Branle
Encyclopedia
A branle—also bransle, brangle, brawl, brawle, brall(e), braul(e), or (Scot.) brantle (OED)—or brainle—is a 16th-century French
dance
style which moves mainly from side to side, and is performed by couples in either a line or a circle.
The word is derived from the French verb branler (to shake), possibly related to brander (to brandish). In Italy
the branle became the brando, and in Spain
the bran (Dolmetsch 1959). Brando alta regina by Cesare Negri
demonstrates how widely the French and Italian dances had diverged by the beginning of the 17th century. The Branle seems to have travelled to Scotland
and survived for some time as the brail, but in England
it was rarely danced, and of thousands of lute
pieces from England only 18 were called branle, though one called "courant" is known from continental sources as a branle (Craig-McFeely 1994, chapter 2, note 22).
The only detailed sources for the dance steps to the French branles are Orchesography (1589) by Thoinot Arbeau
and a few late examples in Beauchamp-Feuillet notation
(invented in 1691), such as Danses nouvelles presentees au Roy (ca. 1715) by Louis-Guillaume Pécour. However, Antonius de Arena briefly described the steps for the double and single branles and mentions mixed branles (branlos decopatos) in his macaronic
treatise Ad suos compagnones (Arena 1986 [1529], 20–21), and the dialogue of act 4, scene 2 of John Marston's The Malcontent (1604) sketches a choreography for one branle. Before 1500 the word is encountered, but only as the name of one of the steps of the basse danse
(Heartz 2001). Arbeau strongly implies that the branle was a dance mainly performed by commoner
s.
to be of interest to composer
s and so pieces with these names rarely occur in the instrumental books of the time unless they are specifically designed for dancers.
The single branle, however, consists of a phrase of two bars, followed by a phrase of one bar and appears in numerous places. Likewise the gay branle consists of two phrases of two bars each, but in 3/4 time, and so was also widely used.
The Burgundian branle as described by Arbeau is of the same structure as the double branle, but played with a lighter feel. Musical sources however often give an irregular structure for this dance.
(where his book was published), but "I learned it long ago from a young Breton who was a fellow student of mine at Poitiers" (Arbeau 1967, 151). On the other hand, when his student Capriol asks whether the Maltese branle is native to Malta, rather than just "a fanciful invention for a ballet", Arbeau replies that he "cannot believe it to be other than a ballet" (Arbeau 1967, 153). Some 16th-century books also contain music entitled Champagne branle, which Arbeau tells us is just another name for the Burgundian branle (Arbeau 1967, 129).
According to Mabel Dolmetsch the branle was referred to as the "brail" in Scotland
. As described by Arbeau it is in duple time. The first Scottish branle has musical phrases of 2 bars, the second phrases of 2 and 3 bars. Two examples of music called the Scottish branle by Estienne du Tertre
, however, appear in 3/4 time. Furthermore, despite a similarity in structure for one of these branles, the precise choreography given by Arbeau could not be danced to this music even if the music were in 4/4.
The Poitou branle usually has a 9/4 metre, although some settings use 6/4 or even alternate between 6/4 and 9/4. There is a variation called the Poitou double branle (Branle double de Poitou), which appears exclusively in 6/4.
(1612).
lute music however that the Branle de village was not associated with one specific dance as the structure differs significantly between pieces.
's The Malcontent (1604), act 4, scene 2, the character Guerrino describes the steps of a dance called Beanchaes brawl (Bianca's branle):
includes a piece called Branle Englese in his book of lute
music, Pratum Musicum. It included a referral to Jacques Branleur's "Branle dans Maison", a little-known performance artist's variation.
Francois Poulenc includes a Bransle de Champagne in his "Suite Francais" (1935).
Igor Stravinsky
includes a Bransle Simple, Bransle Gay, and Bransle de Poitou (Double) in his Agon
(1957).
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
style which moves mainly from side to side, and is performed by couples in either a line or a circle.
The word is derived from the French verb branler (to shake), possibly related to brander (to brandish). In Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
the branle became the brando, and in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
the bran (Dolmetsch 1959). Brando alta regina by Cesare Negri
Cesare Negri
Cesare Negri Italian dancer and choreographer. He was nicknamed il Trombone, an ugly or jocular name for someone "who likes to blow his own horn." Born in Milan, he founded a dance academy there in 1554. He was an active court choreographer for the nobility in Milan...
demonstrates how widely the French and Italian dances had diverged by the beginning of the 17th century. The Branle seems to have travelled to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and survived for some time as the brail, but in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
it was rarely danced, and of thousands of lute
Lute
Lute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes....
pieces from England only 18 were called branle, though one called "courant" is known from continental sources as a branle (Craig-McFeely 1994, chapter 2, note 22).
