Dear Choralisters

Thanks to all of you who responded to my request for repertoire inspired by
/about dancing. Here's the compilation. There are some clear favorites:
Britten's Choral Dances from Gloriana, Pfautch's Dancing Day (enticing, but
we're doing this concert in the spring, not for Christmas), Bartok and
Brahms.

Have a great week(end)
Kirin Nielsen
nielsenk(a)ripon.edu
Ripon College


There is (was?) a Waltz -La Valse - by Bizet that was published by Schott
some years (15?) ago for SATB and piano reduction (original for voices and
orchestra.) Needs a good pianist.

Ken Seitz
Woburn, MA

Hassler :"Tanzen und Springen"
Costeley: "Lautrier priay de danser"
Donato: "Chi la gagliarda"
Byrd : "Though Amaryllis Dance"
Wesley: "O Sing Unto My Roundelay"
Britten: "Choral Dances from 'Gloriana'"
arr G. Richards: "Dance to Thy Daddy" (English folksong -- in King's
Singers'
Folksongs Collection)
Kodaly: "Tancnota" (Dance Song) - SSA
Sviridov: "Khorovod" (Round Dance)
Brahms: "Wechsellied zum Tanz" (w/ piano)
Brahms: "Der Fiedler"
Schumann: "Zigeunerleben" (Gypsy Life)

Hope this is of some help.

Alexander Ruggieri
Pasadena Classical Singers

I came up with two possibilities for you:

"Dance, Dance, My HeartSATB with piano (smaller choruses alternate with the full chorus)
Carl Fischer CM7831

Here's the text:

Dance, dance, my heart!
Dance today with joy,
The strains of love fill the days and nights with music,
and the world is listening to its melodies;
Mad, mad with joy,
Life and death dance,
they dance to the rhythm of this music.
The hills and the sea and the earth dance.
The world of man dances in laughter and tears.
Why put on the robe of a monk,
and live aloof from the world in lofty pride?
Behold! My heart danceth in the delight of a hundred arts;
and the Creator is well pleased.

The other is "Domaredansen," a Swedish folksong arranged by Bengt Hallberg
SATB divisi with piano, Walton WSK-102

This is a fun song to sing, but it certainly isn't deep -- it's even got a
boogie-woogie section, and the text (in English, courtesy of Norman Luboff)
doesn't have much to say. But did I mention that it's fun?

Hope this helps,

Ann Foster

My wife is Linda Spevacek. She has written a piece called Danza that may be
of some interest. Here is the ad copy from her publisher - Heritage Music
Press.

Optional tambourine and castanets. This creative selection exudes exotic
Spanish flair. The opening fanfare is followed by a slow dance that
accelerates and then abruptly halts a passage for soloist is heard.
Percussion is added as the work builds into a frenzied dance. It sings
easily, yet sounds challenging. Heritage Music Press 15/1181H Also
available: SSA 15/1411H

We would be very please to send you a complimentary copy for your perusal if
you would send us your address.

Sincerely,

Warren Avery for
Linda Spevacek-Avery
Spevacek-Productions


How about the "Gloriana Dances" by Britten, I think. Also various
settings of "Tomorrow shall be my dancing day"

Patricia Corbin
Jacksonville State University
Jacksonville, Al

Here's what's in my "dance" file. Good luck!

Pascanu, "Chindia," (a dance), SBMP
Carlisle FLoyd, A Time to Dance, Boosey (25 min)
Gwyneth Walker, An Hour to Dance, ECS, 21 min
" ", Chek to Cheek (a tango), ECS
Aleksander Vujic, Dance, Alliance
Berlioz, A Dance of Ghosts/Le Ballet des Ombres, Broude Brothers
Alec Rowley, Jig for Voices, Boosey
arr. Derek Healey, Danse, Mon Moin, Gordon Thompson
Bengt Hallberg, Domardansen, Walton
Distler, Dance of Death/Totentanz - Mark Foster (in English)

David Griggs-Janower
228 Placid Drive
Schenectady, NY 12303-5118
518/356-9155

Have you heard Jane Marshall's setting of "Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing
Day?"

Ye Followers of the Lamb. A great shaker song with a refrain "Sing on Dance
on
Followers of Emmanuel..... Great piece!

Kevin Sutton

For Christmas season, my choir (directed by Mike Larkin, to
admit my bias) is using two things that might fit your query.
Michael Larkin, "Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day" (3 min)
Lloyd Pfautsch, "A Day for Dancing" (25 min Christmas work)
In that Christmas season concert, centered on the title of the
Pfautsch work, we are also using somewhat evocative carols like
Patapan, and Riu, Riu Chiu, among others.
Regards,
Jim Green

Der Tanz Schubert - The messasge is terrific - so applicable to
college students.

Rcuster(a)mail. polk.cc.fl.us


David Wilcocks (or his son John?) did a terrific
SSATB a cappella arrangement of "Lord of the Dance."
Best,
Keith
Dr. Keith Pedersen


How about Britten's Choral Dances from Gloriana?

Betsy Burleigh
Cleveland State University


Lloyd Pfautsch has an extended work entitled "My Dancing Day."

