Polonaise Polonaise The polonaise (, ; ) is a dance of Polish origin, in time. Its name is French for "Polish." The polonaise has a rhythm quite close to that of the Swedish semiquaver or sixteenth-note polska, and the two dances have a common origin. The polonaise is a widespread dance in carnival parties. The polonaise is always a first dance at a "studniówka" ("hundred-days"), the Polish equivalent of the senior prom that occurs approximately 100 days before exams. The notation "alla polacca" ( means "polonaise") on a musical score indicates that the piece should be played with the rhythm and
Pavane pour une infante défunte playing of the work was "unutterably slow." However, the composer was not impressed by interpretations that plodded. After a performance by Charles Oulmont, Ravel mentioned to him that the piece was called "Pavane for a dead princess", not "dead pavane for a princess". When asked by the composer-conductor Manoah Leide-Tedesco how he arrived at the title "Pavane pour une infante défunte", Ravel smiled coyly and replied, "Do not be surprised, that title has nothing to do with the composition. I simply liked the sound of those words and I put them there, "c'est tout"". But Ravel also stated that the