The only detailed sources for the dance steps to the French branles are Orchesography (1589) by Thoinot Arbeau
Thoinot Arbeau
Thoinot Arbeau is the anagrammatic pen name of French cleric Jehan Tabourot . Tabourot is most famous for his Orchésographie, a study of late sixteenth-century French Renaissance social dance...
and a few late examples in Beauchamp-Feuillet notation
Beauchamp-Feuillet notation
Beauchamp–Feuillet notation is a system of dance notation used in Baroque dance.The notation was commissioned by Louis XIV , and devised in the 1680s by Pierre Beauchamp. It was published in 1700 by Raoul-Auger Feuillet, who began a programme of publishing notated dances...
(invented in 1691), such as Danses nouvelles presentees au Roy (ca. 1715) by Louis-Guillaume Pécour. However, Antonius de Arena briefly described the steps for the double and single branles and mentions mixed branles (branlos decopatos) in his macaronic
Macaronic language
Macaronic refers to text spoken or written using a mixture of languages, sometimes including bilingual puns, particularly when the languages are used in the same context . The term is also sometimes used to denote hybrid words, which are in effect internally macaronic...
treatise Ad suos compagnones (Arena 1986 [1529], 20–21), and the dialogue of act 4, scene 2 of John Marston's The Malcontent (1604) sketches a choreography for one branle. Before 1500 the word is encountered, but only as the name of one of the steps of the basse danse
Basse danse
The basse danse, or "low dance", was the most popular court dance in the 15th and early 16th centuries, especially at the Burgundian court, often in a combination of 6/4 and 3/2 time allowing for use of hemiola...
(Heartz 2001). Arbeau strongly implies that the branle was a dance mainly performed by commoner
Commoner
In British law, a commoner is someone who is neither the Sovereign nor a peer. Therefore, any member of the Royal Family who is not a peer, such as Prince Harry of Wales or Anne, Princess Royal, is a commoner, as is any member of a peer's family, including someone who holds only a courtesy title,...
s.
The branles as musical forms
According to Arbeau, every ball began with the same four branles. The double branle, the single branle, the gay branle, and the Burgundian branle. The double branle has a simple form involving two phrases of two bars each. This form was not sufficiently different from the pavanPavane
The pavane, pavan, paven, pavin, pavian, pavine, or pavyn is a slow processional dance common in Europe during the 16th century .A pavane is a slow piece of music which is danced to in pairs....
to be of interest to composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
s and so pieces with these names rarely occur in the instrumental books of the time unless they are specifically designed for dancers.
The single branle, however, consists of a phrase of two bars, followed by a phrase of one bar and appears in numerous places. Likewise the gay branle consists of two phrases of two bars each, but in 3/4 time, and so was also widely used.
The Burgundian branle as described by Arbeau is of the same structure as the double branle, but played with a lighter feel. Musical sources however often give an irregular structure for this dance.
Regional branles
Arbeau gives choreographies for eight branles which are associated with specific regions, the Trihory of Brittany, the Burgundian branle (see above), the Haut Barrois branle, the Montardon branle, the Poitou branle, the Maltese branle, and the Scottish branle; he also mentions four others without describing their steps: the branles of Camp, Hainaut, Avignon, and Lyon (Arbeau 1967, 135–36, 146–53, 163, 167–69). Most of these dances seem to have a genuine connection to the region. This is made explicit in the case of the Trihory of Brittany, which Arbeau says is seldom if ever performed in the region around LangresLangres
Langres is a commune in north-eastern France. It is a subprefecture of the Haute-Marne département in the Champagne-Ardenne region.-History:As the capital of the Romanized Gallic tribe the Lingones, it was called Andematunnum, then Lingones, and now Langres.The town is built on a limestone...
