The passacaille in Lully's Armide: phrase structure in the choreography and the music

Abstract

THE assumption that phrase symmetry in music of the classic style derives from symmetry in the dance may be traced back at least to de Lacepede's La poetique de la musique (1785).' Yet 18th-century choreographic sources show such variety in dance phrasing as to suggest that ballet masters-like composers writing for connoisseurs-toyed with conventions of symmetry. Using the rhetoric of dance movement and shape, they deftly played against expectations of symmetry by creating spatial or temporal asymmetry at odds with the symmetrical impulses of the accompanying music, even by asserting symmetry not implied by the music, or in unexpected rhythmic dimensions. That music and dance were frequently at variance with one another in this respect means, at the very least, that the perception of symmetry in phrasing at a dance performance was a many-layered experience, with the counterpoint of movement and sound creating its own special effect upon perceived phrase symmetry. For several reasons, the passacaille in Act 5 scene 2 of Jean-Baptiste Lully's tragedie lyrique Armide provides a fascinating study in phrase structure. (1) The ostinato element in the musical form, which imposes a certain degree of repetition upon the musical phrase structure, challenges both composer and choreographer not only to create variety, but to superimpose broad structural coherence and rhetorical shape upon what otherwise could be an additive form motivated primarily by virtuoso display. (2) The music exists not only in the full score of Armide published in 1686, but also in a short score arrangement published in 1713, as well as in an embellished keyboard arrangement by D'Anglebert. (3) Three notated choreographies are associated with Lully's melody, their publication dates ranging from 1711 to c.1725-an elaborate female solo dance by Louis P&cour, a female duo by Anthony L'Abb6, and a solo arranged by L'Abb6 from the duo setting.3 This article concentrates upon one of the choreographies-the remarkable solo by Pecour-and its relation to Lully's music, but also includes a general comparison with the duo by L'Abb6. By emphasizing matters of rhythm, metre and accent, rather than the use of space, this choreographic analysis highlights musical qualities in the dancing, describing its rhetoric and expression in terms associated with musical continuity and form. It envisions the dancer as part of the musical ensemble, using the human body as a musical instrument. Like the harpsichordist in a Rameau chamber work, the dancer becomes a captivating, at times dominating personality, sometimes leading, sometimes following, but always remaining an integral part of the ensemble.