A Strange and Bizarre Dance
In an era of exploration, the notion of exotic distant lands aroused curiosity and intrigue. Dance styles originating from foreign nations were of considerable interests to genteel society in the 'civilised world'. One of the most notable dances of this ilk was associated with the Canary Islands off the coast of Spain, an affiliation linking it with three continents. The French priest Thoinot Arbeau alluded to it as a masquerade dance with a 'strong barbaric flavour' where the dancers dressed in feathers as 'savages'. Like its namesake, a popular intoxicating wine, the Canary was considered to promote wild and savage behaviour. Its hypnotic yet complex musical ground induced dancers to perform increasingly uninhibited, sometimes frenzied, stamping variations. Such passion and extravagance ensured its popularity across Europe in both theatrical and court settings. Although choreographic and musical evidence is scant, it is possible, by combining sources for both disciplines, to determine significant factors which indicate the character and style of the original renaissance dance and its baroque descendent.
About the authors
Mary Collins is an early dance specialist whose research and teaching approach has inspired musicians to look afresh at the dance music which is at the heart of the Renaissance and Baroque repertoire. A practitioner and researcher working with many of the world's leading exponents of early music; she performs regularly with the London Handel Players. Mary teaches at the Royal Academy of Music and Royal College of Music (London), the Royal Irish Academy of Music, the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln and the Austria Barock Akademie. Coaching includes the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, OAE Academy, the European Baroque Orchestra and Irish Baroque Orchestra. Mary's work enables young musicians to gain an informed approach to the realisation and performance of the baroque repertoire. Dancers, in turn, are encouraged to develop their sense of musicality. A comprehensive resource for musicians is currently being prepared for publication.
Rachel Brown, best known for her eloquent and virtuosic performances on a range of flutes and recorders, has appeared as a soloist in Europe, Japan, and North and South America with a comprehensive concerto repertoire from J.S. Bach, Vivaldi and Telemann to Mozart. Her championing of the works of the Berlin School has reawakened interest in the largely unknown masterpieces by Quantz and her recording of the CPE Bach D minor concerto was voted best by Polish radio. She has recorded Bach's B minor Suite twice, with the Brandenburg Consort and the Academy of Ancient Music and her three discs of Handel's chamber music with the London Handel Players have been described as 'perfection itself' (Pan). A dedicated teacher, Rachel has given masterclasses worldwide. She is currently professor of historical flute at the Royal College of Music in London. She is author of the Cambridge University Press handbook, The Early Flute, a practical guide and has composed cadenzas for the new Bärenreiter edition of the Mozart Flute Concertos. A practice manual for the baroque flute is in preparation alongside a book on baroque dance for musicians, which is the fruit of her extensive collaboration with dancer Mary Collins.