circular dances (star dances)

'coming over the crest of a hill behind kastellani we see that a dance is in progress... through the hum of human voices one can hear the scratch and squeak of the violin and guitars, and the hollow beat of the drum, resonant and vulgar as a full stomach struck with the palm of the hand . 'ah look,' says N, 'just look at the dancers.' 

a multi-coloured  circle of flowing head-dresses and skirts moves slowly round the axis of the musicians, reversing and advancing with slow rhythmic measures. in the centre of the circle, moved by the current but free, the young men dance, each improvising his variations upon the theme...' 

- lawrence durrell, prospero's cell. 

N is durrell's first wife nancy myers (for once she gets a mention). 

the theory is proposed that the round dance moves are connected to the movement of the stars. 

'ah,' says theodore with pleasure, 'it is a star-dance, called the corcyrean dance. as you may know I have theories about the origin of these dances, some of which are very ancient...

all the circular ones I call star dances,' says theodore. 'I read somewhere that dancing originated in a desire to imitate the movement of celestial bodies - the early clock as it were.' 

the documentary makers have done very well to find this scene still being lived when they revisited corfu with durrell. 

meanwhile 

tracks keep coming from rob in far off riogordo. horsemouth tried several cracks at the first two verses for le bateau ivre (the drunken boat). rob has repurposed one take (a without clapping take) as a song sung in a late bar with a tentative backing. it really works quite well. this is probably because it is not on a click (as it were) like most of the stuff horsemouth sings.

horsemouth is up early. he has just been out to feed the chickens. a grey day with little to recommend it.