Gavotte

What makes a gavotte

The gavotte is a dance from France. It is in 2/2 time (alla breve) or in 4/4 time and begins with an upbeat of half a bar. Both are duple time signatures. The name derives from the Provençal “gavoto”, the dance of the “gavots”, as the people of the Alps were called there.

The most striking feature comes even before the first barline: the gavotte begins in the middle of the bar. The upbeat is often made of two quarter notes. The music example below shows it in a line we wrote ourselves.

The gavotte in the sheet music archive

The archive holds a gavotte for guitar, piece No. 24 from Napoléon Coste’s guitar method. It shows the features in the score: the upbeat of two quarter notes, the time signature ¢ and the layout in two parts with repeat signs. You count the half-length final bar of a part and the upbeat of the next one together as one bar.

Gavotte in the archive

• Gitarrenschule, Stück Nr. 24 Napoléon Coste (1805–1883), from the “Guitar-Skole” · guitar · 1 page

  Above the upbeat is the word “Gavotte”; at the beginning of the line there is the sign ¢ (alla breve) and a ♭ in the key signature; the chord symbol Dm at the start names D minor. Two quarter notes form the upbeat. The first part ends after three full bars on a half bar, closed by a repeat sign. The second part again begins with two quarter notes as an upbeat, has repeat signs before and after it, and ends on the note D.

Distinctions

Typical of the gavotte is the half-bar upbeat. This beginning distinguishes it from the bourrée, which begins with a single quarter note as upbeat. If you count the upbeat of the gavotte in half notes, it fills exactly one of the two beats.

Common mistakes

• Counting the upbeat as a full bar: It is only half a bar. It is completed at the end of the part by the short final bar.
• Playing alla breve as a fast 4/4: You count two half notes, not four quarter notes. The tempo is usually lively to moderate, but not too fast.
• Overlooking the repeat signs: Both parts are repeated.