Sarabande
Also known as: Sarabanda
History & Cultural Context
The Sarabande emerged in Spain and the Spanish colonies of Mexico during the late 16th-early 17th centuries and was adopted into European court culture during the Baroque period. The dance featured slow, stately movement with emphasis on specific beats and ornate arm movements. Unlike the minuet's delicate character, the sarabande had a more austere, majestic quality. Famous composers including Bach, Handel, and Scarlett wrote sarabandes, and the dance typically opened instrumental suites. The sarabande remained popular through the 18th century.
Cultural Significance
The Sarabande represented the Spanish influence on Baroque court culture and showcased European fascination with exotic dance forms. Its adoption by major composers elevated it to high artistic status. The dance's majesty and grandeur made it a favorite for formal court occasions.
Peak Popularity
Signature Figures
- Double
- Single
Notable Codifiers
- Pierre Rameau
Track Your Sarabande Progress
Practice Sarabande figures between lessons with Figure Focus — step-by-step breakdowns, floor diagrams, and progress tracking. Free to use.
Sarabande Playlists
Curated collections on the LODance YouTube channel — performances to watch, lessons to learn from, and the right music to practice with. Tap a collection to play.
▶ Performances · Open on YouTube →
Sarabande Music & Tempo
Drawn from 25 Sarabande tracks in the LODance music library.
Example tracks at practice tempo
- Sarabande from Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major — Johann Sebastian Bach52 BPM
- Sarabande from Cello Suite No. 5 — J.S. Bach52 BPM
- Sarabande from Suite No. 2 BWV 1008 — J.S. Bach60 BPM
- Sarabande from Suite No. 1 BWV 1007 — J.S. Bach56 BPM
- Sarabande from Keyboard Suite in D Minor, HWV 437 — George Frideric Handel56 BPM
- Sarabande: La Majestueuse — François Couperin60 BPM
Sarabande in performance
4 staged works in the Limelight catalogue contain Sarabande, 1924–1957 — 4 of them in a named act or number.
- BalletLa cigogne lasse
La cigogne lasse, the second movement of the suite/ballet — The movement is explicitly headed 'Sarabande', the slow triple-metre historic dance form, used to characterize the weary, weighted movement of the stork. Source: "La cigogne lasse: Sarabande"
- BalletScene I · Saraband of the Sons of God
Scene I, the Saraband of the Sons of God — The opening scene is structured and titled as a saraband, staging the Sons of God in a stylised courtly dance rather than free classical invention. Source: "Scene I: "Saraband of the Sons of God" ("Hast thou consid…
- Khamma1947BalletFirst dance: Sarabande
The first of the three dances in the concert suite, titled 'Sarabande', corresponding to Khamma's opening invocation before the statue — The movement is explicitly titled 'Sarabande', the slow ceremonial triple-metre courtly dance form; in the synopsis this…
- Agon1957Ballet · George BalanchineAct II · Sarabande-step
Part II, the Sarabande-step within the first pas-de-trois — A solo variation for one male dancer named for and structurally derived from the 17th-century sarabande, recast in extended balletic line. Source: "A number of the movements are based on 17th-centu…
Every claim above is quoted from a cited source and names where in the work the style appears. Claims we could not place or could not quote are held back from this list and shown on the work’s own page instead. Browse the full performance catalogue →
What to Wear
Attire guidance for Sarabande and other Historic Baroque Court dances. Each card below is sized to the moment — class, practice, social, or competition — because the wardrobe shifts as the stakes do.
Reading the cards
In Class
Comfortable clothing with period-appropriate character shoes if available. Many historical dance classes welcome modern practice wear.
Social Dancing
Period recreation events call for Baroque-era costumes: women in corsets and full skirts, men in breeches and frock coats. Social historical dance events range from costumed to smart casual.
Competition
Rarely competed; performance events typically expect full period costume authentic to the 17th–18th century.
Shoes
Character shoes with a low (1–1.5") shaped heel. Historically accurate shoes have buckles and a Louis heel. For class: any low-heeled shoe with a smooth sole.
In Practice
Modern practice wear is welcome in most academic Baroque classes; serious reconstruction groups practice in period-appropriate footwear so the body learns the geometry the dances were designed for.
Price Range
- Budget: Modern character shoes $40–80; loose historically-styled clothing from costume retailers.
- Mid: Replica Louis-heel shoes $150–300; commissioned period-styled garments $200–800.
