| Arm. | How meanest thou? brawling in French? |
| Moth. | No, my complete master; but to jig off a tune at the tongue's end, canary to it with your feet, … sigh a note, and sing a note.' |
Two other examples of dancing to one's own singing are, Mids. 52, 25 and Wiv. 55, 93.
The Brawl was written in quick four-in-a-bar time. There are several well-known tunes to it. [See Note on Arbeau's 'Orchésographie.' 1588.] The derivation of the name is from the French, bransle, a totter, swing, shake, etc., or perhaps from Old French Brandeler, to wag, shake, swing. Skeat thinks the original dance may have been a sword dance, and with this he connects the word Brandish.[1] It was danced, sometimes in a ring, holding, hands, and sometimes 'at length.'
The Canary (or Canaries) was in 68 time, and was a lively dance. [Stainer and Barrett's Dict. gives one by Delaborde in 44 time.] There are many examples by Lully and other Frenchmen of the 17th century. One of Lully's, in Lajarte's 'Airs à Danser,' dates 1666. There is no history of the name. Skeat says
- ↑ This hardly seems a necessary theory. See the Note on 'Orchésographie,' where the 'swinging' movement is fully accounted for.
