Zwiefacher
Encyclopedia
The Zwiefacher is a south German
folk dance
with a quick tempo
and changing beat patterns.
, especially Lower Bavaria
, Hallertau
and Upper Palatinate
; it is also known in the Black Forest
, Austria
, Alsace
, the Czech Republic
and Sudetenland
.
The dance is still known by various other names in different regions, such as Schweinauer, Schleifer, Übern Fuaß, Mischlich, Grad und Ungrad, Neu-Bayerischer and, above all Bairischer (meaning Farmer Dance a name sometimes confused with the Bavarian Polka
.)
The number of different names for the same dance should not be surprising, the dance is older than the modern German language. Nor should one be surprised that the tunes themselves have multiple names. One German dance researcher, Felix Hoerburger, cataloged 112 different Zwiefacher tunes with 474 different names.
s, changing from 3 to 2 beats per bar. The changes may occur in a regular way - for example, two measures
per time signature, may change only once, or may change irregularly throughout. Early Zwiefachers were played before the modern bar line
was invented.
. Physically, the rhythmic shift looks like a change from normal waltz
steps to drehersteps (pivots), occasionally also to polka
steps.
device in order to help learn Zwiefachers melodies by heart. This led to many songtexts for the same melodies. New lyrics are still sometimes used together with old melodies, as in the McDonalds-Parody "Hunger kriag i glei" by "Bayrisch-Diatonischer Jodelwahnsinn" which uses the same music as the Suserl-Zwiefache.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
folk dance
Folk dance
The term folk dance describes dances that share some or all of the following attributes:*They are dances performed at social functions by people with little or no professional training, often to traditional music or music based on traditional music....
with a quick tempo
Tempo
In musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
and changing beat patterns.
Location
The Zwiefacher is danced primarily in BavariaBavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, especially Lower Bavaria
Lower Bavaria
Lower Bavaria is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of the state.- Geography :Lower Bavaria is subdivided into two regions - Landshut and Donau-Wald. Recent election results mark it as the most conservative part of Germany, generally giving huge...
, Hallertau
Hallertau
The Hallertau or Holledau is an area in Bavaria, Germany. At 178 km², it is listed as the largest continuous hop-planting area in the world...
and Upper Palatinate
Upper Palatinate
The Upper Palatinate is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of Bavaria.- History :The region took its name first in the early 16th century, because it was by the Treaty of Pavia one of the main portions of the territory of the Wittelsbach Elector...
; it is also known in the Black Forest
Black Forest
The Black Forest is a wooded mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the Rhine valley to the west and south. The highest peak is the Feldberg with an elevation of 1,493 metres ....
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
, the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
and Sudetenland
Sudetenland
Sudetenland is the German name used in English in the first half of the 20th century for the northern, southwest and western regions of Czechoslovakia inhabited mostly by ethnic Germans, specifically the border areas of Bohemia, Moravia, and those parts of Silesia being within Czechoslovakia.The...
.
Name
The first documented usage of the word Zwiefach was in 1780. It loosely translates as "two times" or "double". Although this may be indicative of the two different time signatures, it is believed that the title actually refers to the couple being tightly wound against each other, a departure from earlier traditions.The dance is still known by various other names in different regions, such as Schweinauer, Schleifer, Übern Fuaß, Mischlich, Grad und Ungrad, Neu-Bayerischer and, above all Bairischer (meaning Farmer Dance a name sometimes confused with the Bavarian Polka
Polka
The polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...
.)
The number of different names for the same dance should not be surprising, the dance is older than the modern German language. Nor should one be surprised that the tunes themselves have multiple names. One German dance researcher, Felix Hoerburger, cataloged 112 different Zwiefacher tunes with 474 different names.
Rhythm
The Zwiefacher alternates between odd and even time signatureTime signature
The time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....
s, changing from 3 to 2 beats per bar. The changes may occur in a regular way - for example, two measures
Bar (music)
In musical notation, a bar is a segment of time defined by a given number of beats of a given duration. Typically, a piece consists of several bars of the same length, and in modern musical notation the number of beats in each bar is specified at the beginning of the score by the top number of a...
per time signature, may change only once, or may change irregularly throughout. Early Zwiefachers were played before the modern bar line
Bar (music)
In musical notation, a bar is a segment of time defined by a given number of beats of a given duration. Typically, a piece consists of several bars of the same length, and in modern musical notation the number of beats in each bar is specified at the beginning of the score by the top number of a...
was invented.
