Sarabande

In music, the sarabande (It., sarabanda) is a slow dance in triple metre with the distinctive feature that beats 2 and 3 of the measure are often tied, giving a distinctive rhythm of quarter note and half note in alternation. The half notes are said to have corresponded with dragging steps in the dance. The sarabande, said to originate in Spain is a traditional movement of the Baroque suite.

Perhaps the most famous sarabande is the anonymous La folie espagnole whose melody appears in pieces by dozens of composers from the time of Monteverdi and Corelli through the present day.

External links

• The Sarabande
• MIDI of a Corelli adaptation of La Folie