Issue No.

62
The Zabattotatoe January 1991

EVOLUTION OF THE LABAN SYSTEM

With a noticeable increase in interest in how our system of notation developed it seems that the time is
ripe to give an account of the changes that have occured and of the gradual development in needs and how
these were filled. Knowledge of the past helps us to understand the system more fully, to appreciate its
present form. Such knowledge may also obviate time spent on bright ideas of 'a better way' regarding a
usage, ideas which had long ago been discarded for practical reasons. For this reason the present issue of the
Labanotator and the next one are being devoted to this subject. The following notes have been gathered from
materials available in the L.O.D.C. Library combined with my own knowledge and understanding of past
history. This presentation is a start; we hope others will contribute as and where they can. Any corrections or
additions will be welcome; no matter how thorough one tries to be there is always margin for error - not the
least being typographical!
Albrecht Knust has written a different kind of history regarding the stages of development and the
people involved in our system; this is of interest and should be brought up to date and made available. Here
we are concerned mainly with the symbols themselves.
In this presentation, most books and other sources of usage ! are identified by abbreviations of authors'
surnames. SL stands for Sigurd Leeder 2, AK for Albrecht Knust, AHG for Ann Hutchinson Guest and VPD
for Valerie Preston-Dunlop.
Ann Hutchinson Guest

A HISTORY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE LABAN SYSTEM

Part One
1. INTRODUCTION
We have only to turn to Laban's first publication of his system, the 1928 Schrifttanz, written in
German and published in Vienna, to see that much has changed. Does Ex. 1 look familiar? In this
publication, and in subsequent ones, Laban placed the notation horizontally, for obvious practical reasons.
Such placement certainly helps the page layout, and perhaps we should not be so hesitant to take advantage of
this possibility. It is interesting to note that in the 1928 publication as well as the two similar ones published
in 1930, use is made of the five-line staff, although Laban states in the English-French edition: "The five line
system is not printed in throughout the dance script, as in most cases it follows from the position of the five
bars. For the most part, the second and fourth line can especially be dispensed with." Despite that statement
he does not give an example of the three-line staff. However, it was certainly in use by 1936 by Leeder. The
early (undated) Schrifttanz Ubungen (Script-dance Studies) by Azra von Laban3 and produced by Knust at his
Hamburger Tanzschreibstube, used only the three lines, as does the 1937 publication Elementary Studies in
Laban's Dance Script produced by Irma Dombois-Bartenieff and Irrna Otte-Betz.
What has remained the same throughout is the indication of direction and of levels, though we use
fewer stripes for the high signs and have standardized them as slanting upward to the right, rather than upward
to the left, as in these early publications.

(Laban 1928)
2 The Labanotator, No. 62, January 1991
THE PARTS OF THE BODY
The sign for the head has remained the same, but interesting changes took place in the signs for the
parts of the arms and legs.

2. THE PARTS OF THE ARM

2.1 As can be seen here in Exs. 2a and 2b, the slanting lines for the shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand were
originally disconnected. By the time I learned the system at the Jooss-Leeder School in England in
1936 a stem had been added. The length of the stem remained the same, with the appropriate number
of slanting strokes being added, Ex. 2c.

1 1
— V o r / r i ( IU-M f o r K fir p e r / r i c h o n :
— Sdiullrr: ii) linkc, b) redid- Sduillcr. ^C

•houlder A
elbow A
\
= nn,,,,,,, *rle* *
| 3*7.

2d (AK 1951)

Mod.

—-——~IIZI Fliif;crwiir7rl. \ 2e

Mod. ////

2a (Laban 1928)

2.2 Knust devised (or inherited) a variation of this vertical line, the length of the line varying according to
the number of strokes, Ex. 2d. This example is taken from Knust's 1951 Handbook of Kinetography
Laban. His 1956 German publication, Abriss der Kinetographie Laban, later also published in
English, shows the signs drawn in the same way.
2.3 For unification, in 1965 the Dance Notation Bureau agreed to drop the extended stroke in favor of
Knust's drawing. The present drawings (resulting from the IBM Labanotation element and also no
doubt from use of computers) make the elbow sign the same length as the wrist sign, giving it a 'gap-
toothed' look, Ex. 2e. It is interesting to note that Laban introduced the letter M (for manus) as an
abbreviation for the hand sign. This seems not to have caught on, I found no example of its use.
 The Labanotator, No. 62, January 1991 3

3. THE PARTS OF THE LEG

3.1 The signs for the leg joints were originally black diamonds, Ex. 3a. Knust explained to me that the
transition to the present signs came about because, to write the diamonds, crosses were drawn, 3b, the
edges of the cross connected, 3c, and the center filled in black, 3d. It was soon realized that the
crosses alone would suffice. Thus by 1936 I was taught the present day signs for the joints of the leg.
It should be noted that AK 1951 gives the hip sign as 3e on page 40 (cf. in drawing 3g), but as 3f on
page 50 and onwards, AK 1958, 1979.

