The allemande (from the French allemande — “German”) is an old dance of German origin that became one of the four core movements of the classical Baroque suite and traditionally opens the cycle.
The allemande is characterised by a moderate tempo, a smooth, stately motion, and duple meter (usually 4/4). The piece almost always begins with a short upbeat and unfolds in an even, “flowing” stream of small note values, which gives it a serious, concentrated character. As the first movement of the suite, the allemande as it were attunes the listener, introducing the key and the mood of the whole cycle, which is then followed by the livelier courante, the slow sarabande, and the rapid gigue. Refined examples of the allemande were left by Johann Sebastian Bach, Handel, and other composers of the Baroque era.