Lee G. Barrow
lbarrow(a)fau.edu

How about the Gardner "Tomorrow Shall be my Dancing Day" for SATB, piano and
finger cymbals; or the Shaw/Parker arrangement (or do both as a set?) for
seasonal repertoire. Also Emma Lou Diemer's "Dance, Dance my Heart" is a
great
piece. There is also Copland's setting of "The Boatmen's Dance",
transcribed
for SATB by Irving Fine. Another thing you could look into more are
Spanish,
South American, or African pieces which come more out of a dance tradition
than a great deal of the Western music that we do on a regular basis. I
forget
from when I performed it in high school, but are the movements of the
Ramirez
"Missa Criolla" inspired by different dance music types from South America?
Or
some pieces by Mendoza?

Just food for thought. I'd love to hear what you come up with!

Tim Reno. =)

Depending on your group, you might take a look at David Conte's "Invocation
and Dance" -- it's not for the faint of heart, but looking at what else you
have on the list, you'll probably have a great time with it.

How about "And the Father Will Dance" by Hayes published by Hinshaw? or
"Now
is the Month of Maying" by Morley.

I don't know if you want non-classical types, but "With You" from Pippin
arr.
by Leavitt published by cpp bellwin is another very interesting piece.

I've done and heard college choirs do "Rag that Rhythm" by Kern published by

Shawnee. It's fun, exciting, and fairly difficult.

Judi Burdick
Bear Lake High
Montpelier, ID
Choralibrary
singteach1(a)aol.com


Hassler, Tanzen und Springen
Various settings of the Shaker hymn Lord of the Dance (e.g. Copland)
Jaako Mantyjärvi, El Hambo (Hal Leonard)
Hugo Distler, Jedem das Seine (from the Mörike Chorliederbuch - Bärenreiter)
Brahms, Zigeunerlieder (Fifth song, Brauner Bursche)
Schubert, Der Tanz

The Liebeslieder Polkas are much more fun to do than first appears.
Schickele
is a marvelously skillful composer and parodist. The Toch piece likewise is
a
real crowd pleaser, but you have to be sure and ham it up enough. Both wear
very well.
Henry Gibbons, Assoc. Prof. of Music
Choral Area, College of Music
University of North Texas
Denton, TX 76201
940/565-4095


Ah! si mon moine voulait danser -- arr. Donald Patriquin (earthsongs)

Happy hunting.

Robert Russell
Univ. of So. Maine

Kirin:

Lloyd Pfautch's "A Day For Dancing," for Christmas, 3 instruments (flute,
oboe, bassoon, I think), can't rmember the pub., but can find it if you
are interested (don't have time now). Let me know, if so.

Harry Johansen
UW-Whitewater

During a concert last season, "A Night for Dancing," we included the
following:
BARTOK "Four Slavic Folksogs," BARDOS "Tambur," SODERMAN "Three Swedish
Songs
in Folk Style," DECORMIER "Dance, Boatman,Dance," WILBERG "Cindy," FUNK
"Roaring 20's Medley." Perhaps this will be of some assistance.
Gary Anderson
Lexington Chamber Chorale
Lexington, KY

My own top-of -the-head take on music/dancing yields: Louise Talma's Let's
Touch the Sky (no overt dance references except perhaps in the title, but
the whole score--to me, at least--just demands to be danced to); Sir Arthur

Sullivan's "Dance a cachuca" from The Gondoliers; Morley's "Now is the
Month
of Maying"; Irving Fine's "The Lobster Quadrille" (from Alice in Wonderland
su
ite); Kodaly's "Kallai kettos: Double dance"; Sydney Carter's setting of
"Lord of the Dance," which is an old Shaker tune; and Purcell's madrigal,
"In
these Delightful Pleasant Groves."
Scott Gillam

Pfautsch: A Day for Dancing (Christmas) GS, I think, and a real winner.
DWMcCormick

"Goin' to that Ball" arr. by Jester Hairston is a great, lively "spiritual"
genre dance piece which talks about the "day off" which some slave owners
allowed their slaves for morale purposes. It's great fun and the audience
loves it.

Personally, I love a little PDQ Bach...never fails to be an audience
pleaser!


Hello - Your list doesn't include music from non-Western traditions at all,
so this may be a long shot for you, but we have a few possibilities: Chi Chi

Cha (VTS#02 Judith Cook Tucker, SATB/piano) based on marimba band multipart
song styles from Zimbabwe, English lyrics include "First you feel the beat,
then, Get it in your feet friend; Give yourself a chance to, clap your hands

and dance, oooo. Also, in our Israeli medly Around the Campfire (VTS#22
arranged by Josh Jacobson, SATB/piano opt. clarinet and hand drum), two of
the three songs (in Hebrew or English) include lyrics about dancing. Those
two could be pulled out from the set.

If you'd like, I could send you a perusal copy of each. Email me your snail
address. Judith

Judith Cook Tucker, Publisher
World Music Press

"Dance the cachuca"---the finale from Gilbert and Sullivans The
Gondoliers.
You can't listen to this piece without wanting to dance!
:)
Rebecca Danielle Giacosie

How about the movement from Handel's _l'Allegro_ which includes the text
"trip it, trip it as ye go / on the light fantastic toe" ?

Noel Piercy, 1st Pres, Caldwell, NJ