Who invented barre work?

[Paul Parish]

In Homans's history of ballet, I can't remember any discussion of WHO introduced barre work, nor when.

In her discussion of Vestris the younger, the barre is already present.

Anybody know? Mel,do you?

What evidence is there?

[Mel Johnson]

You know, I never stopped to consider this aspect of ballet. I just did a cursory look over prints of Spanish or Italian schools of fencing, and don't see any barres in the academy classrooms, so maybe not there. By the time Vestris was teaching, they were de rigeur, so maybe Noverre or Blasis started it?

[Drew]

A website called Artsalive.ca (which Paul also may have discovered in his searches) attributes it to Blasis--along with the use of enchainements in the classroom, but the site does not give a specific source. I have tried doing searches on one or two of Blasis's treatises on googlebooks, but so far, no luck.

[Drew]

A website called Artsalive.ca (which Paul also may have discovered in his searches) attributes it to Blasis--along with the use of enchainements in the classroom, but the site does not give a specific source. I have tried doing searches on one or two of Blasis's treatises on googlebooks, but so far, no luck.

Sorry to reply to my own post--further googling of google books also came up with various historians saying Blasis though it was hard to tell if they were really saying he invented barre work or merely codified it...(I assume it's impossible to know who was really the first to USE a barre)--Again, I realize Paul you may already have poked around in these immediate digital sources.

[Paul Parish]

Thanks mel, and thanks, Drew.

So far, asking people I know who have studied the treatises and can stage Baroque and 18th century dances, THEY don't know -- so I doubt that any website that doesn't cite a source can be authoritative.

"There is a picture from the Renaissance showing someone holding onto a chair...."

Maybe Doug knows? Jane? Alexandra?

Let's keep asking.