Well, the results are in and by popular vote, it looks like the classic sets are still the most popular. We had 1,469 votes altogether from many different parts of the globe-thank-you!
Your Top 5 Irish Set Dances
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Category Archives: Irish set dancing
Vote for Your Top 5 Irish Set Dances
Deciding on the line-up of dances for Irish set dancing can be torture for a dance/ céilí organiser- or not.
Debate has raged for some years now, particularly in Ireland, whether or not to continually expand the range of sets danced or to stick to the ones people know, especially the ones I call the “C” sets – Caledonian, Clare Plain, Cashel, Connemara, Corofin, etc. Learning new sets is great and it can be very disappointing if you never get to dance them at céilís.
Irish Dance Unbuttoned
As a child, Gene Kelly was my on-screen dance hero. I loved his athleticism but mostly, it was his mega watt smile and that extra bit of spontaneous lift that really made him unmissable. He radiated joy when he was performing (even though, according to his wife, on the day he filmed the famous Singing In The Rain dance number, he was extremely unwell with a temperature of 104ºF!)
So, it’s with these images in my head that I sometimes wonder how so much Irish dancing became so stiff, so formal and so obviously lacking in delight.
I have often had friends and others telling me how, when they were small, they were sent off to learn the irish dancing only to be whacked with a stick to make them straighter, shouted at to jump higher and to pay attention. Continue reading
Irish Dance: Real Women DO Batter- The Race Is On
I had the pleasure of teaching a sean nós & battering workshop in October with a group of 13 dancers from Sydney, Newcastle, Melbourne and Canberra, on the 10th annual October set dancing weekend here in Canberra. We went through and learned our 3 step sean nós routine to hornpipes (see below), which was nervously but well performed to an expectant crowd the next day.
Not surprisingly though, the highlight was really getting stuck in to the battering steps, particularly the Clare battering step. This is a name that is loosely used for steps that are popularly danced in Clare to reels, and experienced dancers will recognise that very familiar tattoo immediately, as heard below:
Irish Dance: Real Ladies Don’t Batter
I occasionally overhear fascinating conversations – as a bystander, you understand.
And so it was on this occasion when two women were recollecting their experience of set dancing and tut-tutting about other women dancers who dare to dance battering steps.
“In our day, it was never done” they said, with the implicit message was that “it shouldn’t be done”. My face was aflame as I sat there, not sure if this missive was being directed at me or not. I kept quiet.
My initial reaction was to feel a bit indignant. Yes, I’ve been known to batter – quite loudly at times and probably over enthusiastically – but I have always found the sound and subtle rhythms used in sets and sean nós completely addictive, and is how I got really hooked in the first place. I really, really wanted to be able to do THAT. Continue reading
6 simple Irish dances for your Christmas party
Sharing Irish dancing with my friends and non-dancers is something I love to do, AND it needs to be very, very easy.
Here, I am featuring three of the 6 different Irish dance styles with videos and instructions that are linked to each dance name so you can follow along.
- Irish set dancing figures
- Irish two hand dancing
- Irish céilí dancing
If you’re really keen and this is your first time getting people dancing, see my next post How to work with your party crowd who are keen to dance (and have probably had a few drinks)…
Irish dance basics: The heel of the reel
The Paris Opera Ballet School celebrated over 300 years of dance tradition in 2013, and I recently saw a lovely documentary focusing on the experience of young dancers starting out and doing an orientation of the company. I was entranced by their passion and commitment, particularly their gentle and considered approach to every aspect of the school and it’s tradition.
Part of that tradition is where all the youngest & newest members of the ballet school participate in the annual défilé– a parade of all balle
I’m quite taken by that idea- every time you lift your heel there’s a bright shining light that illuminates.
However, it’s all very well to do that in a slow, deliberate ballet walk but trying to light up the room at a fast Irish reel pace can be quite a challenge. Here is some information about reels that might help you.
Learning Irish dance steps from YouTube
I often see lovely steps on YouTube I’d love to learn – like this one from Mick Mulkerrin:
But for someone like me, this is just a bit too fast to start learning from.
Technology not only allows generous dancers to film and post great steps, but also helps to S-L-O-W it all down – both the images and the sound- like this:
It does sound a bit strange with the slowed down audio- a bit like a horror movie- but don’t mess with this as you’ll need the sound of the feet to help guide you with the rhythm of the steps.
TIP: The key to learning new steps is to break it down into simple parts but ALWAYS do it with the rhythm of the music – even if you just hum the music to yourself rather than having the music playing.
Irish dance partners: Dancing under your own steam
Some of the nicest, most pleasurable dance experiences I’ve had in Irish set dancing have been with partners who are… how can I say it? Comfortable. It’s like moving on in the set and arriving at your favourite armchair – aaah, a space that is obliging, giving and freeing, all at the same time with the added pleasure of moving exactly in rhythmic time with another.
Sadly, that’s not always the case. Many will have had the experience of being tackled by a smiling partner who seems to have wandered in off the sporting pitch, is full of energy and enthusiasm that’s just bone crackin’. Or collecting the demure-looking woman who’s leans on you and is like 20lbs spuds to get around the floor.
So, despite being convinced that all dancers are doing their best to dance, enjoy and have a good time, I think sometimes there’s a small lack of technique, knowledge or thought about what kind of experience it might be for the other person. It doesn’t mean completely changing your dance style but simply being mindful of others and making small accommodations to suit.
1. Dancing under your own steam – as much as your partner may be comfortable, their job is not to carry you. Your two legs will do that and all your weight needs to be on them, not your partner. To see if you’re already doing that, challenge yourself. Have a look at the dance practice exercise on the film (below) and see if you can dance at home, and then do a full house with your partner with only your palms touching palms as you dance.
2. Flat resting hands, light touch – Pulling, yanking, poking, gripping hands are most unattractive and are usually evident in the excitement of brilliant music and fast moves – we’ve all done it. Taking care also applies to moves like turning the lady under where all you need to do is use the tips of your fingers to touch, not using your whole hand. People carry all sorts of injuries and pains – arthritis, bruising, sprains – and it pays to take care with all hand holds. Continue reading
Irish dance music: It’s child’s play
Great music is t
As he says, his experience of playing music on his accordion was only for dancing and when there was no dancing, he was told to “put it away”.
So, how do you tell a jig from a reel? Or a polka from a slide?
As with most things Irish, it’s complicated. The intricacies of music mathematics can be a difficult thing to get your head around: even the best musicians seem to struggle to explain how it works mostly because there are style differences in the playing, in some cases. In addition, some of the names sound like musical timings – eg, “treble jig” and “light jig”, but are actually names of a dance rather than a specific musical timing. So, thinking about all this too much will not help your understanding.
Happily, one of the best ways of learning this difference is by moving or by singing/ humming to each different signature timing, and this also goes for musicians who are learning to play Irish music. And why not try to remember each different type – hornpipes, reels, jigs, waltzes, polkas, slides– by what we did when we were kids?
By having fun – playing, clapping and singing to nursery rhymes, and using pictures and word games to remember the basics.