Danse Libre - Russian Mazurka Quadrille at Stanford Big Dance 2009

Danse Libre performing the Russian Mazurka Quadrille at Stanford's Big Dance on 8 May 2009. This dance is also commonly known as the "dawn mazurka". At Big Dance 2009, 80 students danced a version of this dance at dawn after having danced all night. This dance is a tradition at Big Dance. The dance harkens back to the all night balls in which the young dancers were trying to show they still had energy at dawn to dance a complex choreography after having dances throughout the night.

Dance reconstructed and choreographed by Richard Powers based on a description by Charles Durang in his "Fashionable Dancer's Casket", Philadelphia 1856. A choreography description and history can be seen at:
http://socialdance.stanford.edu/syllabi/russian_mazurka.htm

The music is a medley that Richard Powers arranged from the mid 19th century mazurkas "Mars Mazourka" and "Zingara Mazurka", published in compilations by Septimus Winner. The recording is by his Fleeting Moments Waltz & Quickstep Orchestra, recorded live at a dance concert.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• mazurka
• quadrille
• dance
• vintage
• victorian
• 1850s
• Richard
• Powers
• Charles
• Durang
• danse
• libre
• danselibre
• Stanford
• Big
• Dance

[YoomOmer]

He. Nice dancing, what is the music the dancers are dancing to?

[academyofdanselibre]

Thank you.

The music is a medley that Richard Powers arranged from the mid 19th century mazurkas "Mars Mazourka" and "Zingara Mazurka", published in compilations by Septimus Winner. The recording is by his Fleeting Moments Waltz & Quickstep Orchestra, recorded live at a dance concert.

We've added that detail to the information about the video. fyi.

[yupische]

Hallo! Is it possible to buy mp3 of this "Zingara mazourka"? Terrific!

[cassiopeia222]

This video makes me happy :-)

[aimeballet]

I liked this even more than ballerinas' dancing -because of the music, the costumes and choreography. I wish I have danced with you!

[alonergan]

@trzcinarowice and I take Russian, so I know what cases are. Thanks, though!

[trzcinarowice]

@alonergan In Polish, for example, answer to a question: "What do you dance?" The answer would be "mazurka" ("mazura"), but to "How do you call this dance ?" the answer is "mazurek" ("mazur"). Unlike in English Polish language has something called "cases" (the first would be genitive, the latter nominative).

[44elvina]

Fabulous way of dancing the mazurka !!! I love this ! Elvi

[sylwiatime]

Contrary to your idea, mazur and mazurka aren't the same. Mazur is a dance, mazurka (mazurek in Polish) is a combination of various dances, including the mazur. According to the Polish grammar, the words change their form in speech, so although in the nominative the word is "mazurek", it changes to "mazurka" in a sentence "zatańczyć mazurka" (to dance the mazurek). That's the whole mystery, really!

For the same reason, some languages use "polonesa" (from polonaise) or "masura" (from mazur).

[sylwiatime]

I followed your link to read your history of Mazurka, and I'm sorry to say but it's very wrong, which is quite sad coming from Stanford. Especially the weird theory of the -ka suffix as having something to do with dances in general or the Russian language in particular is absurd.

Mazurka (along with its name) travelled to Germany half a century before it was known in Russia. It reached France no later than the late 18th century, along with Polish soldiers who joined Napoleon's Army en mass.

[alonergan]

@trzcinarowice yes, it is polish. however, it is prominent in russian history and was performed at balls and name-days and such. in russian literature (Pushkin, Lermontov, etc) it is written as the mazurka.

[DHotMess993]

what is the name of the song you're dancing to ?? ... could you send me the song or say me how could find it ?? i'd be so thankful ! (: