The structure of the duels was to consist of the two participants performing some number of steps and sequences, usually:

“four variations of Pavana, six Passages of Gallarda, two variations of Folias, two of Rey, two of Villano, Chacona, Canario and Rastro”^C

I had the luxury of ignorance of almost all of the dances mentioned in the description (knowing only the Pavanne, Galliard and Il Canario). The duel was intended to be an accent of the vigil and not overwhelm it, so I decided I could not follow the described structure above. The dancers and the musicians worked together to devise duels that would take 2-3 minutes, and had steps both the challengers and Gun∂ormr would know.

Since this was to be a dance duel, the dancers would also need to make up some reason for dueling Gun∂ormr. I brainstormed a variety of dance-related “offences” I could “accuse” Gun∂ormr of committing. The intent was to make it plainly obvious to the audience that these were both outrageous and intentionally spurious. The dancers knew there would have to be a fair amount of improvisation, and worked on anticipating the changes I would face.

The musicians then arranged period music so it would accommodate the unique structure and steps each dancer wanted to perform for their duel.

“A ritual of accepting the challenge was also prescribed, and as in any duel, each contestant must have his respective “seconds.” Both contestants contributed money that was split between the musicians accompanying the dancing, and the winner of the duel. This, then, appears to be one occasion when the dancing master did not provide the musical support at the school. Perhaps he was otherwise too busy in the regulation and judging of the contest.”^D

In Navarro’s time, the dance master and spectators would be expected to judge the duel, as implied above. I decided to get judges who were well respected members of the dance community and good friends of Gun∂ormr. As they were both peers, I knew their impartiality would be beyond reproach.

“the winner had ‘to do more and look better’ than his opponent… Apparently, occasions occurred when no clear winner was voted, in which case, both contestants might be validated.” ^E

Each challenge needed three components: a cause to duel over, a place and time where the duel would occur, and the music which would define the type of dancing done. The plan was that each dancer would issue their own challenge. First to present would be myself (as the ringleader), then Lady Aelia Fortunata (as Gun∂ormr’s successor as Carolingian dance minister), and finally Mistress Þóra Eiriksdottir (as the heavy hitter). The challenges would be presented sequentially, at the start of the vigil.

I decided to have the challenges at the start but the duels later in the day for several reasons. Firstly, most people were still at court while the challenges were taking place and I wanted to have an audiance. Secondly I did not want to take too much attention away from the vigil by hijacking the first half hour. Finally I wanted to give the musicians plenty of time to set up.

When Navarro describes these dance duels, there were clear, and intentional parallels with martial duels. There was a published challenge and a formal acceptance, much like late-period martial duels^F. Additionally, each contestant would have his second, and both contestants would contribute money that would be split between the musicians and the winner. These were all impossible, given the constraint of surprising Gun∂ormr.

I simplified the format for time considerations, but also because one of the duelists would be entirely unprepared! I also wanted to provide as much amusement to the audience as possible, and having the challengers obviously paying the musicians was deemed to add to the humor. The practical aspects of the project were of greater importance than the reproduction of the duel in all its parts.

I decided to link the offence, music, and dance type of each challenger. I also wanted to pick three very different styles of dance, partly because all of the dancers involved like variety, and partly because I assumed the audience would, too. This would also allow Gunðormr to exhibit many different types of dancing during his elevation.

I (Hermankyn) was the first challenger. I chose English country as the genre of music. My “reason” for duelling was that Gun∂ormr insisted upon using and teaching others the incorrect way of setting and turning. As the set and turn is a English Country step the musicians would use some music from Heart’s Ease, a well known English Country dance with many sets and turns. This would allow us to demonstrate our respective ways of setting and turning.

A quick but relevant discussion on setting and turning. In the Renaissance dance reconstruction community, there is divergence on the correct way to set and turn. In Playford, the instructions call for “Set and turne single” for one iteration, and “That againe” for a second^G. When there are two iterations of an English Country step, usually they start on opposite feet or go in opposite directions, but “that againe” could imply exact repetition. The dance Stingo does say “All a D. to the left hand, back againe, set and turn single | As much to the right hand” though this does not specifically say that the set and turn should be to the left and then to the right. The dance Queen’s Alman, one of the Old Measures does specify “a set and turne with the left legg… a set and turne with the right legg” but again, each set and turn follows a set of doubles, and is not done as a “pair”^H. Some reconstructors take this as evidence that pairs of the step are done in opposite directions. Others contend that, by specifying opposition in rare cases, that implies all other dances are done with both steps going to the same side. As yet, there is no evidence to determine actual practice in period, and so the debate is merrily pursued with good natured rivalry between dancers in different regions.

The second challenger, Fortunata, chose Il Canario as her dance. Her “complaint” was that Gun∂ormr did not teach dance in a serious way. Il Canario, which is improvisational, would allow Gun∂ormr to be as silly as he wanted while Fortunata played the ‘straight woman’.

The third challenger was Mistress Þóra . She professed that the salto (hop) in the saltarello should only be done as the last step, while Gun∂ormr has been long known to support hopping on the second step. The music chosen for this challenge was Lo Spagnoletto, an Italian dance done traditionally for two dancers. My assumption was Þóra would do the dance first, and Gun∂ormr would follow. This would have allowed Gun∂ormr to watch this complex dance and refresh himself of its choreography. Lo Spagnoletto has many saltarelli allowing both dancers to show off their interpretation of the step.

A quick but relevant discussion on saltarelli. The saltarello is an Italian step which contains a hop and three steps. Different reconstructions have placed the hop in different parts of the step^I. The two main camps consist of “Step, Hop, Step, Step” and “Step, Step, Step, Hop”. One that I know of places the hop before the first step. I could not find anyone who placed the hop between the second and third steps. Finally, it should be noted that some reconstructors (eg. Þóra) believe the music should guide where the hop is placed.

My aim was to make this laurelling as memorable as possible, for Gun∂ormr and for the audience. I wanted to include dancing into the vigil... fighters get fighting vigils; shouldn’t dancers get dancing vigils?