 |
||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||||
 |  | ||
| DISC ONE The Dancing Church of Africa ¡Fiesta! Celebrations at San Fernando Cathedral Holy Week in Spain Los Seises de Sevilla DISC TWO The Dancing Church of Polynesia The Dancing Church of Melanesia Tewa Buffalo Dance of Blessing | |
During the Renaissance period, when church music used a polyphonic chorus,
it was customary in Seville to use cantoricoÓ, little singer boys. They were generally between four and ten years old. In the mid-fifteen century they numbered six, hence the title seises, meaning six as they were known all over Spain. They were a part of a Cathedral choral school and lived and went to school in the precincts of the Cathedral. The origins of the dancing are not clear, although the dances date from the 15th century and are the oldest liturgical dances in the Christian world. Some think the movements are from the Mozarabic period, blending spanish and arabic styles. Corpus Christi is the main feast where the seises both sang and danced. Dance added a solemnity to the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and has been a part of the Corpus Christi celebration in Spain for over five hundred years. During the processions, the boys would dance at three or four locations. The numbers of dancers was never fixed although the names seises remained throughout. Sometimes ten would dance, at other times larger numbers. Today we see the continuation of this feast in the Cathedral of Seville during the Eucharistic Congress of 1996 with Pope John Paul II presiding. |
 |