Der Kinderreigen (Children's dances) by Thoma, Hans shows children engaged in the traditional Austrian Round dance.

Austrian folk dancing (see Austria) is mostly associated with Schuhplattler, Ländler, Polka or Waltz. However, there are other dances such as Zwiefacher, Kontratänze and Sprachinseltänze. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 555 pixelsFull resolution (2048 × 1420 pixel, file size: 416 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 555 pixelsFull resolution (2048 × 1420 pixel, file size: 416 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... The Schuhplattler is a traditional folk dance from Bavaria and Austria. ... The ländler is a folk dance in 3/4 time which was popular in Austria, south Germany and German Switzerland at the end of the 18th century. ... Street musicians in Prague playing a polka Polka is a type of dance, and also a genre of dance music. ... A waltz (German: , Italian: , French: , Spanish: , Catalan: ) is a ballroom and folk dance in   time, done primarily in closed position. ... The Zwiefacher is a quick south German folk dance with changing beat patterns. ...

Types of dance

In Austria, folk dances in general are known as Folkloretänze, i.e. "folklore dances", whereas the Austrian type of folk dance is known as Volkstanz (literally "folk dance").

Figure dancing is a type of dance where different figures are put together with a certain tune and given a name. Round dancing, which includes the waltz, the polka, Zwiefacher etc, involves basic steps which can be danced to different tunes. In folk dancing, the waltz and the polka are in a slightly different form to standard ballroom dancing. There are two distinct dance categories called Round Dance. ... A waltz (German: , Italian: , French: , Spanish: , Catalan: ) is a ballroom and folk dance in   time, done primarily in closed position. ... Street musicians in Prague playing a polka Polka is a type of dance, and also a genre of dance music. ... The Zwiefacher is a quick south German folk dance with changing beat patterns. ... Gaskell Ball Ballroom dance, refers collectively to a set of partner dances, which originated in the Western world and are now enjoyed both socially and competitively around the globe. ...

Sprachinseltänze (literally "language island dances") are those dances which are actually by German-speaking minorities (see German as a Minority Language) living outside Austria, but which originate in Austria, e.g. those of Transylvania. One example of this type of dance is the Rediwa. German-speaking minorities live in many countries and on all six inhabited continents: the countries of the former Soviet Union, Poland, Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Belgium, Italy, the United States, Latin America, Namibia, Israel, and Australia. ... Map of Romania with Transylvania in yellow Transylvania (Romanian: or ; Hungarian: ; German: ; Bulgarian: ; Serbian: / or / ) is a historical region in central and western Romania. ...

Misconceptions

There are some misconceptions about Austrian folk tradition:

• The "Landler", as performed in the film The Sound of Music, is not a traditional Landler, but a choreographed derivative of this Austrian form of folk dance.
• The Chicken Dance is not an Austrian folk dance.
• The song Edelweiss is not an Austrian folk song. Indeed the song is mostly unknown in Austria.

The ländler is a folk dance in 3/4 time which was popular in Austria, south Germany and German Switzerland at the end of the 18th century. ... Rodgers and Hammersteins The Sound of Music is a 1965 film directed by Robert Wise and starring Julie Andrews in the lead role. ... The Chicken Dance is an oom-pah song composed by a Swiss accordion (Handharmonika) player Werner Thomas from Davos, Switzerland in the 1950s and the corresponding fad dance. ... Edelweiss is a Rodgers and Hammerstein song from musical and film The Sound of Music. ...

Festivals

Austrian folk dance festivals follow a common sequence:

• everybody gets onto the dance floor and dances the opening round
• a welcoming speech is made
• waltzes are danced in blocks, with breaks in between.
• finally a special dance, often with a goodbye song.

Viennese festivals usually have four long sets of dances, with long breaks and figure dancing in between. Other parts of Austria have a larger number of shorter blocks (three to five dances each) with shorter breaks between them, and more figure dancing. “Wien” redirects here. ...