Choreography
The couple turn very quickly in close position, similar to the WaltzWaltz
The waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in time, performed primarily in closed position.- History :There are several references to a sliding or gliding dance,- a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the printer H.S. Beheim...
. Physically, the rhythmic shift looks like a change from normal waltz
Waltz
The waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in time, performed primarily in closed position.- History :There are several references to a sliding or gliding dance,- a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the printer H.S. Beheim...
steps to drehersteps (pivots), occasionally also to polka
Polka
The polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...
steps.
Lyrics
Lyrics were often created as a mnemonicMnemonic
A mnemonic , or mnemonic device, is any learning technique that aids memory. To improve long term memory, mnemonic systems are used to make memorization easier. Commonly encountered mnemonics are often verbal, such as a very short poem or a special word used to help a person remember something,...
device in order to help learn Zwiefachers melodies by heart. This led to many songtexts for the same melodies. New lyrics are still sometimes used together with old melodies, as in the McDonalds-Parody "Hunger kriag i glei" by "Bayrisch-Diatonischer Jodelwahnsinn" which uses the same music as the Suserl-Zwiefache.
Examples in European classical music
- Carl OrffCarl OrffCarl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...
composed one dance of his Carmina BuranaCarmina Burana (Orff)Carmina Burana is a scenic cantata composed by Carl Orff in 1935 and 1936. It is based on 24 of the poems found in the medieval collection Carmina Burana...
in the Zwiefacher form. - The FuriantFuriantA Furiant is a rapid and fiery Bohemian dance in 2/4 and 3/4 time, with frequently shifting accents.The stylised form of the dance was often used by Czech composers such as Antonin Dvořák in the eighth dance from his Slavonic Dances and in his 6th Symphony, and by Bedřich Smetana in The Bartered...
in Act Two of Bedřich SmetanaBedrich SmetanaBedřich Smetana was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style which became closely identified with his country's aspirations to independent statehood. He is thus widely regarded in his homeland as the father of Czech music...
's The Bartered BrideThe Bartered BrideThe Bartered Bride is a comic opera in three acts by the Czech composer Bedřich Smetana, to a libretto by Karel Sabina. The opera is considered to have made a major contribution towards the development of Czech music. It was composed during the period 1863–66, and first performed at the...
is a variant of the Zwiefacher.
Examples
- Eisenkeilnest (http://www.dancilla.com/search.asp?crit=Eisenkeilnest)
- 's Luda (http://www.dancilla.com/search.asp?crit=Luada)
- Schaufelsteil sheet music (http://www.folkloretanznoten.de/Schaufelstiel.pdf)
- Lercherl Zwiefacher (see the external links section)
See also
- Austrian folk dances
- Austrian folk dancing
- WaltzWaltzThe waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in time, performed primarily in closed position.- History :There are several references to a sliding or gliding dance,- a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the printer H.S. Beheim...
- LandlerLändlerThe ländler is a folk dance in 3/4 time which was popular in Austria, south Germany and German Switzerland at the end of the 18th century.It is a dance for couples which strongly features hopping and stamping...
- SchuhplattlerSchuhplattlerThe Schuhplattler is a traditional Austro-Bavarian folk dance evolved from the Ländler.-Origins:The origins of this social dance are found in an early courtship display...
- German Wikipedia Zwiefacher page
External links
- http://www.germandance.org/zwiefache.html (dance style/flow, spelling, pronunciation, noun endings) Archive from 2008.
- http://www.dancilla.com (videos, MIDI files, descriptions - in German)
- http://www.phantomranch.net/folkdanc/dances/zwiefach.htm (dance notes)
- http://www.folkdancing.com/Pages/seattle/Zwie-Pattern.html (a list of over 200 recorded Zwiefacher dance patterns)
- http://www.stammtischmusik.at/noten/zwiefache.htm (sheet music, lyrics, dance patterns, and videos for 53 Zwiefacher)
- http://www.germanfolkdancers.org/ (history, spelling, definition)