Dansons, dansons
Alfred Dartiguenave: Costumes des Pyrénées: Branle d’Ossau, 1855–1856 (Bibliothèque municipale de Toulouse). Image credit: Alfred Dartiguenave, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
In mountain hamlets, seaside villages, and rolling fields long ago in France, making music and dancing were ways to celebrate life events, relax after a hard day’s work, and share customs from generation to generation. After the French government loosened legal restrictions on the use and teaching of local languages in the mid-20th century, a revival of regional culture blossomed, bringing historical dress, folk instruments, and dance traditions into greater prominence. Large, organized festivals such as Le Son Continu and Le Grand Bal de l’Europe, balfolk events, and community music and dance gatherings all contribute to sustaining centuries-old practices and continuing ties to the past.
Many French folk dances trace their roots to the branle, derived from the verb ‘branler’ meaning to shake or sway. Different regions of modern-day France dating back to 1500 danced their own versions of a branle where dancers would form a chain by linking arms or holding hands, then perform coordinated walking, skipping, jumping, or gliding steps to the left and right. The group nature of the dance made it easy to include newcomers who could be guided by the others following the leader whose larger steps in one direction and smaller steps in the opposite would gradually move the chain of dancers across the floor. Consistent with its Renaissance-era origins, branle dances are usually accompanied by a small group of musicians playing the recorder, lute or violin, and tambourine or drum.
Hurdy gurdy player in Saint-Jean-des-Ollières, Puy-de-Dôme (France), June 2002. Image credit: Jean-Pol GRANDMONT, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Records associate branle variations with Burgundy, Champagne, Poitou, Avignon, Lyon, and the royal court, and dances such as the gavotte, contra dances, and even ballet have been drawn from the branle. The farandole of Provence in southern France is not clearly derived from the branle but also consists of a chain of dancers linking hands or connected by holding colorful ribbons. Led by a tambourin drummer and galoubet (pipe) player, the male lead dancer winds a serpentine path through the town traced by the men and women who join in the farandole. The drumbeats are accentuated by jumps and skips that make the farandole a lively dance, often performed during feasts and at Christmastime.
Folk dances in Brittany unfold to the distinct sound of bagpipes that reflect the area’s Celtic roots. The Breton version called binioù kozh, a wind instrument known as a bombard, and drums form a bagad (Breton band) that serves as a call to a fest-noz (night festival) where people of all ages come together to dance and mingle. Such gatherings used to serve the utilitarian purpose of joining forces to tamp down the dirt floor of a new building that inevitably extended into a socializing and even matchmaking occasion. Breton dancing encompasses a variety of forms that include dance circles such as the an dro, dancing in pairs, and choreographed dances, all of which can be experienced at village festivals and near the Atlantic coast in mid-August at Fête de la Mer celebrations.
Far from the seas, folk dancing has always been an important part of local culture in the center areas of France. Groups and lines of dancers as well as couples perform the bourrée, a lively dance of Auvergne, Berry, and surrounding communities. Accompanied by the cabrette, a goatskin bagpipe instrument, an accordion or two, and the vielle à roue (hurdy-gurdy), people of all ages come together as their ancestors did, in traditional dress or everyday clothing. The Auvergnais commune of Gennetines draws thousands of musicians and dancers to Le Grand Bal de l’Europe for a week of nearly nonstop dancing, starting each morning with instructional sessions and continuing into the evening with multiple dance floors that are open to all. The event was highlighted by filmmaker Laetitia Carton through her documentary Le grand bal that premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for a Best Documentary César award in 2019.
A Bourrée (circa 1906) in Auvergne, France. Image credit: Huster, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
To the northeast of Auvergne, Le Son Continu has brought luthiers, dancers, musicians, and the curious to the Château d’Ars in the Loire Valley each summer since 1976. Four days of instrument exhibitions and demonstrations, interactive workshops, concerts, and connection through traditional folk music and dance attract 20,000 to 30,000 festivalgoers. Professional musicians, dancers, and instructors are eager to share their skills and knowledge as are seasoned attendees since the spirit of the event is to revel in the pleasure of shared energy and enjoyment through the music and dance that has characterized various communities in France for years past and those to come.
Activité de français
Vicariously experience Le Grand Bal de l’Europe by clicking on the five-minute video below. Leaders and participants explain how this annual celebration of folk dance draws people in, provides instruction and practice, and allows the enjoyment and camaraderie to naturally unfold over several days of dancing.
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