Padegras dance: music, scheme, author

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

In the 19th century, dancing played a huge role in the life of society. A cultured and educated person was obliged to move well to the music. Balls were the most popular place for leisure activities and not only. They were carried out at any time of the day. They were divided into family, official court, public. The best outfits were sewn for them, famous musicians were invited. Then lavish dinners were organized. Balls are also colorfully described in works of art.

At the end of the 19th century, the hitherto popular square dances, mazurkas, polkas and w altzes became very boring to the public. In Russia and Europe, a fashion for new dances arose. The choreographers urgently had to create new steps to surprise the bored nobles. Thus, in 1900, thanks to Yevgeny Mikhailovich Ivanov, the padegras dance appeared.

Biography of the author of the dance

Unfortunately, very little information has been preserved about the choreographer. She remained only on the covers of music publications. Evgeny Mikhailovich Ivanov was an artist (soloist) of the Imperial Theater, as well as a professor at the Paris Academy. Taught at severaleducational institutions:

• in the second male gymnasium,
• at the Petropalovsk Gymnasium,
• in the gymnasium. Medvednikova,
• in the real school of Voskresensky.

Professor also lectured in closed women's educational institutions:

• im. V. N. von Derviz,
• im. O. A. Vinogradskoy,
• im. E. V. Winkler.

Ivanov taught ladies in dance and gymnastics courses. The artist and choreographer gave chic balls at the hunters' club three days after Christmas and Easter, on Shrovetide Thursday.

Yevgeny Mikhailovich Ivanov was dismissed on the basis of seniority in 1868. In 1879, he fell ill with consumption and died suddenly.

Music for padegras dance

Padegrasse is a dance whose name comes from the French pas de grâce. In the 19th century, almost all of them bore names in this language. He occupied the same place here as Latin in medicine and Italian in music. Padegras is a dance, the music for which consists of 8 measures and has a time signature of 4/4. The first mention of it was to music with notes of Gerber's gavotte. There is an assumption that it was this melody that inspired the choreographer to stage it.

Padegras dance (diagram)

Before the dance, the participants of the ball are divided into pairs and must become the front along the trajectory of movement. Legs are in third position. The padegras dance was a couples ballroom dance with graceful calm movements.

The man holds out his right hand to the woman. Next come the following pas:

• Zaktakt- the members are a bitsquat.
• The first measure: the right foot moves into the second position. Body weight is transferred here.
• Second measure: the left foot is put to the right from behind, that is, in the third position. After a slight squat.
• Third: Repeat the entire first bar.
• Fourth: the left foot becomes the first dance position (suits to the right). Then, with a graceful slow movement, it passes forward and becomes the fourth on the toe. This element is called "position". The entire weight of the body is transferred to the right leg.
• From the fifth to the eighth: bars 1-4 are repeated as in a mirror. Movements are performed from the left toe.
• From the ninth to the eleventh bars. Footwork according to this pattern: first with the right, then with the left and again with the right foot.
• Twelfth: Posing with the left foot.
• Fourteenth to sixteenth: Repeat bars 9-12. Movement from the left toe. On the sixteenth measure there is a posture. The couple throws up their hands. The dancers turn to face each other.
• Seventeenth-twentieth: The movements from the first to the fourth measure are repeated. The participants are turned face to face with the dancers from the other pair.
• 21 to 24 bars: repeats from 5 to 8. The participants of the ball return to their partners.
• Bars 25 to 32: The couple join hands and make one full circle (repeat from bars 9-16). In the last movement, the participants turn around in front of the line of dance.

Padegrasse in modern performance

In modern choreography, all historical ballroom dances have undergone great modifications. Padegras today has taken on many new forms. The choreographers added hip wagging and arm movements to the dance. There is also an option to perform with very fast music.

Historically-domestic dance is the cultural heritage of our country. Ballroom padegras dance is included in the compulsory program of choreographic schools, ballet studios, folk ensembles.