IHifte.

3b 3c
•3d
Knic.

FuCgelcnk.

1 h + +

3e 3f
FuBspltze (Zehen).
3g (AK 1951)
3a (Laban 1928)

4. PLACEMENT OF THE JOINT SIGNS

4.1 In 1928 the joint signs were placed next to the direction symbol. It is presumed that most of these
examples given by Laban were isolated usages not intended to represent a logical movement sequence.
4.2 Ex. 4a shows the right knee moving forward middle, then forward high; the knee moving to the side;
and finally the whole leg moving to the side and to forward low. In 4b the lower leg moves forward
low. This is followed by a kind of circular movement with the right foot. In 4c the hips make a
circle, the left knee moves forward, and the left ankle to the left side. For supporting 4d shows sitting
on both hips, then on the right hip, followed by weight on the shoulders, on the right shoulder, on the
head, the elbows and then the lower arms. Laban gives ex. 4e as a simplification of 4d. By 1930 the

22

•« •• »•
4a 4b 4c (Laban 1928)

4d

4e b) -e*- (Laban 1928)

 The Labanotator, No. 62, January 1991
signs were placed before the direction symbols, Ex. 4f. In the first two staffs of these examples the
slanting strokes for hand, wrist and elbow are now joined by a vertical line.

5a -j h

5b =i t=

5c

5d

4f (Laban 1930) 5e

5. SIGNS FOR RIGHT AND LEFT LEG JOINTS

5.1 As long as the leg signs were written on the correct side of the staff there was no need to specify right
or left joints. However, Motif Description and other usages brought up the need to differentiate. The
signs of 5a - hips, 5b - knees, 5c - ankles, and 5d - feet had been proposed by AHG some time before
but were felt to be harder to read and there was also the problem of the hip sign being mistaken for a
sideward 'tack', 5e, (middle ievei pin). However, the signs were adopted at ICKL 1969 with the
caution that the horizontal stroke for the hip sign should be placed higher (off center) to make the sign
distinct from the tack sign. ICKL 1987 recommends that the signs be drawn in the usual symmetrical
way (not shown) unless differentiation between left and right is specifically called for.

6. SIGNS FOR FINGERS

6.1 In 1928 the four slanting strokes appear to represent the hand, yet seem also to be for the fingers.
Laban lists Ex. 6a as "fingerwurzel", which means "roots of the fingers", i.e. the bulk of the hand.
The individual fingers are shown by dots, the dot for the thumb being placed at the bottom, thus 6b
shows the index finger. In Laban 1930 all five dots for the fingers are shown, 6c.
6.2 SL 1936 taught 6d (taken from AK 1956) for the fingers, the thumb being the dot on top (b and b')
and the little finger the dot at the bottom (d and d*), i.e. the reverse of Laban's original arrangement.
This seemed more suitable as the thumb is forward (in front) when the arm hangs down, palm facing
in, and is on top when raised from there into the forward direction.
6.3 Fingers are not given in AK 1951 but AK 1958 and 1979 show the same signs as used by SL (ex. 6d).
In Laban's 1956 publication4 Principles of Dance and Movement Notation, he gave the 1928
placement for the fingers, apparently unaware that all other notators were using the signs of 6d.

a a
b b'
c B
d
6a 6b (Laban 1928) 6c (Laban 1930) 6d (AK 1956)
 The Labanotator, No. 62, January 1991 5
6.4 Around 1965 AHG proposed 6e as the logical sign for the fingers, with dots added for the individual
fingers, 6f being the thumb, 6g the index finger, etc. The base knuckle is shown as in 6h, 6i being the
'knee' (second) knuckle, and so on. There was general agreement to these and they were included in
Valerie Preston-Dunlop's 1969 book Practical Kinetography (p. 103) as well as AHG's 1970 revised
edition of Labanotation.
6.5 Knust's 1979 Dictionary gives the old signs as first choice but lists 6e as "another method under
consideration". The signs for the toes were likewise changed to five strokes. These are listed in AK
1979 only at the end as an alternate version.

