I Didn't Count On That

I was watching The Heiress (1950).  Early on Olivia de Havilland goes to a party where she meets Montgomery Clift.  We watch as the band play several numbers, including one where the two stars dance:



I watched with the closed captioning on, and every single tune was described as a waltz.  Sometime up-tempo, sometimes mid-tempo, but always a waltz.  In 1850's New York, however, they didn't just waltz the entire night away.  They'd break things up with polkas and minuets.  In fact, at least three of the numbers in the scene weren't waltzes. Some were clearly in 2/4 or 4/4 time.

It's not that hard to tell.  Just count one-two-three to the music and if it doesn't fit, it can't be a waltz.  In fact, Clift even counts "one-two-three-point, one-two-three-point" to de Havilland.  That should be a pretty strong clue we're not in waltz-land.