Charon's Waltz
Charon is the boatman who ferries the souls of the dead across the rivers Acheron and Styx, which separate the worlds of the living and the dead--but only if proper funeral rites have been performed and, in payment to Charon, a coin was placed in the mouth of the corpse. Any soul who has not received the funeral rites or could not afford the coin is doomed to wander the banks of the Styx for one hundred years before receiving passage across. The coins were called obols, and that tempted me to score this piece for obol and piano (especially because I think it would sound lovely on oboe or on English horn).
Robert Jamison wrote a dance, appropriately called Les Adieux, to go with Charon's Waltz. Instructions are below.
Robert Jamison wrote a dance, appropriately called Les Adieux, to go with Charon's Waltz. Instructions are below.
| charons_waltz_v2a.pdf |
Les Adieux (The Good-byes or The Farewell)
[LW, duple minor, improper, moderate, 3/4]
Choreography v13 by Robert E. Jamison (rejam@clemson.edu), 13 January, 2023
Measures (one measure = 3 steps)
A1(1-2) Balance the ring
A1(3-4) Circle L halfway
A1(5-8) 1s take two hands and, while turning once and a half clockwise, move up between the 2s, who are fixed. 1s are now proper and above but the set is shifted one space up.
A1(9-12) 2s half figure 8 around the 1s. All are now proper and shifted one space up
A2(1-2) Balance the ring
A2(3-4) Circle right halfway
A2(5-8) 2s take two. hands and, while turning once and a half counterclockwise, move down between the 1s, who are fixed. 2s are now proper and shifted one space back down to place. All are back in place
A2(9-12) 1s half figure eight around the 2s
B1(1-4) 2s gate the 1s around to form a line of four facing down
B1(5-8) Lead down a double; 1s half-gate the 2s to form a line of four facing up
B2(1-4) Lead up two doubles (12 steps)
B2(5-6) 1s assist the 2s into a cast down around the 1s
B2(7-8) 1s follow the 2s and cast down around the 2s
Notes:
A2(9-12) The half fig eight should flow seamlessly into the gate.
B1(5-8) The half-gate is similar to, but not the same as, “turn as a couple”.
B2(1-4) This shifts the set up two places; B2(5-8) moves it back down to place.
B2(5-6) The “assist” is a quarter of a gate; when the 1s let go of the 2s, the 1s are facing out and starting their cast around the 2s
B2(7-8) The 1s flow seamlessly following the 2s, then passing around them. The effect is that of a wave rolling by.
[LW, duple minor, improper, moderate, 3/4]
Choreography v13 by Robert E. Jamison (rejam@clemson.edu), 13 January, 2023
Measures (one measure = 3 steps)
A1(1-2) Balance the ring
A1(3-4) Circle L halfway
A1(5-8) 1s take two hands and, while turning once and a half clockwise, move up between the 2s, who are fixed. 1s are now proper and above but the set is shifted one space up.
A1(9-12) 2s half figure 8 around the 1s. All are now proper and shifted one space up
A2(1-2) Balance the ring
A2(3-4) Circle right halfway
A2(5-8) 2s take two. hands and, while turning once and a half counterclockwise, move down between the 1s, who are fixed. 2s are now proper and shifted one space back down to place. All are back in place
A2(9-12) 1s half figure eight around the 2s
B1(1-4) 2s gate the 1s around to form a line of four facing down
B1(5-8) Lead down a double; 1s half-gate the 2s to form a line of four facing up
B2(1-4) Lead up two doubles (12 steps)
B2(5-6) 1s assist the 2s into a cast down around the 1s
B2(7-8) 1s follow the 2s and cast down around the 2s
Notes:
A2(9-12) The half fig eight should flow seamlessly into the gate.
B1(5-8) The half-gate is similar to, but not the same as, “turn as a couple”.
B2(1-4) This shifts the set up two places; B2(5-8) moves it back down to place.
B2(5-6) The “assist” is a quarter of a gate; when the 1s let go of the 2s, the 1s are facing out and starting their cast around the 2s
B2(7-8) The 1s flow seamlessly following the 2s, then passing around them. The effect is that of a wave rolling by.