Curious thing I've noticed...

Because of the popularity of bluegrass in acoustic circles in the US, it's not uncommon that jam session speed is actually faster that what you may encounter at a dance. Contra dances, and others that rely on "old-time" music are actually not breakneck speed.

On the other hand, what I've seen of Celtic music and dance, the dance is as frantic in tempo as the music.

I'm glad I'm in the US.