Hornpipe

The hornpipe is a traditional English folk dance in 2/4 or 4/4 time. It is danced wearing a hard shoe. This type of hornpipe is generally thought of as a sailors' dance, and perhaps the best known example is the sailors' hornpipe used as a theme for the Popeye cartoons.

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The hornpipe is also an English baroque dance in a lively 3/2 time. Many country dance examples are found in The Dancing Master and there are also extant theatrical choreographies which make a characteristic use of step-units going across the measure. Henry Purcell and George Frideric Handel composed hornpipes, and Handel occasionally gave "alla hornpipe" as a tempo indication. Today, the most well-known baroque hornpipe tune is probably Purcell's hornpipe rondeau from the incidental music to Abdelazer, which was used by Benjamin Britten as the theme for his Young Persons' Guide To The Orchestra.

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English: English in common usage may refer to:...

Folk dance: The following dance categories are closely related to each other:...

Sailor: A sailor is a member of the crew of a ship or boat. The term may comprise anyone from an admiral in the navy to a person who goes out yachting at weekends as a hobby. A sailor is also specifically an enlisted member of a naval force....