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:''This article is about La Dance Macabre, the late-medieval allegory. For other meanings of ''Dance Macabre'' or ''Dance of Death'', see Danse Macabre (disambiguation).''

'''Dance of Death''', also variously called '''Danse Macabre''' (French), '''Danza Macabra''' (Italian and Spanish) or '''Totentanz''' (German), is a late-medieval allegory on the universality of death: no matter one's station in life, the dance of death unites all. ''La Danse Macabre'' consists of the personified death leading a row of dancing figures from all walks of life to the grave—typically with an emperor, king, pope, monk, youngster, beautiful girl, all skeletal. They were produced to remind people of how fragile their lives were and how vain the glories of earthly life were.^[1] Its origins are postulated from illustrated sermon texts; the earliest artistic examples are in a cemetery in Paris from 1424.

Contents

Paintings

Printing

Musical settings

Cultural references

See also

Notes

References

External links

Paintings

The earliest artistic example is from the frescoed cemetery of the Church of the Holy Innocents in Paris (1424). There are also works by Konrad Witz in Basel (1440), Bernt Notke in Lübeck (1463) and woodcuts designed by Hans Holbein the Younger and executed by Hans Lützelburger (1538).
The deathly horrors of the 14th Century—such as recurring famines, the Hundred Years' War in France and, most of all, the Black Death—were culturally digested throughout Europe. The omnipresent possibility of sudden and painful death increased the religious desire for penitence, but it also evoked a hysterical desire for amusement while still possible, a last dance as a cold comfort. The ''danse macabre'' combines both desires: similar to the popular mediaeval mystery plays, the dance-with-death allegory was originally a didactic play to remind people of the inevitability of death and to advise them strongly to be prepared all times for death (see ''memento mori'').
The earliest examples of such plays, which consisted of short dialogs between Death and each of its victims, can be found in the direct aftermath of the Black Death in Germany, where it was known as the ''Totentanz'', but also in Spain as ''la Danza de la Muerte''. The French word ''danse macabre'' most likely derives from Latin ''Chorea Machabæorum'', literally "dance of the Maccabees". 2 Maccabees, a deuterocanonical book of the Bible in which the grim martyrdom of a mother and her seven sons is described, was a well-known mediaeval subject. It is possible that the Maccabean Martyrs were commemorated in some early French plays or that people just associated the book’s vivid descriptions of the martyrdom with the interaction between Death and its prey. Both the play and the evolving paintings were ostensive penitential sermons which even illiterate people (who were the overwhelming majority) could understand.
Furthermore, church frescoes dealing with death had a long tradition and were widespread, e.g. the legend of the three men and the three dead: On a ride three young gentlemen meet the skeletal remains of three of their ancestors who warn them: ''Quod fuimus, estis; quod sumus, vos eritis'' (What we were, you are; what we are, you will be). Numerous if often simple fresco versions of that legend from the 13th century onwards have survived (for instance in the hospital church of Wismar). Since they were showing pictorial sequences of men and skeletons covered with shrouds those paintings can be regarded as cultural precursors of the new genre.
A ''danse macabre'' painting normally shows a round dance headed by Death. From the highest ranks of the mediaeval hierarchy (usually pope and emperor) descending to its lowest (beggar, peasant and child) each mortal’s hand is taken by a skeleton or an extremely decayed body. The famous ''Totentanz'' in Lübeck’s Marienkirche (destroyed by an Allied bomb raid in WW II) presented Death very lively and agile, making the impression that the skeletons were actually dancing, whereas their dancing partners looked clumsy and passive. The apparent class distinction in almost all of these paintings is completely neutralized by Death as the ultimate equalizer, so that a sociocritical element is subtly inherent to the whole genre: The ''Totentanz'' of Metzin for instance shows how a pope crowned with his tiara is being led into hell by the dancing Death.
Generally, a short dialog is attached to each victim in which Death is summoning him or her to dance, and the summoned is moaning about the near death. In the first printed ''Totentanz'' textbook (Anon.: Vierzeiliger oberdeutscher Totentanz, Heidelberger Blockbuch, approx. 1460), Death addresses e.g. the emperor:
:''Her keyser euch hilft nicht das swert''
:''Czeptir vnd crone sint hy nicht wert''
:''Ich habe euch bey der hand genomen''
:''Ir must an meynen reyen komen''
:Emperor, your sword won’t help you out
:Sceptre and crown are worthless here
:I’ve taken you by the hand
:For you must come to my dance
At the bottom end of the ''Totentanz'' Death calls e.g. the peasant to dance and he answers:
:''Ich habe gehabt [vil arbeit gross]''
:''Der sweis mir du[rch die haut floss]''
:''Noch wolde ich ger[n dem tod empfliehen]''
:''Zo habe ich des glu[cks nit hie]''
:I had to work very much and very hard
:The sweat was running down my skin
:I’d like to escape death nonetheless
:But here I won’t have any luck