6e 6f 6g 6h 6i 6j 6k

7. SURFACES OF THE HANDS AND FEET

7.1 SL 1936 introduced 7a as a basic sign to represent the hand (an outline of the flat hand). By
modifying this he showed: 7b - the palm surface, 7c - the back of the hand, 7d -- the thumb edges,
and 7e - the little finger edges, and 7f the fingertip edge. In 1963 he changed the little finger edge
indications to a dot as in 7g to make them distinct from the thumb edges.
7.2 Knust had introduced 7h for the palm surface, 7i for thumb edge, 7j for little finger edge and 7k for
middle finger edge (AK 1951, 1956). These signs were also applied to the feet, the sign of 71 showing
the top of the foot. In 1963 Knust adopted the Leeder signs.
7.3 Specific designation of application of the signs of 7b-g to the hand or foot, Ex. 7m-n, needed when
they appear outside their appropriate column, first appeared in AHG 1954.

n n n n - f i - n n - n ' - n r t
7a 7b 7c 7d 7e 7f 7g

i® <D D DID
KW KIN KIN KIN (AK 1956) ^ ft ^ S R=
7h 7i 7j 7k 71 7m 7n
8. LIMB SIGNS
8.1 Knust (1956) added dots to the joint signs to show parts of the limbs, these being used for touching
indications. This is shown in Ex. 8a. The dot above the sign meant the part of the limb slightly
above that joint, a dot below indicated the part of the limb slightly below that joint.
8.2 SL 1936 developed the limb signs of 8b and 8c (later b' and c') which meant the whole of the limb
above the stated joint. For touching the center part of the limb was understood.

a 4 h- a'
b i* b' 8b \!
c ? * c' „ „ || II || ||
d 3 k d' 8c
KIN e 35 e'
<LN)
8b'
8a (AK 1956)
6 The Labanotator, No. 62, January 1991
8.3 When AHG learned of Knust's signs she realized that more specificity would be gained by adopting
both sets of signs in designating what part of the limb was being touched. This unification was
agreed in 1965.
8.4 In 1967 the writing of the limb signs of 8b and 8c was abbreviated to 8d and 8e. The original
drawing of the limb signs was modified to 8d' and 8e'. This version appeared in AHG 1970 and AK
1979. Exs. 8d and 8e are still preferred by some as the shape of the limb sign is more visible.
8.5 Indications for specific surfaces of the limbs, 8f-i (SL 1936), followed the same idea as the indications
for hand surfaces (as mentioned above, the dots in 8i were introduced only in 1963). However AK
1979 also has other somewhat similar indications with a quite different meaning. By placing the pin
for 'above' within the limb sign Knust indicates the upper region of the limb, 8j; a 'below' pin
indicates the lower region, 8k; and an 'at center' pin indicates the center region, 81. The sign of 8j is
thus the same as 'a' in 8a, and 8k me same as 'b' in 8a. In this way three regions are shown, without
statement of surface. Ex. 8m is an alternative way of writing, using the example of the left lower arm.

H H -4 \* Ml
Under or Outer Thumb or big Little finger or
. , back or top toe side little toe side
8e 3i
"' iK
fc 8e'•
° >3\ ^ 8f 8g 8h 8i

(AHG 1970)

'I i I 31! 3d 311

8j 8k 81 (AK ' 979) gm (AK19?9)

9. SIGNS FOR THE WHOLE LIMB

9.1 What was lacking in the early days were signs for the whole arm and whole leg. As columns were
designated for these parts on the staff, for many years no need was felt for specific signs. It was the
advent of Motif ideas and writing 'asides' notations that brought the need into focus. The symbols of
9a were invented by AHG, introduced in 1959 and accepted by ICKL in 1961; they appear (although
incorrectly drawn) in VPD's 1963 An Introduction to Kinetography Laban, Ex. 9b. In the second
edition of this book (1966) they are correctly drawn. The tendency to make the signs too fat and
squat, thus losing the image of a limb, was evident in VPD 1969, Ex. 9c.