(where his book was published), but "I learned it long ago from a young Breton who was a fellow student of mine at Poitiers" (Arbeau 1967, 151). On the other hand, when his student Capriol asks whether the Maltese branle is native to Malta, rather than just "a fanciful invention for a ballet", Arbeau replies that he "cannot believe it to be other than a ballet" (Arbeau 1967, 153). Some 16th-century books also contain music entitled Champagne branle, which Arbeau tells us is just another name for the Burgundian branle (Arbeau 1967, 129).
Musical characteristics of the regional branles
Although the Breton branle is rarely mentioned outside Arbeau the other two dance styles seems to have provided a little more inspiration to composers.According to Mabel Dolmetsch the branle was referred to as the "brail" in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. As described by Arbeau it is in duple time. The first Scottish branle has musical phrases of 2 bars, the second phrases of 2 and 3 bars. Two examples of music called the Scottish branle by Estienne du Tertre
Estienne du Tertre
Estienne du Tertre was a French composer. He spent most of his life in Paris and worked as an editor for the publisher Attaingnant. Many of his chansons were published....
, however, appear in 3/4 time. Furthermore, despite a similarity in structure for one of these branles, the precise choreography given by Arbeau could not be danced to this music even if the music were in 4/4.
The Poitou branle usually has a 9/4 metre, although some settings use 6/4 or even alternate between 6/4 and 9/4. There is a variation called the Poitou double branle (Branle double de Poitou), which appears exclusively in 6/4.
Branle de Montirandé
The Branle de Montirandé appears to be related to the Haut Barrois branle, which Arbeau says was "arranged to the tune of a branle of Montierandal" (probably Montier-en-Der, near Chaumont in the Haute Marne) (Arbeau 1967, 136 and 203 n92). This is danced in duple time, and as described by Arbeau has a similar structure to the double branle. Settings for this appear in the lute anthology Le trésor d'Orphée by Anthoine Francisque (1600) and the ensemble collection Terpsichore by Michael PraetoriusMichael Praetorius
Michael Praetorius was a German composer, organist, and music theorist. He was one of the most versatile composers of his age, being particularly significant in the development of musical forms based on Protestant hymns, many of which reflect an effort to make better the relationship between...
(1612).
Branles de village
There were a number of pieces of music from as early as 1550 called Branle de village, and they seem to have gained popularity in the early 17th century. Musically they usually incorporated "rustic" features in their melody, such as repeated notes. It is clear from the Robert BallardRobert Ballard (lutenist)
Robert Ballard was a prominent French lutenist and composer. His father, Robert Ballard Senior Robert Ballard (ca. 1572 or 1575, probably in Paris – after 1650) was a prominent French lutenist and composer. His father, Robert Ballard Senior Robert Ballard (ca. 1572 or 1575, probably in Paris...
lute music however that the Branle de village was not associated with one specific dance as the structure differs significantly between pieces.
Beanchaes brawl
In John MarstonJohn Marston
John Marston was an English poet, playwright and satirist during the late Elizabethan and Jacobean periods...
's The Malcontent (1604), act 4, scene 2, the character Guerrino describes the steps of a dance called Beanchaes brawl (Bianca's branle):
t'is but two singles on the left, two on the right, three doubles forward, a trauerse of six round: do this twice, three singles side, galliard tricke of twentie, curranto pace; a figure of eight, three singles broken downe, come vp, meete two doubles, fall backe, and then honour.The opening is the same as the Maltese branle described by Arbeau, but starting with "three singles side", there is an interpolation of "something presumably more athletic". The male dancer moves away from his partner before performing a "galliard trick of twenty"—apparently a number of capers or leaps in the manner of the galliard—before returning to the conventional ending (Marston 1999, 107, editor's note).
Others
Emmanuel AdriaenssenEmmanuel Adriaenssen
Emmanuel Adriaenssen was a Flemish lutenist and influential author of Pratum Musicum...
includes a piece called Branle Englese in his book of lute
Lute
Lute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes....
music, Pratum Musicum. It included a referral to Jacques Branleur's "Branle dans Maison", a little-known performance artist's variation.
Francois Poulenc includes a Bransle de Champagne in his "Suite Francais" (1935).
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
includes a Bransle Simple, Bransle Gay, and Bransle de Poitou (Double) in his Agon
Agon
Agon is an ancient Greek word with several meanings:*In one sense, it meant a contest, competition, especially the Olympic Games , or challenge that was held in connection with religious festivals....
(1957).
