Steps: all done "in 6" = Reverenza, continenza, voltacia, volta del gioioso, sempio, doppio, ripresa, mezavolta, movimento, passitino.
Start:  One couple, side by side, holding hands, Woman on the right, facing up the hall.
 

      Section 1 (7 + 7 bars)
Sempio Left, Sempio Right, Doppio Left,
Volta del Gioioso ending with Mezavolta Right,
Ripresa Left, Ripresa Right,
Continenza Left, Continenza Right.
Repeat.

      Section 2 (8 bars)
"Gypsy" = Sempio Left, Sempio Right, Doppio Left, circling around each other as if holding right hands,
Sempio Right, Sempio Left, Doppio Right, circling the other way,
Sempio Left, Sempio Right, Doppio Left, circling with right hands,
Sempio Right, Sempio Left, Doppio Right, circling with left hands.
     Man is now facing up the hall, Woman down.

      Section 3 (10 bars)
Reverenza Left,
Passitino Left, Passitino Right backward, and end with a Mezavolta Right,
          Now (approximately) back to back, Man facing up the hall and Woman down.
Voltacia, ending (approximately) back to back
          It is a good and wonderful thing if you can remember that you have a partner during the Voltacia. They may be off behind you to the right, but you can always glance in their direction.
Doppio Left, Doppio Right, ending with a Mezavolta Right,
Ripresa Left, Ripresa Right, Reverenza Left.

      Section 4 (9 bars)
Man Movimento, Woman responds,
Sempio Left, Sempio Right, Doppio Left,
Volta del Gioioso,
Reverenza Left touching Right hands, Man ending with a Mezavolta Right,
     Now side by side, facing up the hall, Woman on the left
Ripresa Left, Ripresa Right, Reverenza Left.

Repeat the dance, Man and Woman exchanging roles.

Forse Che Si, Forse Che No - Twiddles of introduction, beginning is relatively clear - there's a louder note there. Enough music to do the repeat. Use this recording in class.

Reconstruction Notes:

This reconstruction mostly follows the version from the Giorgio ms in the NYPL.

In Section 2 I have the dancers not take hands for the first set of circling/arming figures, and do for the second, in order to vary things. The NYPL ms doesn't say to do so for the first circling, but does for the other three.

In Section 3 the original actually has the following sequence in Alesandresca:
reverenza left, sempio back (foot unspecified), mezavolta on right, voltacia.
In Chastelana, another bassadanza by Guglielmo from the same ms, the following sequence occurs:
reverenza right, 2 passitini back (feet unspecified), mezavolta on right, voltacia.
In each case, with the step reconstructions that I use, an extra weight shift is needed, perhaps at the end of the reverenza. I decided to switch the two passitini from Chastelana with the sempio from Alesandresca.

In Section 4 there are no movimenti. One, only, occurs, in two of the sources, which are then followed by Saltarelli instead of two sempii and a doppio, and may be part of the saltarelli. To fit the music I needed another bar, however.

Last modified: Jun 27, 2008

Back to my homepage