Tudor Dance
The Branle de l’Officiel
Most people will recognise the tune for this dance as Ding Dong Merrily on High. In Arbeau’s time it didn’t have any Christmas associations but was the setting for a really lively dance. The name probably means “Servant's Dance”, and it’s generally thought that branles were popular among ordinary people, in contrast to the more stately (and complex) dances that would only be seen at court. However, branles did become popular in noble circles as well. What’s more, dances like this, which featured a lot of physical contact and dexterity and were generally considered pretty daring, did become popular at the Tudor court and so we have presented this tune as a lute piece, as it might have been heard at court.
To listen to the music left click this link. To download and use the mp3 file please right click this link and select ‘save as’ or ‘save link as’ depending on your browser, choosing a suitable location for the file: Music File
To download a printable word document please click here
To download a printable pdf version please click here
Dances in “How to Be a Tudor”
Here are the two links for the music to accompany the two dances featured in our resource pack “How to Be a Tudor”.
To listen to the music left click the link. To download and use the mp3 file please right click the link and select ‘save as’ or ‘save link as’ depending on your browser, choosing a suitable location for the file:
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