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To understand why Quirey says “The advent of the Waltz in polite society was quite simply the greatest change in dance form and dancing manners that has happened in our history”[5]
we need to realize that all European social dances before the waltz were communal sequence dances – communal, because all the dancers on the floor took part in a preset pattern (often chosen by a master of ceremony. -
In the historically first sense, the name may refer to several versions of the waltz, including the earliest waltzes done in ballroom dancing, danced to the music of Viennese
waltz. -
This was the way with the country dance and all previous popular dances.
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At that time, the waltz, as described in a magazine from 1799, was performed by dancers who held on to their long gowns to prevent them from dragging or being stepped on.
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Early waltz steps, 1816 from Thomas Wilson Treatise on Waltzing Initially, the waltz was significantly different from its form today.
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In the first place, the couples did not dance in the closed position as today.
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It was the first ballroom dance performed in the closed hold or “waltz” position.
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The Viennese waltz is a rotary dance where the dancers are constantly turning either toward the leader’s right (natural) or toward the leader’s left (reverse), interspersed
with non-rotating change steps to switch between the direction of rotation. -
In the modern ballroom dance, two versions of Viennese waltz are recognized: International Style and American Style.
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It emerged in the second half of the 18th century from the German dance and the Ländler in Austria and was both popular and subject to criticism.
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The Waltz Series is a New York membership society devoted to preserving the pre-World War I tradition of Viennese waltz.
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Another significant difference from the present technique was that the feet were turned out and the rise of foot during the dance was much more pronounced.
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This can be seen quite clearly in the figure, and such a style imposes its limitations on how the dance can be performed.
Works Cited
[‘1. http://www.thewaltzseries.org
2. ^ “A Brief Outline Regarding the Origin of the Waltz in Relation to Piano Music”. www.amsinternational.org. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
3. ^ Richardson P.J.S. 1960. Social dances of the 19th century in England.
p44
4. ^ Sachs, Curt. 1937. World History of the Dance. Norton.
5. ^ Jump up to:a b Quirey, Belinda 1976. May I have the pleasure? The story of popular dancing. p. 66; “The Century of Waltz”.
6. ^ Richardson P.J.S. 1960. Social dances of the
19th century in England. p63
7. ^ “Competition Rules”. DanceWDC.org. World Dance Council. Archived from Competition Rules current June 2015.pdf the original (PDF) on 2015-09-10. Retrieved 2015-10-26. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
Photo
credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/comunicati/3501996215/’]