pavane

American  

[puh-vahn, -van, pa-van] / pəˈvɑn, -ˈvæn, paˈvan /

Also pavan

noun

plural

pavanes

1. a stately dance dating from the 16th century.

2. the music for this dance.

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pavane British  

/ -ˈvæn, ˈpævən, pəˈvɑːn /

noun

1. a slow and stately dance of the 16th and 17th centuries

2. a piece of music composed for or in the rhythm of this dance, usually characterized by a slow stately triple time

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Etymology

Origin of pavane

1525–35; < Middle French < Italian pavana, contraction of padovana (feminine) of Padua ( Italian Padova )

Example Sentences

The Sinfonia Concertante this time turns first to a pavane, the Baroque-style dance treated to constant variation both in the orchestra and the organ.

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2023

But leave it to Dowland to give himself the loveliest, noblest and most sympathetic pavane, suffused with a honeyed sweetness, the title “Semper Dowland, Semper Dolens.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 11, 2020

It shows how the perfect union, represented by the courtly pavane and other Renaissance dances, can be ruptured by rumor.

From Washington Post

There is the grave pavane of the beruffled nudibranchs, tiny fish that swirl among moving fronds like bright dancers in an oriental court.

From Time Magazine Archive

The musicians started to play, and the dancers paired for a stately pavane.

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein