Istampitte – Italian dances in the Middle Ages

The Italian Istampitte of the 14th Century in the Codex “London, BL additional 29987”During the Middle Ages, vocal and instrumental dance forms coexisted. The former were tied to poetic models whose very names implied the notion of movement, such as the ballata (from ballare, to dance), the virelai (from virer, to turn), or the rondeau or rondello (from rond, “round”). During the 14th century, these forms lost their practical purpose of accompanying dances, and developed into genres intended to be sung. Instrumental dance forms, on the other hand, though often cited in literary works were, except in rare cases, neglected in musical treatises. Forms such as the saltarelli, the istampitte and the ductie continued to exist as dances, but they simultaneously laid the groundwork for the development and liberation of instrumental music in the centuries to come.