Regular and Irregular Basse Danses

 



There are approximately 50 regular basse dances in the Brussels and Tholouze Manuscripts, some appearing more than once, sometimes with different names and sometimes to different pieces of music. Once the various perfect/imperfect measures are learned, the regular dances themselves are trivial.

The irregular dances appear in most cases to be only slightly different to the regular dances. Some of these have a short “SS D R” or “SS D R D R B” measure included in them, while others diverge from the regular basse danse formula somewhat more radically. Here are a few examples.

 


Alenchon

Rv Br

SS D R




SS DDD SS RRR Br

(Medium, Very Perfect)



SS D SS RRR Br

(Small, Very Perfect



SS DDD SS RRR Br

(Medium, Very Perfect)

 


Casuelle La Nouvelle

Rv Br

SS DDDDD RRR Br

(Large, Imperfect)



SS D SS RRR Br

(Small, Very Perfect)



SS DDDDD RRR Br

(Large, Imperfect)



SS D SS RRR Br

(Small, Very Perfect)



SS DDD RRR Br

(Medium, Imperfect)

 


Le Rosin

Rv Br

SS D D D D D R R R Br

(Large, Imperfect)



SS D R D R Br




SS D D D D D R R R Br

(Large, Imperfect)



SS D R D R Br




SS D D D R R R Br

(Medium, Imperfect)

 


Orleans

Rv Br

SS D D D D D SS R R R Br

(Large, Very Perfect)



SS D D D R R R Br

(Medium, Imperfect)



SS D SS R R R Br

(Small, Very Perfect)



SS D D D R R R Br

(Medium, Imperfect)