Branle suites
There were several well-established branle suites of up to ten dances. These were the Branles de Champagne, the Branles de Camp, the Branles de Hainaut and the Branles d'Avignon. He named the suites branles coupés, which literally means "(inter)cut" or "intersected branles", but is usually translated as "mixed branles" (Arbeau 1967, 137 and 203 n93). By 1623 the such suites had been standardized into a set of six dances: premier bransle, bransle gay, bransle de Poictou (also called branle à mener), bransle double de Poictou, cinquiesme bransle (by 1636 named branle de Montirandé), and a concluding gavotte (Semmens 1997, 36). A variant of this sequence is found in the Tablature de mandore (Paris, 1629) by François, Sieur de Chancy. A suite of seven dances collectively titled Branles de Boccan begins with a branle du Baucane known to have been composed by the prominent dancing master and brilliant violinist Jacques Cordier, known as "Bocan". It is followed by a second, untitled branle, then the branle gay, branle de Poictu, branle double de Poictu, branle de Montirandé, and la gavotte (Tyler 1981, 26).Further reading
- Bröcker, Marianne (1988). "Ein Branle—was it das?" In Colloquium: Festschrift Martin Vogel zum 65. Geburtstag, überreicht von seinen Schülern, edited by Heribert Schröder, 35-50. Bad Honnef: Schröder.
- Challet-Hass, Jacqueline (1977). Dances from the Marais Nord Vendéen. I: Les Maraichines (Branles and Courantes); II: Les Grand Danses and Other Dances. Documentary Dance Materials No. 2. Jersey, Channel Islands: Centre for Dance Studies.
- Cunningham, Caroline M. (1971). "Estienne du Tertre and the Mid-sixteenth Century Parisian Chanson". Musica Disciplina 25:127–70.
- Guilcher, Jean-Michel (1968). "Les derniers branles de Béarn et de Bigorre". Arts et Traditions Populaires (July–December): 259–92.
- Heartz, Daniel (1972). "Un ballet turc a la cour d'Henri II: Les Branles de Malte". Baroque: Revue International 5:17–23.
- Jordan, Stephanie (1993). "Music Puts a Time Corset on the Dance". Dance Chronicle 16, no. 3:295–321.
- McGowan, Margaret M. (2003). "Recollections of Dancing Forms from Sixteenth-Century France". Dance Research 21, no. 1 (Summer): 10–26.
- Martin, György (1973). "Die Branles von Arbeau und die osteuropäischen Kettentänze". Studia Musicologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 15:101–28.
- Merveille, Marie-Laure, and W. Thomas Marrocco (1989). "Anthonius Arena: Master of Law and Dance of the Renaissance". Studi Musicali 18, no. 1:19–48.
- Mizzi, Gordon (2004). "The Branles de Malte". Classical Guitar 23, no. 1 (September): 35–37.
- Mullally, Robert (1984). "French Social Dances in Italy, 1528–9". Music & Letters 65, no. 1 (January): 41–44.
- Pugliese, Patri J. (1981). "Why Not Dolmetsch?" Dance Research Journal 13, no. 2 (Spring): 21–24.
- Richardson, Mark D. (1993). "A Manual, a Model, and a Sketch: The Bransle Gay Dance Rhythm in Stravinsky's Ballet Agon". Mitteilungen der Paul Sacher Stiftung, no. 16:29–35.
- Richardson, Mark Douglas (1996). "Igor Stravinsky's Agon (1953–1957): Pitch-Related Processes in the Serial Movements and Rhythm in the Named Dance Movements Described in De Lauze's Apologie de la danse (1623)". PhD diss. Tallahassee: Florida State University.
- Rimmer, Joan (1987). "Patrons, Styles and Structure in the Music Attributed to Turlough Carolan". Early Music 15, no. 2 (May): 164–74.
- Rimmer, Joan (1989). "Carole, Rondeau and Branle in Ireland 1300–1800, Part 1: The Walling of New Ross and Dance Texts in the Red Book of Ossory". Dance Research 7, no. 1 (Spring): 20-46.
- Rimmer, Joan (1990). "Carole, Rondeau and Branle in Ireland 1300–1800, Part 2: Social and Theatrical Residues 1550–1800". Dance Research 8, no. 2 (Fall): 27–43.
- Roy, Gilbert (1988). "Rondes et branles de Champagne". Folklore de Champagne, no. 110 (May): 10–29.