Capturing the Viennese Waltz |
For anyone
who’s ever watched any of the dancing shows on TV such as “So You Think You Can
Dance” or the immensely popular “Dancing With The Stars,” it is well known that
the Viennese Waltz is one of the most anticipated dances there are.
It is
graceful, elegant, romantic and simply sublime. To watch a couple glide and
rotate effortlessly across the dance floor is quite a sight to behold. However,
modern day people probably don’t realize just how controversial this dance it.
The younger
Johann Strauss probably never realized how he would revolutionize dance when he
composed his musical masterpiece, The Blue Danube or An der schönen blauen Donau, its long name, which translates to “By the
beautiful, blue Danube.”
Evolution of the dance
Viennese Waltz |
Although
Austria is the birthplace of the Viennese Waltz, the dance’s origins could be
traced as far back as the 12th and 13th centuries from
Bavaria in Germany. The waltz had humble beginnings, starting out as s fold
dance in triple time. It was mentioned in a publication of French philosopher
Montaigne, where he described a gliding and sliding dance with partners holding
each other too closely for their faces to almost touch. That was in 1580 when
he was in Augsburg, a city in Bavaria. The dance called Nach Tanz or After Dance is said to be the precursor of the
Viennese Waltz. Some claim that it evolved from the Deutscher Tanz or the German Dance. Another account of the origins
of the dance claims that it emerged from the dance style Volta from Provence in
France back in the 12th century. Pierre-Auguste Renoir did a
painting in 1883 entitled Bal à Bougival that features a couple dancing what
could be the waltz.
It was in
the Vienna Congress of 1814 that the world got to see just how beautiful the
dance was. It was part of the opening festivities for the Congress after the
fall of Napoleon, when representatives from all over Europe held an
international conference to prevent another war and maintain the stability and
peace within Europe. Prince Klemens von Metternich was at that time the
Minister of State of Austria and was also acting as the Congress president. After
the Congress, it became more acceptable to dance the Viennese Waltz.
Austria’s Export
The
Viennese Waltz was popularized by Austrians in the capital city of Vienna in
the 1800s. After all, Austria is the homeland of “The Waltz King,” Johann
Strauss II. This composer is widely credited for popularizing the waltz in the
capital city of Austria in the 19th century. Large dance halls opened
in Vienna to accommodate the thousands of dancers trying out the new dance
craze. The music of Josef Lanner, Johann Strauss Senior and Johann Strauss II
became more popular alongside the heightened popularity of the Viennese Waltz.
Difference from other ballroom
dances
In the German language, the dance is called Wiener Walzer. This genre of ballroom dancing deviated greatly from other dances. For one thing, it is the first of the ballroom dances that is done in a closed hold position. This made it seem as if the couple is embracing each other, rather than respectfully facing each other.
The
Viennese Waltz is also danced at 180 beats a minute, which is faster than other
dances which are done in 90 beats per minute. This made it livelier, which is
why the young couples enjoyed it thoroughly.
The
Viennese Waltz is considered a rotary dance since the two dancers face each
other and are always turning to the right or left of the leader. It comprises turns
and change steps in its purest form.
Viennese
Waltz differs from other types of dances in that the couple turns continuously
left and right while moving in a counterclockwise direction rather than passing
each other on the dance floor. The true waltz from Vienna has basic steps,
consisting of change steps and turns.
Also, the
Viennese Waltz allowed the couple to dance at their own pace and to follow
their own steps. This is very much different from the norm wherein communal
dance sequences were performed. Before the advent of the waltz, the Master of
Ceremony in a given ball would have a pre-set pattern that all the dancers had
to follow. This didn’t give dancers much
leeway or variety when it came to dancing.
A scandalous dance
When first
introduced to high society, the conservatives were scandalized by the perceived
intimacy of the Viennese Waltz.
The women
would hold their long gowns with one hand in order to avoid tripping on their hem
or getting their long skirt stepped on while dancing. However, in lifting the
gown, it propelled the body forward so that the dance had to be performed in
close proximity with the partner. The lady’s hand holding the skirt up is held
by the male. Her other hand rests on the upper arm of her partner, below the
shoulder joint. The male’s other hand holds the lady by her waist, to give man
leading the dance to have the impetus to guide and pull the lady in the turns.
This obviously caused conservative eyebrows to rise due to morality issues. Before
the 19th century, it was forbidden for male and female dance
partners to have any contact with other parts of the body except for the hands.
