Strip the Willow

This dance varies according to location. 


Where we dance it it is a very fast dance with a different arm grip (Crossed armed and spin around 16x) in the start.  It is very fast and a fun dance and very exhausting. 


We go straight to step 3 where you swing both sides instead of first one side and one partner only and then the other side and other partner before both partners and both sides.  When one couple has gone through everyone you tip hands together to make a bridge and then everyone goes round the outside and under the bridge before starting again.  Its very fun and the best dance. The local band here plays the grand old duke of york on the accordian  and vocals for this and adds in a couple of other tunes. 


There is also an

Orcadian

 Strip the Willow that is different again. 













For more dances - http://www.scottishdance.net/ceilidh/dances.html

• The Britannia Twostep
• The Canadian or Highland Barn Dance
• The Circassian Circle
• The Cumberland Square Eight
• The Dashing White Sergeant
• The Eightsome Reel
• The Flying Scotsman
• The Gay Gordons
• The Highland Scottische
• Lucky Seven
• The Military Twostep
• The Pride of Erin Waltz
• The Sausage Machine
• The St. Bernard's Waltz
• Strip the Willow
• The Orcadian (or Shetland) Strip the Willow
• The Swedish Masquerade
• The Veleta
• The Virginia Reel

Highland Dancing

Most Highland dances are done solo, an exception being the Foursome Reel or Highland Reel. But even in competitions, the Highland Reel dancers are judged individually

Highland dancing is a style of athletic solo dancing which developed in the Gaelic Highlands - Scotland. Highland dancing is considered a sport and forms part of the various Highland games, which take place each year, many of them outside of the UK.

Historically the Swords Dance was performed by warriors in many parts of Europe in the prehistoric period.

Forms of sword dancing are also recorded in the late Medieval period.

Ritual and combat dances that imitated epic deeds / martial skills were a familiar feature in Scottish tradition and folklore.

The earliest reference to these dances in Scotland is mentioned in the Scotichronicon which was compiled in Scotland by Walter Bower in the 1440s. The passage regards Alexander III and his second marriage to the French noblewoman Yolande de Dreux at Jedburgh on 14 October 1285.

"At the head of this procession were the skilled musicians with many sorts of pipe music including the music of bagpipes, and behind them others splendidly performing a war-dance with intricate weaving in and out. Bringing up the rear was a figure regarding whom it was difficult to decide whether it was a man or an apparition. It seemed to glide like a ghost rather than walk on feet. When it looked as if he was disappearing from everyone's sight, the whole frenzied procession halted, the song died away, the music faded, and the dancing contingent froze suddenly and unexpectantly."


Read the full article here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_highland_dance

Swords: at a function

for those of us live in a part of the country that only has bagpipe playing and highland dancing....

Scottish Highland Dancing for Beginners : Pa De Bas Dance in Scottish

This is one of the steps you learn as a beginner to highland dancing and for beginner exams and little ones or beginners dance these at the small ceilidhs.

Scottish Ceilidh Dancing: Moneymusk

Moneymusk is a place in Aberdeenshire in Scotland, where my ancestors come from.

This is quite a complicated dance but as I just started this blog and this is what we are looking at, at the moment. 

Ceilidh's are community dances with traditional music bands.  Ceilidh dancing needs a lot of energy and you have so much fun.  The music is fast and furious and gets faster and faster.  The dancing is group dancing and very lively when you get going and know the dances.  When you first learn they teach you very slowly as the steps are confusing but when you know them you got really fast and crazy.

We have an excellent band here where we live (not the youtube which is from a different country!) and we have excellent ceilidhs here, which are lots of fun.  The types of ceilidh dances we know already are Strip the Willow, Gay Gordons, St Bernards Waltz, Canadian Strip the Willow, Canadian Barn Dance and a few more ......

This youtube is from a different country, with old folks dancing but the idea is just to see the dance steps and how it goes.

Here it is;