Introducing The Waltz - History-Steps-Etiquette

By Bernard Stetson

This vintage book is a comprehensive guide to learning the waltz, complete with step-by-step instructions, simple diagrams, helpful tips, and more. “Introducing The Waltz – History-Steps-Etiquette” is ideal for the beginner looking to learn how to dance the waltz. Highly accessible and full of interesting historical information, this book would make for a fantastic addition to collections of related literature. Contents include: “The Waltz Changes (Man)”, “The Waltz Changes (Lady)”, “How to 'Rise' Correctly”, “Practising to Music”, “If You Can Walk... You Can Dance!”, “How to Walk Forward”, “How to Walk Backward”, “The 'Hold'... Leading and Following”, “The 'Hold'...Leading and Following”, etc. Many vintage books such as this are increasingly scarce and expensive. It is with this in mind that we are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern edition complete with a specially commissioned new introduction on dance.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Sep 6, 2016
• ISBN: 9781473352513

Book preview

Introducing The Waltz

History – Steps – Etiquette

By

Bernard Stetson

Copyright © 2013 Read Books Ltd.

This book is copyright and may not be reproduced or copied in any way without the express permission of the publisher in writing

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

CONTENTS

A Short Introduction to Dance

INTRODUCING THE WALTZ

HOW TO WALK FORWARD

HOW TO WALK BACKWARD

THE HOLD . . . LEADING AND FOLLOWING

THE HOLD . . . LEADING AND FOLLOWING

THE COMPASS

THE WALTZ TURNS

HOW TO DANCE THE WALTZ

THE WALTZ

THE WALTZ

THE WALTZ

THE ONE PERFECT WALTZ

A Short Introduction to Dance

Dance is a type of art that generally involves movement of the body, often in a rhythmic fashion and to music. It is performed in almost all cultures around the globe as a form of emotional expression, social interaction or exercise, in a spiritual or performance setting, and is sometimes used to express ideas or tell a story. Definitions of what constitutes dance are extremely difficult to form – and can depend on social and cultural norms, as well as aesthetic, artistic and moral sensibilities. Definitions may range from functional movement (such as folk dance) to virtuoso techniques such as ballet. Martial arts Kata (choreographed patterns of movements) are often compared to dances and sports such as gymnastics, figure skating and synchronized swimming are generally thought to incorporate dance.

There are many styles and genre of dance; African dance is generally ‘interpretative’, ballet, ballroom and tango are examples of ‘classical dance styles’, square dance and electric slide are forms of ‘step dance’ and break-dancing is a type of ‘street dance.’ Any of these dances can be either participatory, social or performed for an audience. Due to the nature of dancing itself however, it is very difficult to trace a history of the genre. Dance does not leave behind clearly identifiable physical artefacts such as stone tools, hunting implements or cave paintings. It is thus simply not possible to say when dance became part of human culture. Archaeological evidence (in the forms of statues and decorations on vases) indicates that dance has been an important part of ceremony, ritual, celebration and entertainment since the earliest civilisations though.

Examples of the evidence we do have includes 9,000-year-old paintings in India at the Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka (Raisen District, Madhya Pradesh) and Egyptian tomb paintings depicting dancing figures, dated c. 3300 BC. One of the earliest structured uses of dances may have been the telling of myths. Before the invention of written languages, dance was one of the methods of passing stories down from generation to generation. Another early use of dance may have been as a precursor to ecstatic trance states in healing rituals – and it is still used for this purpose today by many cultures from the Brazilian rainforest to the Kalahari Desert. Most contemporary dance forms can actually be traced to such traditional, ceremonial or ethnic dances. For example, some Sri Lankan dances are related to aboriginal, mythical devils known as ‘yakkas’ and according to local legend, Kandyah dance (originating in a hilly region of Sri Lanka) began as a ritual that broke the magic spell on a bewitched king.

Concert or performance dance is primarily related to Europe and North America. One of its most famous forms – ballet – originated first in Italy and then in France from lavish court spectacles that combined music, drama, poetry, song, costumes and dance. During the reign of Louis XIV, himself a dancer, dance became more codified. Professional dancers began to take the place of court amateurs and ballet masters were licensed by the French government. The first ballet dance academy was the Académie Royale de Danse (Royal Dance Academy), opened in