Though attended only by a tradition-minded minority, Vienna folk dance events^[1] are carefully organized events often taking place at extraordinary locations, such as, the Alpenverein, the Autumn Dance at baroque Belvedere (palace), the Landler dances (the traditional music of which bears the rhythm from which in the 19th century the Vienna waltz music was developed), and the summer dances which take place twice each week during summer holiday season (July & August). Upper Belvedere Lower Belvedere View of the gardens seen from the Upper Belvedere, painted by Canaletto in 1758 Upper Belvedere The Belvedere is a baroque palace complex built by Prince Eugene of Savoy in the 3rd district of Vienna, south-east of the city centre. ... The ländler is a folk dance in 3/4 time which was popular in Austria, south Germany and German Switzerland at the end of the 18th century. ... A waltz (German: , Italian: , French: , Spanish: , Catalan: ) is a ballroom and folk dance in   time, done primarily in closed position. ...

For further details, see Volkstanz.at).

Musical instruments

Typical instruments for Austrian folk dance are the Styrian harmonica (a type of accordion), the fiddle, the clarinet, the harp, the flute and brass bands. Dances are often accompanied by the contrabass or the guitar. Unlike modern Austrian folk-pop music, drums are not used. This article is about the instrument as a whole. ... The violin is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. ... Two soprano clarinets: a Bâ™­ clarinet (left, with capped mouthpiece) and an A clarinet (right, with no mouthpiece). ... For other uses, see Harp (disambiguation). ... â™  This article is about the family of musical instruments. ... A brass band a musical group consisting mostly or entirely of brass instruments, often with a percussion section. ... The term contrabass (derived from the Italian contrabbasso) refers to very low musical instruments; generally those pitched one octave below instruments of the bass register. ... For other uses, see Guitar (disambiguation). ...

Clothing

See also: Tracht

An Austria folkloric group There has been a renewed interest in Germanic traditional costumes, or Tracht. ...

Folk dances

• Boarischer
• Eiswalzer
• Hiatamadl
• Jägermarsch
• Krebspolka
• Kreuzpolka
• Kuckuckspolka
• Landler
• Lunzer Boarischer
• Mazurka
• Neudeutscher
• Polka
• Poschater Zwoaschritt
• Rediwa (Sprachinseltanz)
• Rheinländer
• Schuhplattler
• Siebenschritt
• Studentenpolka
• Waltz
• Zwiefacher

The ländler is a folk dance in 3/4 time which was popular in Austria, south Germany and German Switzerland at the end of the 18th century. ... The mazurka (Polish: mazurek, named after Polands Masuria district[1]) is a Polish folk dance in triple metre with a lively tempo, containing a heavy accent on the third or second beat. ... Street musicians in Prague playing a polka Polka is a type of dance, and also a genre of dance music. ... The Schuhplattler is a traditional folk dance from Bavaria and Austria. ... A waltz (German: , Italian: , French: , Spanish: , Catalan: ) is a ballroom and folk dance in   time, done primarily in closed position. ... The Zwiefacher is a quick south German folk dance with changing beat patterns. ...

See also

• Folk dancing and Folk dance
• Tracht (traditional clothing)
• Folk music
• German folk dance
• Music of Austria

Folk Dancing is a general term for dances from various countries that are normally performed during social events by people with little or no professional training. ... Folk dancers in Prague Folk dance is a term used to describe a large number of dances, mostly of European origin, that tend to share the following attributes: They were originally danced in about the 19th century or earlier (or are, in any case, not currently copyrighted); Their performance is... An Austria folkloric group There has been a renewed interest in Germanic traditional costumes, or Tracht. ... Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including: Traditional music: The original meaning of the term folk music was synonymous with the term Traditional music, also often including World Music and Roots music; the term Traditional music was given its more specific meaning to distinguish it from the... Vienna has long been an important center of musical innovation. ...

Notes

1. ^ Calendar

External links

• Videos and information of Austrian folk dances (Site in German and English, see the flags)
• General information regarding Volkstanz.com(in English)
• Basic Austrian folk dances(no English)
• http://www.dancilla.com in English
• Folk Dancing at the Open Directory Project
• A huge collection of folk song lyrics/texts, in German(no sound, only lyrics/texts)
• Calendar of events(no English, in German)
• Magazine: Der Fröhliche Kreis,(no English, in German)
• Folk dancing and Schuhplatteln from Austria(no English, in German)
• Treu dem guten alten brauch founded in New York City in 1928