traspie

W

will35

New Member
Has anybody ever noticed the similarity in both the words and technique of the traspie and the strathspey? Is there something to it? Where did they both come from? I cannot find a serviceable dictionary anywhere.
 
It's rare that I see dance terms on this board that I have never encountered before. I hope you will say more, because I have no idea what these mean.
 
I found strathspey on dictionary.com. A Scottish reel dance, it said. But traspie, no luck. Please share what you know, will35! :D
 
Traspie is Spanish. It obviously comes from tras ("behind", sometimes sort of "through", ex. tras una larga carrera, "throughout a long career") and pie (foot). It's a little syncopation we use in milonga a lot and in tango some. Some people put one foot behind the other and turn a step into two steps. I suppose the triple steps I have seen people do could be called traspie too.
 
Traspie is a word that it is used in Milonga. Also, it means a wrong action, for example: tuve un traspie, it´s like I had a trouble
 
I've heard two different meanings for traspie. Both refer to milonga. The much more common meaning is a quick-quick slow rhythm, with the quicks being a rock step.

The other, less common version, is to do a touch (or tap, no weight change) on the slow beat. And then do a true step (with weight change) on the next slow beat.

The interesting thing is that one in the couple could do one version and their partner could do the other version, and it would still work out fine.
 
will35 said:
Has anybody ever noticed the similarity in both the words and technique of the traspie and the strathspey?
Click to expand...
As far as I found out, strathspey is of celtic, and traspie is of latin origin. Also the concepts behind the words are opposite. Strathspey is accented on the strong beats, whereas traspie is a syncopated or double tempo step.
 
dchester said:
I've heard two different meanings for traspie. Both refer to milonga. The much more common meaning is a quick-quick slow rhythm, with the quicks being a rock step.

The other, less common version, is to do a touch (or tap, no weight change) on the slow beat. And then do a true step (with weight change) on the next slow beat.

The interesting thing is that one in the couple could do one version and their partner could do the other version, and it would still work out fine.
Click to expand...

Yep, those are the two definitions I've heard too. Though a lot of teachers swear one is right and the other is wrong, yet both keep popping up.
 
Thompson offers the definition I'm familiar with, "milonga del trapsié (literally "stumble step milonga"), taking three steps over two beats."
 
As a type of music strathspey contains many dot-cut 'snaps'. A so-called Scotch snap is a short note before a dotted note, which in traditional playing is generally exaggerated rhythmically for musical expression.

Since "The Irish repertoire also gravitates to tunes with long passages of triplets" I would guess the dancing would tend towards "triplets," also.
 
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