How To Dance Through Time, Volume IV

The fourth volume of the How to Dance Through Time series teaches the famously patterned dance steps from the French Baroque courts and countryside. These forms are the precursor to ballet and ballroom dance. Learn the Minuet, danced as a romantic courtship ritual, and the intricate Allemande, known for its kaleidoscope of handholds. Next, take a respite from the more formal steps and try the Contradance (Country Dance), an easy line dance that let dancers frolic at the end of Baroque period balls.Follow Carol Téten’s Dance Through Time company as they recreate the most influential social dances of the French Baroque Court. The most famous of 18th century dances, the Minuet’s patterned steps are delineated on the dance floor for clear viewing. The Allemande’s complex and picturesque series of handholds are carefully depicted, and viewers learn of this dance’s role in the transition dancing separately to dancing together in an embrace. Eight dancers demonstrate the Contradance’s (Country Dance) recognizable line dance pattern. The DVD also illustrates French Baroque culture through dance, such as how courtiers learned the townspeople’s dances on official visits to the countryside, brought the steps back with them to the courts, and incorporated various changes.

Most people who buy this DVD also buy the Companion CD.

With 40 years of experience teaching and performing dance, Carol Téten provides clear instructions and entertaining context.

DVD run-time: 45 minutes

*DVDs are approved for classroom/institutional use, iTunes downloads are for private use only.

The subtlety and elegance of the Renaissance and Baroque periods are aptly portrayed… dance enthusiasts will enjoy these programs. Booklist
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PROGRAM DETAILS

Program: Volume IV: The Elegance of Baroque Social Dance

Instructor
Carol Téten

Dancers
Lawrence Ewing
Sonia Fava
with
Denise Brady
Amy Moorhead
Tatiana A’Virmond
Lee Bell
Peter Lisanti
Mario Marchiaro

Musicians
Phebe Craig-harpsichord
Michael Sand-Violin

As with all videos in the How to Dance Through Time series, the dances in Volume IV are introduced with a concise, historical overview and illustrated with authentic photographs and drawings. The steps were carefully researched from period manuscripts and are recreations of historical dances. Close up and slow motion views make learning the moves simple and fun.

Dance historian and choreographer Carol Téten is an engaging presence in the series, providing historical context and calling out dance instructions as professional dancers demonstrate. Following each instructional section, dancers from the Dance Through Time company perform with authentic music and fashions of the era.

Sheet Music for The Elegance of Baroque Social Dance (Vol. IV)

Most people who buy this DVD also buy the Companion CD

HOW TO DANCE THROUGH TIME: VOLUME IV: The Elegance of Baroque Social Dance

DISCOUNT PACKAGE:

6 DVD Set  – HOW TO DANCE THROUGH TIME: Volumes 1 – 6 

Reviews

The subtlety and elegance of the Renaissance and Baroque periods are aptly portrayed in these newest volumes in the How to Dance Through Time titles… dance enthusiasts will enjoy these programs. Booklist

Each of these 45 minute splendidly presented videos easily permit the viewers to achieve competency and fluency in these period dances. The Midwest Book Review

Each of the tapes provides very explicit and detailed instructions for each step and dance. Each step is shown front and back, fast and slow, without and with music. The steps are then built into entire dances. Library Journal

Once again guided by Carol Téten, who provides enlightened historical and sociological background, we learn that dancing was a basic, important social skill of all nobility and upper classes…recommended for intermediate to advanced dancers and historical collections. Video Librarian

These instructional videos will be invaluable to choreographers who create dances for period films or for cotillions and charity balls. They preserve the art form and provide the story of the cultural phenomenon, thus making a perfect addition to dance, design, and anthropological libraries. Dance on Camera Journal

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