Printing

The earliest known depiction of a print shop appears in a printed image of the Dance of Death, in 1499, in Lyon, by Mattias Huss. It depicts a compositor at his station, which is raised to facilitate his work; and a person running the press. To the right of the print shop an early book store is shown. Early print shops were gathering places for the literati.

Musical settings

Musical examples include

★ The Danse Macabre by Camille Saint-Saëns, 1874

★ Mattasin oder Toden Tanz, 1598, by August Nörmiger

★ Totentanz by Franz Liszt, 1849, a set of variations based on the plainchant melody ''Dies Irae''.

★ Песни и пляски смерти (Songs and Dances of Death), 1875 – 1877 by Modest Mussorgsky

★ Totentanz, Oratorium, 1905 by Felix Woyrsch

★ Totentanz der Prinzipien, 1914 by Arnold Schöenberg

★ Scherzo (Dance of Death), Op.14. In: Ballad of heroes, 1939 by Benjamin Britten

★ Trio in E-minor Op. 67, 4th movement "Dance of Death", 1944 by Dmitri Shostakovich

★ Totentanz, Der Kaiser von Atlantis, 1944 by Viktor Ullmann

★ Zombie Jamboree, 1958 by the Kingston Trio, which they state is based upon a theme by Goethe involving the dance of the dead. The song had been originally performed by a number of Calypso artists.

★ Dance of Death, 1964 by John Fahey, a fingerstyle guitar solo in G minor tuning. An excerpt was used in the film Zabriskie Point.

★ Dance With Death, 1968 by Andrew Hill

★ Black Angels, 1971 by George Crumb - Contains a danse macabre at the end of part one, Departure.

★ Dancing with Mr. D, 1973 by the Rolling Stones

★ Ballo in Fa diesis minore (F#m), 1977 by Angelo Branduardi

★ Danse Macabre, 1984 by Celtic Frost

★ Danse Macabre, 1994 by Symphony X

★ Totentanz, 1996 by In Extremo

★ Danse macabre, 1996 by Jaromir Nohavica

★ The Danse Macabre, 1997 by Hecate Enthroned

★ Danzon Macabre, 1999 by Kennan Wylie - marching percussion feature

★ Danse Macabre, 2000 by Decapitated

★ ''Danse Macabre'', 2001 by The Faint

★ La Grande Danse Macabre, 2001 by Marduk

★ Dance Macabre, 2002, by Cradle of Filth

★ Dance Of Death, 2003 by Iron Maiden

★ Danse Macabre (ダンスマカブラ), 2004 by Plastic Tree

★ Danse Macabre, 2005 by Wintersleep

★ Danse Macabre, 2007 by illScarlett

Cultural references

★ An architectural variation on the theme is Peter Olshavsky's project “House for the Dance of Death” [1]

★ A particularly sarcastic ''danse macabre'' fashion show appears in Federico Fellini's film ''Roma''.

★ In the end of Ingmar Bergman's Seventh Seal the surviving members of the cast watch Death lead all of the others over a hill in a slow Danse Macabre.

★ There is an annual horror film festival in Canada called The Danse Macabre

★ A scene in episode 11 of the ''Inhumanoids'' animated series features a danse macabre, in which a giant skeleton monster with false angel wings, D-Compose, dances with Sandra Shore, a woman transformed in a demonic giantess, while skeleton insects play a sinister music on bone and tissue musical instruments.

★ A scene of ''Evil Dead II'' by Sam Raimi features a danse macabre, where the main character, Ash, witnesses his girlfriend's skeleton dance to music on the piano. The title of the DVD chapter is appropriately labelled ''Danse Macabre''.

