Morris dance

“ But the first Morris danced on English soil was not, by a long chalk, the first Morris. Scarves such as these were waved, and bells such as these were jangled, and some such measure as this was trodden, in the mists of a very remote antiquity. Spanish buccaneers, long before the dawn of the fifteenth century, had seen the Moors dancing somewhat thus to the glory of Allah. Home-coming, they had imitated that strange and savage dance, expressive, for them, of the joy of being on firm native land again. ”

“ The figures and steps are simple and more graceful than those of the Morris Dance. Its step is of a springy walking nature, two to each bar, executed by women with a natural unaffected grace, and on the part of men with a complacent bearing and a certain jauntiness of manner. Like the Morris, the Country Dance never requires pointed toes, arched legs or affected swayings. The galop, waltz and polka steps are occasionally used. The movements are performed smoothly and quietly, the feet more sliding than walking. ”

“ But we, this untrained ballet, were not Bonfantis nor Morlachis, and we wore our dancing clothes with a difference. In one dance we were supposed to be fairies. We wore flesh-colored slippers and tights. It took one full week of our two weeks' engagement to learn how to secure these treacherous articles, so that they would remain smooth and not wrinkle down somewhere or twist about. One girl never learned, and to the last added to the happiness of the public by ambling about on a pair of legs that looked as if they had been done up in curl papers the night before. ”

“ The hobby-horse, which, latterly at least, was one of the principal characters of the dance, consisted of a wooden figure attached to the person of the actor, who was covered with trappings reaching to the ground, so as to conceal his feet. The morris-dance was abolished along with the May-games and other festivities by the Puritans, and, although revived at the Restoration, the pageant gradually degenerated in character and declined in importance. Maid Marian latterly was personated by a clown, who was called Malkin or Marykin. ”

“ The files should stand as in Corner Dances—about twelve feet apart.
HOW D'YE DO (CORNER DANCE) .
This dance, as will be clearly seen from the Notation (see p. 75) , serves as illustration of the national method of settling quarrels—by a bout of fisticuffs. All the dances are typical of the race; this one is of course singularly so. Where boys are found disposed to look favourably upon the Morris dance, "How d'ye do" may be recommended as the very best to encourage the tendency in them. ”

“ It must always be remembered that the Morris-men themselves vary the length of their dances, according to the humour of the moment, and their freshness or fatigue. A dance can always be shortened by leaving out one or more figures: the musician will know what to do by the call of the leader.
In "Blue-eyed Stranger," for instance, if the side is feeling particularly high-spirited, the whole sixteen bars of "B" music may be danced ”

“ In alighting from the jump, the knees are bent just enough to save the dancer from injurious shock, and are straightened immediately. The Morris Dance is danced by men, usually six. Occasionally, but rarely, women have figured as performers. The music in early115 times was furnished by the bagpipe, whistle and tabor ”

“ Every form of art which has the seeds of life in it must needs change and grow. The Morris, as has been said, was originally a men’s dance, and already its performance by girls is changing something of its character. The introduction of the feminine element necessarily robs it of its sturdiness and at the same time lends it an added gaiety and grace. But the change will probably go deeper than this. The old Morris was the expression of a mode of life that has passed away; out of it must be developed some newer variation more fitted to express the spirit of a broader and fuller life. ”

“ NO view of the modern renaissance of dancing would be complete which did not take account of the revival of the Morris Dance.
Perhaps it has been too lightly assumed that England being a nation of shopkeepers has never been a nation of dancers. But shopkeeping is merely a habit, the product of circumstance, and in its nature a temporary makeshift. Dancing is a need of the spirit, a daughter of the high moods, and if, as Lucian said, it is as old as love, it is surely also as everlasting. The shopkeeping spirit may be, and probably is, antagonistic to dancing ”

