Study Notes Copyright © William Lynch 2007
| First Figure - Reels | 232 bars |
| 1 | Advance and retire, with crossed hand hold in front: | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| 2 | Swing partners with ceili hold (6 bars) and face centre for the last 2 bars. | 8 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Top couples: Advance, retire, and change places: they advance and retire R hand in R (4 bars). 1stcouple makes a R hand arch and couples exchange places with the 2nd lady leading her partner under the arch, R hand in R. Both ladies turn anti-clockwise under the gents' arms, 1st lady ˝ turn and 2nd lady 1˝ turns as they dance into position in the opposite place (4 bars). The whole movement is repeated back to place, with the 2nd couple making the arch (8 bars) |
16 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| Swing and face centre. | 8 bars | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Side couples now dance 3. | 24 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| 5 | Top couples: Ladies chain R hands in the centre and L with the opposite gent, turn clockwise under his L arm and round behind him as he dances in place facing centre, pass back R to R and into waltz hold with their partners. |
8 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| House around each other. | 8 bars | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Side couples: Ladies chain. House around each other. |
16 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | Top couples dance the three and one:
Advance, retire, and advance with R hands held on the ladies’ R shoulders (6 bars). 1st gent takes 2nd lady’s L hand and turns her underarm into R shoulder hold beside him while 2nd gent takes both ladies’ free hands, and the formation retires to 1st couple’s place (2 bars). |
8 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1st gent drops the ladies’ hands and dances in place while the trio crosses the set to 2nd couple’s place, 2nd gent turning the ladies underarm into R shoulder hold beside him as they cross (4 bars). The trio and 1st gent advance to the centre (2 bars), 2nd gent turns both ladies ľ turn outwards and all form a basket with the ladies’ hands resting on the gents’ shoulders (2 bars). | 8 bars | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Swing four, falling back to place on the last 2 bars. | 8 bars | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Side couples dance the three and one with 1st
gent (R of 1st top couple) leading.
Swing four. |
24 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| 9 | Top couples repeat the three and one with 2nd
gent leading. Swing four. |
24 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| 10 | Side couples repeat the three and one with 2nd
gent leading. Swing four. |
24 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| 11 | Advance and retire, with crossed hand hold in front: | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| 12 | Swing partners with ceili hold (6 bars) and face centre for the last 2 bars. | 8 bars | |||||||||||||||||||
| Second Figure - Reels | 160 bars |
| 1 | Circle: all join hands in a circle and advance and retire twice. | 8 bars |
| 2 | Swing partners with ceili hold (6 bars) and face centre for the last 2 bars. | 8 bars |
| 3 | Top couples dance the train:
Advance and retire, R hands held on the ladies' R shoulders (4 bars) and dance across to the opposite place, the ladies leading their partners (4 bars). The movement is then repeated back home (8 bars). |
16 bars |
| Swing and face centre. | 8 bars | |
| 4 | Side couples dance the train.
Swing and face centre. |
24 bars |
| 5 | Top couples dance singles:
1st gent and 2nd lady dance into each other’s place, R to R (4 bars), ˝ turn clockwise and dance back home (4 bars). |
8 bars |
| 2nd gent and 1st lady dance the same movement. | 8 bars | |
| House around each other. | 8 bars | |
| 6 | Side couples dance singles. | 16 bars |
| House around each other. | 8 bars | |
| 7 | Top couples dance doubles:
They pass through, gents on the outside, and ˝ turn clockwise in the opposite place (4 bars), pass back, gents on the inside and ˝ turn inwards in place (4 bars). |
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| 8 | Side couples dance doubles. | 8 bars |
| 9 | Step and swing: all dancers face their corners and dance the step in place (4 bars), turn to face their partners and dance the step in place (4 bars), swing (6 bars) and face centre (2 bars). | 16 bars |
| 10 | Circle. | 8 bars |
| 11 | Swing. | 8 bars |
| STEPS Due very likely to the strength of the ceili dancing tradition in this part of the country, both ladies and gents start the step on the Right foot throughout. In the following description of the steps the underlined foot bears the weight and the absence of an underline shows that that foot simply strikes the floor and is immediately raised again, one strike being referred to as a brush and a double strike, once out and once back, as a shuffle. An 'h' indicates that only the heel of that foot strikes the floor. Basic step - brush hop 123:
Competition step - shuffle, jump, jump, brushstep:
An alternative step - heel hop 12 heelstep:
The ‘hop’ used in both the first and third steps above is no more than a ‘hint of a hop’, only the heel being raised and lowered while the ball of the foot remains in contact with the floor. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SOURCES Tom Quinn, at Priddy, Somerset in April/May 1994 and Mick Mulkerrin at the Galway International Set Dancing Festival in March 1995. Tom demonstrated both the full step as danced in competition today and the basic step described above. Mick demonstrated the third of the above steps which he recalled seeing danced in this set about 20 years before. They all fit the music and, each at its own level, add character to the dance, so use whichever you can master! |