unusual dance? Tom Tulley

Subject: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Mo the caller
Date: 13 Sep 22 - 08:08 AM

A tune we played in a session at Whitby Folk Week set me searching the internet. I'm never seen anything quite like this before a cross between Sword and Morris for 1 couple

I used to go Set Dancing and was told that the term Set Dance was used both to mean a square derived from quadrilles and a 'set' (fixed) step dance. When looking for the tune, this site said Metre/Rythm Set Dance. Is this a term that has meaning to Irish Musicians?

I've seen various step dances and broom dances performed in intervals of evenings of Set Dancing, but nothing like this. Is it often danced. Are there more like it. It seems odd that it's a couple dance, the display dances I've seen have been solo (Irish step, Morris jig) or sets (Morris, Longsword, Rapper). How old is it?

Anyone know anything about it.

Subject: RE: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Manitas_at_home
Date: 13 Sep 22 - 08:30 AM

It looks as if the dance is something made up during lockdown. Hawksword once managed to produce a 4 person longsword dance but that was the smallest number that would allow the production of a viable lock.

Subject: RE: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Manitas_at_home
Date: 13 Sep 22 - 08:33 AM

BTW, even though the tune is presented in O'Neills as a traditional I've always felt it to sound more like a an 18th century assembly room dance tune.

Subject: RE: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Mo the caller
Date: 13 Sep 22 - 09:55 AM

It does have bits from various traditions.

Subject: RE: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Mo the caller
Date: 14 Sep 22 - 04:48 PM

Yes they didn't make a lock, but one of the Sword dances I tried had couples rotating under swords joined in pairs.

Subject: RE: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Mo the caller
Date: 14 Sep 22 - 04:50 PM

Does the description of Rhythm / Metre as 'Set Dance' mean anything to an Irish Musician?

Subject: RE: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Manitas_at_home
Date: 15 Sep 22 - 01:28 AM

I'm not an Irish musician but I play Irish music. Apart from the meaning of a quadrille-like group dance, set dance can refer to a fixed set of steps in step-dancing such as Jockey to the Fair, the Job of Journeywork. Some of the tunes for these dances depart from the standard rhythms and may have extra parts or extra notes (Jockey to the Fair is an example). I don't know if there was ever a set dance to Tom Tully but this is why the tune would have been categorised as a set dance.

Subject: RE: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Mo the caller
Date: 17 Sep 22 - 03:27 PM

Yes, that was my understanding of the term as a dancer (who only plays when no-one can hear). So does that mean that if you see a tune so categorised you need to know the dance to know how to play it?

Subject: RE: unusual dance? Tom Tulley
From: Long Firm Freddie
Date: 19 Sep 22 - 02:17 PM

From looking at Mike Finn's other videos, it appears that Mike and Ann are members of Foxs Morris, a very fine Border Morris side. I suspect that the Border style is the main inspiration for the dance. From the wide range of dance styles posted they are obviously into dance in its many varied forms in a big way!

LFF