- Premium: Hand-stitched 18th-century reproduction costume $1,500–5,000+; bespoke buckle shoes $400–900.
Quick Tips
- •Suede-soled shoes allow controlled sliding and pivoting — essential for most partner dances.
- •Avoid rubber soles on dance floors; they grip too much and can cause knee injuries.
- •Bring a separate pair of clean shoes for the dance floor to keep it in good condition.
Sources & Further Reading
Where This Dance Is Documented
Feuillet notation; Rameau (1725)
An editor's note on where the technique for this dance is actually written down — sometimes a named book, sometimes the fact that no such book exists. A judgement, not a count of what we hold.
Cultural & Historical Context
Sarabande emerged from Spain/Mexico during the 1590s—1650s. Understanding the cultural roots, musical traditions, and social circumstances of this era enriches appreciation for the dance's characteristics and significance.
Formative Influences
Codifiers & Standardizers:
Pierre Rameau
Signature Movement Vocabulary:
Double, Single
Primary Source Documents
The Library of Dance contains public-domain primary sources for dance history. Copyrighted modern syllabi are indexed with purchase links to their respective copyright owners. Search by dance name or codifier to discover primary source documents.
Last reviewed: August 2026 — This dance profile synthesizes historical research, cultural documentation, and contemporary practice knowledge to provide authoritative context.
Related Dances
More in Historic Baroque Court
Minuet
The Minuet was a stately Baroque couple dance with small, delicate steps and refined posture. It became the quintessential court dance of the 17th-18th centuries, symbolizing aristocratic elegance.
Gavotte
The Gavotte was a moderate-tempo Baroque couple dance featuring hopping steps and beginning on the third beat of the measure. It was second in popularity only to the minuet in 18th-century courts.
Bourrée
The Bourrée was a brisk Baroque couple dance featuring quick steps and a bouncy character. It was typically performed as part of dance suites and appeared in instrumental compositions by major composers.
Courante
The Courante was a running Renaissance/Baroque couple dance featuring rapid, flowing steps and turning figures. It was one of the most popular dances of the 16th-17th centuries.
Canarie
A fast dance in dotted triple or compound time, current at Italian and French courts from the late sixteenth century and named for the Atlantic islands from which Europeans believed it came. Its signature is percussive footwork — heels and toes struck audibly against the floor — over a driving dotted rhythm. It survived into the Baroque mainly as a theatrical dance and as one of the quickest members of the gigue family.
Chaconne
A continuous set of variations in triple time over a short repeating bass, which entered Europe around 1600 as a fast, disreputable song-dance and left it a century later as the grandest form in the French court and theatre. At the Paris Opéra it commonly closed the work, gathering soloists and corps through a long chain of couplets. Its scale and cumulative build made it the most ambitious dance a Baroque performer could be given.
Furlana
A quick couple dance in compound time from Friuli that became strongly identified with Venice, where it was danced at Carnival and in the streets as well as in polite rooms. Around the turn of the eighteenth century it was briefly taken up in Paris, where its Venetian associations were part of the point. Unlike most court dances of the period it never stopped being a folk dance in its home region.
Passacaille
A slow to moderate set of variations in triple time over a repeating bass, closely bound up with the chaconne and often indistinguishable from it. In the French theatre it supplied the long, weighty dance number — frequently a vehicle for a single star performer — and tends toward the minor mode and a grave sustained manner. Its name comes from Spanish instrumental practice rather than from any Spanish choreography.
Passepied
A quick dance in 3/8 beginning on an upbeat, taken from Breton popular tradition into the Paris ballroom and theatre in the seventeenth century. At court it used essentially the same footwork as the minuet, carried at markedly higher speed, which gave it a light, skimming quality rather than a stately one. It was a staple of the danced suite and of French opera-ballet through the first half of the eighteenth century.
Rigaudon
A brisk duple-time dance of Provençal popular origin that entered the French court repertory in the later seventeenth century and became equally popular in England. It begins on an upbeat, runs in clear four-bar phrases, and is characterised by springing steps that keep it lighter and more direct than the courtlier dances around it. It remained in ballroom and theatre use through the first half of the eighteenth century.
What did dancers wear?
Sarabande belongs to the Baroque Era (1600s–1700s) era. See how attire shaped the choreography — and the other way around.
Explore Baroque Era attire →Sarabande in art
Browse the gallery →Public-domain works our catalogue identifies as depicting sarabande.
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