★ In PC game Alone in the Dark there is a record of the ''Dance of Death'' by Saint Saens, which you can play using the gramophone. Doing this in the dance room will make the ghosts dance.

★ In White Wolf, Inc. role-playing game system Danse Macabre represents life of a vampire society.

★ In Warhammer Fantasy Battles, the Vampire Counts army contains a spell called Vanhel's Dance Macabre which allows undead units to move forward in the magic phase.

★ The Playstation 2 action game Devil May Cry 3 allows the player to perform a move called the 'Dance Macabre', which consists of numerous sword attacks in different directions.

★ In Final Fantasy X, Tidus can equip a sword called the ''Danse Macabre.'' It is created by customizing Deathstrike, a negative status to inflict a higher probability of instant death on an enemy, to an open sword slot.

★ Stephen King used ''Danse Macabre'' as the title of a book that analyses horror writing and horror films. It concentrates on works of other authors and filmmakers working around the period 1950-1980.

★ A danse macabre is depicted in part by the vampires of Theatres Des Vampires in Anne Rice's novel, ''Interview with the Vampire''.

★ Saddle Creek Records' band The Faint released an album in 2003 entitled Danse Macabre.

★ Black metal band Cradle of Filth featured Danse Macabre in the song "From the Cradle to Enslave".

★ Cradle of Filth also has a song called "Dance Macabre" on their 2002 release "Lovecraft and Witch Hearts" the song is an insturmental

★ There are images of a danse macabre on the walls of the castle at Ibelin in the Ridley Scott film Kingdom of Heaven.

★ The band Grateful Dead appropriated ''danse macabre'' imagery.^[2]

★ The Canadian indie-rock group Wintersleep has a song entitled "Danse Macabre"

★ In the online game, Final Fantasy XI, specifically in the second expansion, , a type of undead enemy called a 'Corse' (based on an archaic spelling of the word "corpse") uses a special move called "Danse Macabre" which when used allows a target player to be 'charmed' (controlled by) the Corse.

★ A section of Thomas Mann's novel ''The Magic Mountain'' is entitled "Danse Macabre"

★ Laurell K Hamilton used the phrase as the title for her newest Anita Blake Vampire Hunter book.

★ In Final Fantasy V Advance, a few enemies (such as the Sword Dancer) use an attack called "Danse Macabre" which can inflict the Zombie status problem on a party member.

★ Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child used DANCE OF DEATH as a the title for one of their Aloysius Pendergast psychological thriller series books

★ In Disney's musical, animated short Hansel and Gretel the song Danse Macbre is played in the foreground to create the musical effect.

★ A mantis-like boss named Deathtanz Mantisk appears in Mega Man Zero 3. His name is referring to the German word "Totentanz", but the first part of the word has been replaced with the English word "Death", which is not a direct translation: "(die) Toten" means "(the) dead", not "death" (which would be "Tod" in German).

See also

★ Ars moriendi

★ Memento mori

★ Vanitas

★ Macabre

★ Death (Tarot card)

★ Skeleton (undead)

★ The Skeleton Dance

Notes

1. Dance of Death
2. Peter Howard Selz (2006). ''Art of Engagement: Visual Politics in California and Beyond ''. University of California Press. page 106. ISBN 0520240529

References

★ James M. Clark. ''The Dance of Death in the Middle Ages and Renaissance'', 1950.

★ Israil Bercovici. ''O sută de ani de teatru evriesc în România'' ("One hundred years of Yiddish/Jewish theater in Romania"), 2nd Romanian-language edition, revised and augmented by Constantin Măciucă. Editura Integral (an imprint of Editurile Universala), Bucharest (1998). ISBN 973-98272-2-5.

★ André Corvisier. ''Les danses macabres'', Presses Universitaires de France, 1998. ISBN 2-13-049495-1.

★ Rich illustrated Latin translation of the Danse macabre, late 15th century. treasure 4 National Library of Romania

External links

★ A collection of historical images of the Danse Macabre at Cornell's ''The Fantastic in Art and Fiction''

★ Holbein's Totentanz

★ The Lübeck Totentanz: An extensive description and depiction of a 20-meter Totentanz picture from Lübeck, now destroyed. (Commercial site.)

★ A collection of 400 paintings of the Dance of Death with the lyrics of Henri Cazalis and the music of Saint Saens at Uzi Dornai's Web Site.