seguidilla

Spanish dance dating back to at least the 16th century and first heard of in La Mancha, though it is possibly of earlier Moorish origin. The original form was the seguidilla manchega, but when the dance spread throughout Spain others developed: the seguidilla bolero, slow and stately, and the seguidilla gitana, slow and sentimental. The seguidilla is usually played on guitars, often with castanet accompaniment and sometimes with violin or flute. Frequently popular verses are sung to the seguidilla consisting of coplas, ‘couplets’ of four lines, followed by estribillos, ‘refrains’ of three lines.