-
| peared very quickly in society under the
name of carole word derived from the
! Latin caroler; afterward under that OF
basse-dance, in which the grand prelates,
kings and dignitaries did not disdain to
| slow and one more lively
The people-and at chs time, ali who
| were not of the clergy or royalty were
| the people-used the latter part, called the
| touridin, which, lighter and more lively.
| appealed to them, and, little by little, it
| became changed. In Italy it was first
! separated from the rest under the name of
romanesca, and from there il passed to
| Provence and Southern Germany but in
each of these countries il was diversified
| and developed according to the character
| Of the people.
| In Provence it soon became the gailIard
| and this name indicates the character of
| the transformation
Five hundred years later they danced
| the wolfe, which was, in turn, a transfor-
| nation of the gaillard The measure was
| ternary like the latter, and might be des-
| ignated technically thus Two steps, a
skip, feet together. pause. The man first
| faced the opposite couple, then skipped
| on the left foot, turning the left shoulder
| toward them; repeating this four times,
| he again faced the other dancers; as for
the lady, her movements were reduced to
embracing as tightly as possible the neck
| of her cavalier.
As can be seen at once, this dance re-
sembled the waltz in three ways. 1t was
| danced in three time, it was the first
| dance in which a turn was made and
| the first in which the dancer embraced
his partner The latter, in fact. did not
| touch the ground; the cavalier held her
| suspended with his left arm. as he exc
| cuted the four movements described above
AT the court of Vaiois the vote was a
favorite dance, especially with Catherine
de Medici while Henry II, was charmed
| with the Psalm which Clement Marot set
| 10 an air of the vote, thinking perhaps,
| that what came from the church should
| go back to the church. The vote, as did
| later the waltz, turned the heads of This
| court. The Queen. Marguerite de Ma
varre wife of Henry " was an admirable
| volteuse
After the corrupt court of Valois had
I been dispersed by the League, and Henry
| III, the last of the great volteurs had fall
] len under the knife of Jacques Clement
| this dance disappeared forever from court.
city and people Though it greatly re-
| sembled the waltz the latter did not de-
| scend from il directly, but was rather
! the younger sister of it.
In fact, the romanesca, transported. as
| We have said, TO Provence and Southern
Germany, was developed in these countries
very differently; in Province into the gail
| lard and vote. while the Germans. more
| dreamy and slow, changed the romanesca
into the German and waltzn
The volte succumbed. while young, to
| CDnNlOHs III tne SlAteGntn century, by very
| reason of its excess, but The German lived
| long and produced the waltz which reigns
! to-day
| About 1850, incident occurred which
tended to fix definitely tho waltz among
| German customs, in its present form and
name, placing st in high society and max
| ing il known to foreigners.c nThs was the
! Introduction in an opera in Vincent. Mar
! tin, luna Cosa Vara" which, in 1887. Je-
lhroned, at Vienna. The Figaro" of Mo-
Fart. -Four characters in this opera, Lubia,
| Vita, Chila and Lila, dressed Ia black
and rose color, danced ON the stage the
| first waltz. INr
The favorable reception of the opera nat
urally drew The attention Of society 10 the
dance, and under the name OF cogai vara
| it Immediately became the fashion,. and
shortly afterward assumedi the name Of
waltz, by which Il has been known ever
| since.
Thus from the tourdion of the aristo-
cratic dance transformed by The people,
was born the romanesca. which became,
| in France, the gaili9rd and vote, and in