seguidilla

Seguidilla is a traditional Spanish song form and dance with origins in Andalusia. It exists in several closely related guises, including a short poetic stanza and a lively musical-dance form that appears in folk, classical, and operatic repertoires.

In poetry, a seguidilla is a four-line stanza with a meter commonly described as seven, eleven, seven, eleven syllables. The lines often have feminine endings, and the form is frequently used in longer ballad sequences and can include a short refrain. The seguidilla appeared in medieval and Renaissance Spanish verse and influenced later genres in the Golden Age.

Musically and choreographically, seguidilla is a brisk, spirited piece typically in a triple meter such as 3/4 or 3/8. It is associated with Andalusian folk music and with flamenco traditions, where it may be performed as a song with accompanying dance or as part of a sequence of dances in sevillanas and fandango contexts. The form usually features a call-and-response style singing and a lively footwork pattern.

Notable uses include the seguidilla in Georges Bizet's opera Carmen, where the character Carmen performs a seguidilla in Act I. Beyond the stage, seguidilla remains a recognized element of Spanish traditional song and dance repertoire and is studied as part of both folk and classical Spanish music. See also flamenco, sevillanas, and fandango.