The Beauchamps-Feuillet system of choreography was one of
the first systems of choreography, and one of the first
systems of choreography used in the Renaissance and Baroque
dance. There are several ways that choreographic notation
might be accomplished:
Diagrams (a 2-dimensional language) to show directions traveled
by dancers on a stage floor and showing body motions, etc.
Examples include:
Something resembling musical notation (staffs, clefs,
etc.) such as developed by Stepanov. This too, is a
2-dimensional language.
.
Abbreviations, often using letters of the alphabet, to
show sequences of movement that constitute a dance.
"Letter" codes are inherently textual, thus linear,
1-dimensional languages. An example is the choreographic
system of Thoinot Arbeau, found in his book "Orchesographie",
1589. The choreographic system of Pierre Beauchamp (1631-1705)
and Raoul Auger Feuillet, c. 1653 - c. 1709 is a system
of choreography that uses special diagrams to describe
steps, that is in some ways similar to Arbeau's but is
more powerful, and which was widely used, will now be
described:2
All systems of choreography must deal with several objectives.
One objective is to mention the names of the steps, if possible,
breaking down complicated steps into sub-steps such as turning,
twisting, hopping, etc. Another aspect is to coordinate steps
with the music. Yet another aspect is to desribe spacial position
of the dancer. Yet another objective is to describe ensembles of
dancers - how the steps of each are correlated within the ensemble.
Another consideration is how robust the system of notation is: how
easily may new steps and relationships not orginally considered
when the choreographic system was originally created, be added to
the system. Yet another consideration is how easily may such
choreographic systems be used as a teaching tool. In this context,
it has been pointed out that choreographer Jean Favier (as well as
other choreographers) were very concerned with these considerations.
3
1
"Choreo-graphics: A Comparison of Dance Notation
Systems From Fifteenth Century to the Present",
by Ann Hutchinson Guest, Gordon Breach, 1959,
Chapters one and two.
2
"Introduction to Baroque Dance", Two Volumes, 2005 (DVD);
Whitley-Bauguess, Paige; Baird, Thomas; Musicians of the Baroque Arts Project
3
"Dance notation systems in late 17th-century France",
Ken Pierce; Early Music, 1998: 286-299, p. 297 especially.