“ It is essentially a dance for men, and a dance for the open air. It does not sway or glide; its movement is spirited and abrupt. The foot is lifted as in walking and then vigorously straightened to a kick; the heels come solidly to earth. The object of the dancer is to make the bells ring fortissimo, and to do this he must kick, and kick hard. The Morris does not exhibit the graceful postures and fawn-like agility of the Spanish country dances, nor the fiery energy of the Hungarian and the Russian. ”

“ The Morris dances are associated with May-day, and are danced round a maypole to a lively and capering step, some of the performers having bells fastened to their knees in the Moorish manner. They are dressed as characters of old English tradition, such as Robin Hood, Maid Marian, Friar Tuck, Little John and Tom the Piper. All the true country dances of Great Britain are of an active and lively measure; they may all, indeed, be said to be founded on the jig; and the hornpipe, which is a kind of jig, is the national dance of England. ”

“ And dance like friends together."
The garments of the morris-dancers were adorned with bells which were meant to be wrung while dancing. They were fastened to the wrists, the elbows, and the ankles. They were of different sizes and tones and bore such names as the forebell, the second bell, the treble, the tenor or great bell, and double bells. The principal dancer was always superbly dressed. "He wants no clothes, for he hath a cloak laid on with gold lace, and an embroidered jerkin; and thus he is marching thither like the forman of a morris." ”

“ The Morris cannot properly be called a dance of art; it is a dance of the people. It can never be a substitute for the dance of the theatre. But the popular revival of the old dances is important, not only in providing a new means of emotional expression, but in arousing a new interest in the art of the dance itself. Dancing is a sensitive plant which can only thrive in a congenial atmosphere. In some degree all the arts appear to live by the breath of popular favour. Their activity is stimulated, their expression perfected, by interest, criticism and understanding. ”

“ In a comedy called Variety, printed in 1649, we meet with this passage: "like a Bacchanalian, dancing the Spanish Morisco, with knackers at his fingers." This dance was usually, I believe, performed by a single person, which by no means agrees with the morris-dance. Sir John Hawkins [729] observes that, within the memory of persons living, a saraband danced by a Moor constantly formed part of the entertainment at a puppet-show; and this dance was always performed with the castanets. I shall not pretend to investigate the derivation of the word morris ”

“ It will be observed that they have bells on their caps, and it must have required much skill and practice to sound their various toned bells to the music as they danced. This dance of fools may have suggested or became eventually merged into the "Morris Dance" (fig. 50) of which some account with other illustrations of "Comic Dances" will be given hereafter. The man dancing and playing the pipes with a woman on his shoulder (fig. 36) , the stilt dancer with a curious instrument (C) , and the woman jumping through a hoop, give us other illustrations of fourteenth century amusements. ”

“ A country dance which goes by the name of the Morris Dance is still frequently danced in the north of England. It is danced by an indefinite number of couples, standing opposite to one another, as in 'Sir Roger de Coverley.' Each couple holds a ribbon between them, under which the dancers pass in the course of the dance. ”

“ To my eye there is nothing more charming than a well-danced maxixe. To dance well a man must be an athlete and a musician; to be either is surely a worthy ambition. To dance well a girl must at the very least have grace and charm.
So far as I am concerned, Lucy Fulton's dance was a great success, from the arrival of the first guest. I was the first guest.
We had a whole dance to ourselves while Evelyn was busy with the telephone and before the second guest arrived. In all her life Lucy had never looked more animated or more lovely. ”

“ And one of the implements of their trade, the Golden Maid, (better known as “the Dolly,”) may still be seen at a turner’s shop in Dudley.
A few others remain, which cannot, strictly speaking, be called professions, yet are they—or at least they were—means of making a living, as the Three Morris-dancers, once a very common sign, but now, like the custom that gave rise to it, almost extinct. There is one still left, however, at Scarisbrook, Lancashire, and in a few villages a remnant of the dance is also kept up on certain occasions. They were called Morris, or Moors, from the Spanish Morisco. ”

