21 Feb
2020
21 Feb
'20
6:14 p.m.
Jerome Grisanti wrote:
I would add that I've danced an Italian folk dance
called Quadrille d'Aviano.
In that case, we learned it in private practices and
performed it without prompting during public events with other Italian folk dances.
The original (early 19th century) quadrille would have been learned thoroughly in advance
and danced without a prompter. Prompting or “calling” the figures was considered low-class
for a long time. This may have been partly because the first callers, to the best of our
knowledge, were African American. Certainly the dancing masters railed against the
practice because it enabled people to do the dances without taking lessons.
Tony Parkes
Billerica, Massachusetts, USA