Gigue
The gigue (French pronunciation: [ʒiɡ]) or giga (Italian: [ˈdʒiːɡa]) is a lively baroque dance originating from the British jig. It was imported into France in the mid-17th century[2] and usually appears at the end of a suite. The gigue was probably never a court dance, but it was danced by nobility on social occasions and several court composers wrote gigues.[3]
In early English theatre, it was customary to end a play's performance with a gigue, complete with music and dancing.[3]
A gigue is usually in 3/8 or in one of its compound metre derivatives, such as 6/8, 6/4, 9/8 or 12/16, although there are some gigues written in other metres (for example, the gigue from Bach's first French Suite (BWV 812), which is written in 4/4). They often have a contrapuntal texture. It often has accents on the third beats in the bar, making the gigue a lively folk dance.
Composers known to have famously used the gigue include Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel.
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[edit] Etymology
An early Italian dance called the giga probably derives its name from a small, accompanying stringed instrument called the 'giga'. Historians, such as Charles Read Baskerville, claim that use of the word in relation to dancing took place in England prior to such usage on the Continent. Also, giga probably has a separate etymology.[3] [pp]
[edit] Cultural references
Jonathan Littell's novel The Kindly ones is structured in different parts, each one of these named after a Baroque dance, the last part being called Gigue.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Blatter, Alfred (2007). Revisiting music theory: a guide to the practice, p.28. ISBN 0415974402.
- ^ Bellingham, Jane, "gigue." The Oxford Companion to Music. Ed. Alison Latham. Oxford Music Online. 6 Jul. 2008 [1]
- ^ a b c Louis Horst, Pre-Classic Dance Forms, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton Book Company, 1987), 54-60.
