Informal dances were held in many different venues, including country barns. Furniture might be cleared from a home’s parlor to make space; hotels often held afternoon tea dances. Not far from where I live is a well-preserved, stately four-story home built in the late 1890s where the entire top floor is given over to a private ballroom. There are several such homes in Spokane--we’re fortunate in seeing these homes preserved. Sometimes the music was of professional grade, sometimes self-taught fiddlers and guitarists performed. I believe the amazing part is that they were so good.
High in popularity with the young set, the dance pavilions at various lakes drew large crowds. Can’t you just imagine the music floating out over the gently lapping water, stars shining overhead, soft night air brushing the lady’s bare arms lifted to embrace her partner? Gentlemen’s cigar smoke would waft in from the darkness to mingle with the women’s perfume. Bliss. Unless the gentlemen slipped off to imbibe a sip or two from a flask. Fights were known to break out.
In Three Seconds to Thunder, China and Gratton trip the light fantastic at the dance pavilion at Mirror Lake on Spokane's South Hill. China is in heaven--until one of Grat's cases intrudes.
Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Wednesday, August 3, 2016
Tuesday, August 2, 2016
What China Does For Fun in 1896 Spokane
GOING DANCING: Part One
Dancing, for some, may have been frowned upon in certain circles, but don’t forget these were the gay 90s. This is the era when Ragtime--you know--JAZZ, began. The Cakewalk, a new dance, was based on black folks having fun at the way white folks moved. Very soon whites loosened up and adopted the new fad as their own.
Dance tunes had provocative titles like I Can’t Give You Anything But Love, Baby, Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay, & A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight. Sometimes even the lyrics were a little risque. Who knew? This was still the Victorian age, after all. Dance bands might also be playing songs like The Band Played On, The Sidewalks of New York, Daisy Bell, or After the Ball. A country style song going the rounds was The Cat Came Back. This is one that retained its popularity over the years. I remember hearing this one, and believe me, I wasn’t around in 1893, the year the song came out.
The waltz, as it had been since the early 19th century, was still one of the most popular dances, only now it had variations--sometimes named for the place where some inventive person created new steps and they caught on. The two-step, also known as the deux-temps, became a favored dance, as it still is today. The polka, the schottische, mazurka, galup, and quadrille were others one might see. The polka and schottische survive; the others I don’t know. The tango also began in the 1890s. I’m pretty sure it isn’t the Argentine tango you’ll see on So You Think You Can Dance or Dancing With the Stars! Oddly enough, even in the finest ballrooms in New York City, a ball likely would end with the last dance being an oldtime reel. Another interesting point is the length of time allotted for a dance. We’re accustomed to thinking of a dance of four or five minutes, but dance cards of the day show ten to fifteen minutes. I suspect ladies might have very sore feet after an evenings entertainment. One hopes she chose her partners well.
Dancing, for some, may have been frowned upon in certain circles, but don’t forget these were the gay 90s. This is the era when Ragtime--you know--JAZZ, began. The Cakewalk, a new dance, was based on black folks having fun at the way white folks moved. Very soon whites loosened up and adopted the new fad as their own.
Dance tunes had provocative titles like I Can’t Give You Anything But Love, Baby, Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay, & A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight. Sometimes even the lyrics were a little risque. Who knew? This was still the Victorian age, after all. Dance bands might also be playing songs like The Band Played On, The Sidewalks of New York, Daisy Bell, or After the Ball. A country style song going the rounds was The Cat Came Back. This is one that retained its popularity over the years. I remember hearing this one, and believe me, I wasn’t around in 1893, the year the song came out.
The waltz, as it had been since the early 19th century, was still one of the most popular dances, only now it had variations--sometimes named for the place where some inventive person created new steps and they caught on. The two-step, also known as the deux-temps, became a favored dance, as it still is today. The polka, the schottische, mazurka, galup, and quadrille were others one might see. The polka and schottische survive; the others I don’t know. The tango also began in the 1890s. I’m pretty sure it isn’t the Argentine tango you’ll see on So You Think You Can Dance or Dancing With the Stars! Oddly enough, even in the finest ballrooms in New York City, a ball likely would end with the last dance being an oldtime reel. Another interesting point is the length of time allotted for a dance. We’re accustomed to thinking of a dance of four or five minutes, but dance cards of the day show ten to fifteen minutes. I suspect ladies might have very sore feet after an evenings entertainment. One hopes she chose her partners well.
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