Polite society
was both enthralled and appalled with the Viennese Waltz. Dance historian
Belinda Quirey said, “The advent of the waltz in polite society was quite
simply the greatest change in dance norm and dancing manners that has happened
in our history.” That was because in Europe at that time, most dances are
communal and the emcee would announce the pre-set pattern that all dancers must
follow. The dancers should always be facing the spectators, while when dancing
the waltz partners are facing one another, rather than the audience.
At the end
of the 18th century, written materials were even distributed
criticizing and questioning the morality of the dance. Salomo Jakob Wolf even
wrote a treatise in 1797 entitled "Proof that the waltz is a main source
of the weakness of body and mind or our generation; most urgently recommended
to the sons and daughters of Germany." It was fortunate that nobody heeded
his suggestions. It was even labeled erotic by Ernst Moritz Arndt, an 18th
century nationalistic author and poet from Germany.
When the
Viennese Waltz hit the dance scene, matrons were scandalized while men and
women secretly relished the closer contact afforded by the dance. The Viennese
Waltz was considered highly controversial; some hostesses did not allow it to be
danced in their ballrooms. Also, unmarried women had to get special permission
to be able to dance it, as it was considered in many social circles as quite
scandalous. In many instances, only married women were allowed to dance the
“unchaste dance” for fear of corrupting the character of young maidens.
Courtship on the dance floor
Men and
women conducted courtship rituals quite differently during the Regency Era.
Since there were very strict standards of contact and highly supervised
interactions between the man and the woman, the dance floor during balls was
the only time that men and women could engage in conversation with some level
of privacy.
If a man
showed interest in a particular woman, he would ask to fill out her dance card.
This is a small booklet of translucent paper attached to the gloved wrist of a
woman, where a man would pencil in his name for a specific dance at the start
of the ball. A woman would then have a scheduled list of dances with a
different range of partners.
However, it
was deemed highly inappropriate and quite scandalous to dance with the same
partner for more than two dances. The acceptable maximum was two dances per
partner and any more would place the couple under much unfavorable scrutiny.
Choosing to
dance the Viennese Waltz in the 19th century helped many romances to
blossom, expressed the couple’s spirit of adventure, liberal ideals and dancing
skills on the dance floor.
A political dance
There is a
political aspect to the Viennese Waltz that people may not know about. The
younger Strauss, who is still regarded in Austria the same way Germans revere
Mozart, was a liberal. His waltzes reflected his liberal ideals, which might be
why the dance is so lively, a reflection of the passion for freedom and
democracy during the time of the Habsburgs. The dance was even called the
“Marseillaise of the heart” by Austrian music critic Eduard Hanslick, whose
taste in music was quite conservative. La
Marseillaise of course is the stirring national anthem of France. For some
music romanticists, the Viennese Waltz was regarded as the reason why Austria
didn’t have a revolution even when other European nations were at war.
Spread of the waltz
Despite the
scandalous reputation of the dance, or perhaps because of it, the Viennese
Waltz spread to various ballrooms across Europe.
When other
forms of ballroom dancing emerged and people’s tastes began to shift, the
Viennese Waltz lost some of its popularity. However, the waltz would once again
spread to various parts of the world, thanks largely to immigration. The
Slovenians that settled in Ohio brought the dance to the country, later on
creating the American Waltz.
Three types
of waltz are common today. The Modern Waltz is a slow waltz that was born
between the 1920s and the 1930s. It is popularly used in ballroom competitions.
The Viennese Waltz is the quick waltz. Although no longer that popular, this
type of waltz could also be danced in competitions despite its limited
variations and number of figures. The third type is the Classical or Old Time
Waltz that was a popular ballroom dance during the 19th century.
Photo Credits:
5 comments:
Korg Legacy Collection Crack could be a collection of software synthesizers that fully reproduce the perfect work of art from the reliable synthesizer that is still in demand today. He was born under the supervision of engineers and original guides. We offer you the credible analog experience that none other than KORG can offer.
get good Drums Invasion is a ferocious drum sample library for Kontakt Player. Tailor-made for metal, these sounds cut through any arrangement, no matter how fast and chaotic. Invasion is built around a massive drum setup GGD’s largest yet with built-in processing and reverb to ensure studio-perfect sound at Plugin Torrent
Arcade VST by Output Crack is an example of a playground with new content and tools every day that allow you to transform everything to make it look like you.
VST Crack
After looking through a few blog articles on your website,
we sincerely appreciate the way you blogged.
We've added it to our list of bookmarked web pages and will be checking back in the near
future. Please also visit my website and tell us what you think.
fullcrackedpc.com
vsthomes.com
softwindowz.com
Arcade VST Output Crack
Viber for Windows Crack
Vulf Compressor Crack
its very usefull fo me
staff rota software
workforce management software
Post a Comment