“ Edward Naylor, in the appendix to his "Shakespeare and Music," only prints the same number—"An English Morris, 1650" (a variant of Chappell's "Staines Morris Tune") , and an Italian Moresca by Claudio Monteverde, 1608. In Grove's "Dictionary of Music" (old ed.) , II., p. 369, three Morris tunes are recorded: Arbeau's "Morris Off," a Yorkshire melody founded on that of "The Literary Dustman," and a Cheshire Morris to words beginning:—
Morris Dance is a very pretty tune,
I can dance in my new shoon ”

“ From this it will be reasonably inferred that for countless centuries the two arts remained in combination, before the incentive genius of either proved too strong to longer brook the artificial ties that had bound them together.
It is said that the Morris dance can be traced to Saxon times, and that it is the one that has [Pg 22] remained with the least variation from its original form. It must be admitted, however, that the difficulty of absolutely proving these assertions is almost insuperable, notwithstanding the amount of research that has been directed to the subject. ”

“ The music is marked ad libitum: the musician simply brings his labours to an end in whichsoever section he shall hear the warning call of "All in." Even the Morris-men themselves do not invariably go through all the movements. These instructions are given in order that, should audience or dancers weary of the exercise, it can be curtailed. Where we have taught the dance to novices, we have found, at first, curtailment to be advisable, for the length and monotony of it palled. ”

“ Of course, as a people becomes more intellectual, and{190} learns to express all the nuances of thought by means of language alone, it relies less upon the elucidation of gesture. Anglo-Saxons are naturally schooled in reserve and seek to avoid any betrayal of the emotions by physical expression. The national gesture nevertheless exists and finds its embodiment in the national dance, the Morris. America can scarcely be said to have any national dance, unless it be the cake walk, which is plainly stamped with all the ungainliness of negro movement. ”

“ He then proceeded to dance the Morisco the length of the hall, forth and back, to the great amusement of the company. So says Tabourot, long dead; and to-day we learn that, in most winters, a side of Morris-men dances at White Ladies Aston, one-and-a-half mile from Spetchley, Worcester. They blacken their faces and have for music accordion, triangle, and tambourine: their flute-player died recently. Tabourot suggests that the bells might have been borrowed from the crotali of the ancients in the Pyrrhic dance. ”

“ In remaining six bars of "B," repeat dibbing and tapping as in the first six bars.
In the notation of "Bean-setting" (p. 61) , the term "Dibbing" will be used to denote all the actions, here explained in detail, that go to the music of "B."
COUNTRY GARDENS (HANDKERCHIEF DANCE) .
In the hand-striking figure of this dance (for hand-strokes, see mark O in "B" music) there are four movements, as follows:—
Each dancer strikes both hands together. ”

“ The song, "I never have been false to thee," is, of itself, sufficient to establish General Morris's fame as a great poet—as a "potens magister affectuum"—and as a literary creator of a high order. It is a thoroughly fresh and effective poem on a subject as hackneyed as the highway; it is as deep as truth itself, yet light as the movement of a dance. ”

“ There is no changing of corners in this dance.
The last pair (Nos. 3 and 4) remain in position, holding hands or squaring up, during pause in music, and still remain in the attitude while bars 4 and 5 of "B" are played. During these bars all the other dancers stand still.
When the music strikes into "A" section, all take part according to instructions. Nos. 8 and 4 loose or lower hands immediately the "A" music starts, and take their place and part with the others.
SHEPHERD'S HEY. STICK-TAPPING.
In this, the sticks are held in the fist, up and slanting outward, the top as high as the head. ”

“ The Morris-dancing was occasionally actually performed within the churches, that is in the nave or at the west end; the mummers not going forth on their Whitsuntide round until the first dance had been given within the sacred fabric. Nor is it difficult for the antiquary to trace the connection between the Morris-dancing and the active expression of Christianity. When the Fifth Crusade succeeded in effecting the [Pg 11] capture of Constantinople, the Latins in their joy celebrated the event by solemn dances in the great church of St. ”