! 1 IT I 1 I
9a A limb Both arms Left arm Right arm Both legs Left leg Right leg (AHG 1970)

ft HI tt IH H rr ]\\\ + $
9b (VPD 1963) 9c (VPD 1969) 10a lOb lOc

10. INDICATION OF EITHER RIGHT OR LEFT

10.1 Open choice in recording choreographic ideas led to the need to state that either the right or the left
hand may be used, that steps could start on either foot, and so on. Ex. lOa is the sign for both hands.
The sign for 'either side', lOb, proposed by AHG and accepted in 1967, was derived from the vertical
center line combined with the ad lib. sign Thus lOc states 'either hand'.
10.2 Note that Knust met the need to express 'use either the left or the right side of the body' in certain
cases by using an ad lib. sign combined with a sign for lateral symmetry (AK 1979: 822).
 The Labanotator, No. 62, January 1991 7
11. APPLICATION OF HAND SIGNS; TOUCHING
11.1 In Ex. lla (1928) Laban shows a starting position with dancers holding hands, the contact indication
being a straight line. In lib the hand is touching the head; here the head is down and it is the wrist
sign that is used, although the wording states the hand. The straight line for touching is already
starting to be curved in lie which has the instruction that the hands are touching. (The use of
columns in exs. llc-f is commented upon in the following section.) In lid the left hand touches the
right elbow; in lie the right hand touches the left hip. The right elbow touching the left ankle is
shown in llf. In 1930 the bow for the arms touching is definitely curved, llg, though in llh it looks
almost straight for the right wrist touching the right knee.
11.2 In the 1930 examples of llh and Hi we see the change in placement of the body part signs, their use
as a pre-sign having been established.

lib (Laban 1928)

llh (Laban 1930)

±=±

lla in (Laban 1930)

(Laban 1928)
Notes
1. References are made to Laban*s Schrifttanz (1. Methodik, Orthographic, Erlduterungen) (Universal
Edition, Vienna, 1928); his 1930 Script Dancing I La Danse Ecrite, an altered version of the 1928
presentation translated in English and French; my personal notebooks kept when working with Sigurd
Leeder in the period 1936-38; Albrecht Knust's Handbook of Kinetography Laban typed with carbon
copies and prepared with the assistance of Valerie Preston-Dunlop, his AbriB der Kinetographie Laban
(Das Tanzarchiv, Hamburg 1956, published in English in 1958), and his Dictionary of Kinetography
Laban (Labanotation) (MacDonald and Evans, Plymouth 1979); Laban's Principles of Dance and
Movement Notation (MacDonald and Evans, London 1956); Valerie Preston-Dunlop's Introduction to
Kinetography Laban (Laban Art of Movement Guild 1963, reprinted by MacDonald and Evans in
1966) and Practical Kinetography Laban (MacDonald and Evans 1969); and my textbook Labanotation
(New Directions, New York and Phoenix House, London 1954, updated and published by Oxford
University Press and Theatre Art Books, New York in 1970, the 1977 version being identical to the
1970 one).
 The Labanotator, No. 62, January 1991

2. Leeder never wrote a textbook but published many kinetograms, scores of his classroom studies and
dances. In later years he mainly followed the Labanotation rules in his usages.
3. Azra, one of Laban's daughters, was very involved with the notation, however, (according to Knust)
when she came up with some new ideas for the system Laban was furious and Azra's reaction was to
drop the notation completely. This was obviously before Laban's interests were taken into other
directions and he happily left the development of the system to others.
4. Anxious to regain his copyright which had expired, Laban hastily put out a book in 1954. This
publication was so full of errors that he had all copies withdrawn and another edition, noticeably
reworked, came out in 1956 with the same title Principles of Dance and Movement Notation (a
revised edition annotated by Roderyk Lange appeared in 1975). Despite his years of not using the
notation and the great amount of work done in the interim by Knust, Hutchinson and Leeder, Laban
did not notify colleagues of the contents of this book, introducing some signs that had never been seen
before.

Editor: Ann Hutchinson Guest

Associate Editor: Jane Whitear
Production: Nancy Harlock, Jean Johnson Jones, Re*gine Charriere
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Address all subscription applications and renewals to: Jean Johnson Jones, The Labanotation Institute,
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Send comments to Ann Hutchinson Guest, 17 Holland Park, London Wll 3TD, England.
Discussions in the Labanotator represent the thinking of experienced practitioners on choices in movement
descriptions, uses of symbols, rules, etc., and are not official in the sense of decisions concerning formal
adoption of any item, point of view or usage. Official adoption or changes will be clearly stated as such.