The Canary dance (known as Canario in Italian sources, Canarie in French ones) was a
Renaissance dance
Renaissance dances belong to the broad group of historical dances. During the Renaissance period, there was a distinction between country dances and court dances. Court dances required the dancers to be trained and were often for display and ente ...
inspired in an indigenous dance and song of the
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; es, :es:Canarias, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to ...
(probably the one known as
Tajaraste Tajaraste (From Berber TAJARAST) is combined music and dance typical of the Canary Islands, (Spain). It is specific to the islands of Tenerife and La Gomera. Essentially an upbeat, happy and syncopated rhythm, danced in pairs accompanied by tambou ...
) that became popular all over Europe in the late 16th and early 17th century. It is mentioned in dance manuals from
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, and is mentioned in sources from
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, ...
and
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, as well, including in plays by
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
.
The dance, which is most often choreographed for a single couple, has been characterized as "a fiery wooing dance" with either Canary origins or at least a Canary flavor from its "rapid heel-and-toe stamps" and distinctive music. It was also called frogs legs, because it was an energetic dance that featured jumps, stamping of the feet and violent movement, accompanied by music with syncopated rhythms.
While there are choreographies for the canario as a stand-alone dance in the dancing manuals of Fabritio Caroso, Cesare Negri, and Thoinot Arbeau, it most frequently appears as a section of a larger dance or suite of dances.
[Sutton, "Canary," vol. 2, pp. 50-52.] Several Baroque composers (notably
J.S. Bach) used the distinctive rhythm of the canary in a few pieces, such as the gigue of the
French Suite in C Minor, and it also appears in one of the
Goldberg Variations
The ''Goldberg Variations'', BWV 988, is a musical composition for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in 1741, it is named after Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, who may also hav ...
(Variation 7).
Canario choreographies and reconstructions
Il Canario: The Canary of Cesare Negri with its Variations��reconstructed by Delbert von Straßburg
Reconstruction video clips
Il Canario from Ballare 2010, Bauska (uploaded Jan. 5, 2011)Canario for Three (uploaded May 16, 2010)Canario de J.H. Kapsberger (uploaded Mar. 13, 2008)Canario, performed by Saltatriculi early dance ensemble (uploaded Aug. 22, 2011)
Notes
References
* Arbeau, Thoinot. ''Orchesography''. (''Orchésographie'', 1589.) Translated by Mary S. Evans and edited by Julia Sutton. New York: Dover, 1967.
* Brissenden, Alan. ''Shakespeare and the Dance''. Atlantic Highlands, NJ: Humanities Press, 1981. (1st edition), (2nd edition).
* Caroso, Fabritio. ''Courtly Dance of the Renaissance: A New Translation and Edition of the “Nobiltà di Dame”'' (1600). Edited and translated by Julia Sutton. New York: Dover Publications, 1986, 1995.
* Cohen, Selma Jeanne, ed. ''International Encyclopedia of Dance: A Project of Dance Perspectives Foundation, Inc''. 6 vols. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. (1st edition), {{ISBN, 978-0195173697 (2nd edition).
* Kendall, G. Yvonne. “''Le Gratie d'Amore'' 1602 by Cesare Negri: Translation and Commentary.” PhD diss., Stanford University, 1985.
* Negri, Cesare. ''Le Gratie d'Amore''. Milan, 1602.
External links
El canario baile
Partner dance
Dance forms in classical music
Spanish dances
Baroque dance
Renaissance dance