The minuet is the dance of kings. That is how he was characterized in past centuries, and nothing has changed today. In the modern world, only true connoisseurs of art know about the existence of such a dance, and, alas, from the general public, it has irrevocably gone. Minuet is a dance that consists of slow movements, small steps, beautiful steps and curtsies. And in order to plunge into the past and find out exactly how our ancestors rested at the balls, we will study in more detail the history and all the features of the minuet.
The origin of the genre
The native places of the minuet are considered the historical region of France Brittany. There he existed along with other folk dances, which, however, were performed in aristocratic circles. The essence of it then consisted only in the fact that the couples moved gracefully, performing alternately small steps. Of course, such an action was always accompanied by the corresponding slow music. Even at that time, a folk French minuet was already performed with a certain size - ¾. Many composers wrote works specially for this dance or simply improvised at ceremonial receptions and balls.
The formation of dance in the masses
At the beginning of the 17th century, the king of France, Louis XIV, found out about this amazing phenomenon of folk art. It was he who officially proclaimed throughout the country that the minuet is a dance. This was news that instantly spread to all cities, and at every aristocratic court minuets who were close to the king, counts, barons and other owners of high titles began to perform the minuet. Given the fact that in the 17-18 centuries throughout Europe and even in Russia there was a fashion for everything French, this new genre quickly gained a leading position in all the noble courts.
The minuet was in favor with
Peter the Great, that is, in St. Petersburg and in Moscow; it was performed in Poland, in Great Britain. The popularity of the dance did not decline until the middle of the 19th century, while more energetic rhythms and sharp movements replaced the slow pas.
Historical image of dance
At the dawn of its existence, the minuet consisted of extremely simple, but very graceful movements. Performers performed curtsies, lingering pa; they moved around the hall, now approaching each other, then moving away. Thus, the impression was that the minuet was not a dance, but only an invitation, very gallant, flirty and polite. It was noteworthy that only one pair always performed it. That is, guests took turns dancing the minuet - at first the most distinguished persons, then all the others.
After the dance became widespread in France and abroad, its movements became more complicated. It was important to take steps to the side and forward with maximum accuracy, thus building the figures. Another important metamorphosis has also occurred. Since the 17th century, the minuet has been a dance that is performed by all guests at once. The kings marched first, followed by the Dauphin with companions, and then the rest of the titled guests. All performers during the dance lined up in certain figures. Most often these were the letters “Z” or “S”.
Baroque era
During this period, the minuet undergoes significant transformations. Its pace accelerates, it becomes more mobile and non-standard rhythm. If previously the dance was performed strictly on ¾, now a variation of 6/8 has been added to this size. In the Baroque era, a minuet is a dance that is performed simultaneously by most of the guests. At the same time, all their movements should be filled not only with coquetry, but also with cunning, cunning, charisma. In order to emphasize such a “frivolous” nature of the dance, people changed partners. It is also important to highlight that during the years of the popularity of the Baroque style , the first classical musical accompaniments for this dance appeared. They were divided into three parts and code. The first was two-voice, the second was three-voice, in the third part the motives from the first were repeated. The code was small and necessarily performed in major.
Features of the study of dance
Surprisingly, with all the apparent simplicity of the execution of the minuet, it was previously studied for years. From a young age, children were taught to move correctly, and their plasticity and grace were developed. Each transition, each step was rehearsed with maximum accuracy, because any movement in such a dance should have been easy, as if improvisation, and at the same time clear, confident, coinciding with everyone else. In fairness, it is worth highlighting that the minuet is a dance that is difficult primarily for men. They needed to take off their hat, then, as if in one motion, to lure the lady to the dance, then, without interrupting the same "breath", put it back on her head.
As world classics wrote
A minuet in music is not just an accompaniment for a dance that has a certain rhythm and pace. This is a separate genre that exists along with a sonata or foreplay. Initially, it existed as a separate form and was performed on a harpsichord or clavichord. Later, he became a mandatory part of the instrumental suite. When a genre such as opera began to gain popularity, the minuet became part of the overture. In the 18th century, entire suites were already made up of minuets. The first issue was necessarily written in major, and followed by a dance in minor.
Often this dance was alternated with others, where frets also varied. Among the composers who wrote music in this genre, it is worth mentioning I. S. Bach. Along with him, Handel, J.-B. Lully and other composers of the Rococo era. Later, the creators of the era of romanticism took up the writing of the minuets. These were Beethoven (in his notes he calls the minuet “scherzo”), Gluck, Mozart, Sati, Debussy. The described genre is also found in the works of domestic composers: Tchaikovsky, Glinka, Rubinstein, etc.