(taught by Il Quartiere Italiano, San Francisco Bay Area, California)
We learned this dance at the 1989 IFAFA Conference in Utica, NY, presented by David A. Valentine, as taught to him by Karen P. Gottier in 1986. This dance is from the area in northeastern Italy known as the Sudtirolo, South Tyrol, formerly part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which became the Alto-Adige region of Italy after World War II. The cultural heritage of this region is Germanic/Austrian. When performing this dance, the Austrian heritage of the dance should be explained. It is not an Italian dance, but a Germanic dance from what is now part of Italy. It is included in an Italian folk dance repertoire because it is danced now by Germanic Italians. A nice video of this dance can be found on YouTube at: < http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJFHjKFvexM >
Beginning formation: Couples in a circle facing LOD. Partners stand side-by-side with woman on man’s right. Arms are crossed in front, right arm above (skater’s position) with hands held at chest height.
Steps: Begin with man’s left, woman’s right, and take small running steps, one to each beat
Rhythm: ¾ time.
Introductory Music: There is a brief intro before movement begins.
| Measure | |
| 1-4 | 12 running steps forward in LOD, accenting the first beat of each measure, then turn toward each other a half-turn around. |
| 5-8 | 12 running steps backward in LOD, then turn toward each other a half-turn around. |
| 9-10 | 6 running steps turning R (CW) as a couple, man moving forward and woman backward, then turn toward each other a half-turn around. |
| 11-12 | 6 running steps turning R (CW) as a couple, man moving forward and woman backward. At theend, make surethe woman is on the outside of the circle. |
| 13-14 | Release L hands. The woman turns R (CW) two full turns under raised R hands. |
| 15 | The man turns L (CCW) one full turn under raised hands. |
| 16 | Resume initial position. Stamp twice. |
Dance repeats for a total of 5 times.
| Abbreviations Used | |
| LOD – Line Of Direction | CW – Clockwise |
| R – Right | CCW – Counter Clockwise |
| L – Left | |