Irish set dancing
Irish set dancing, sometimes called "Irish sets", is a popular form of folk dancing in Ireland danced to Irish tunes in groups of eight or four dancers. It is also sometime named set dance, but this name refers more often to a kind of dance in Irish stepdance.
History
Set dancing is based on
When the
As the sets were often shown in special competitions under a choregraphied form (three or four figures had to be chosen to dance on the stage for instance), the popular version of the sets danced in the Céilí is often derived from this choreography and can be different from the original. For instance, the Connemara Reel Set was danced at first with only a reel figure and a jig figure. To be shown in competition it had to be truncated in more figures and now this is this version with three reel figures and a jig figure which is danced in the céilithe.
The Set
Sets from a particular region usually have similar elements. For instance, sets from the
Distinctive sets and dance regions emerged in the course of the 19th century[2] and evolved as popular house dances separate from the more formal Irish step-dancing tradition. In some homesteads a kitchen pot was placed under the flag stones as an extra acoustical element for the house dance.[3]
Sets differs from
See also
- List of Irish Set Dancing Champions
- The South Galway Set
- The Clare Lancers Set
- Irish dance
- Irish stepdance
- Sean-nós dance
- Sean-nós dance in America
- Slide (tune type)
- Polka
References
- S2CID 145569769.
- ^ Dancing in Ireland by Breandán Breathnach (Dal gCais Publications in association with the Folklore and Folk Music Society of Clare 1983)
- ^ Saving the Set Dance by Paddy Corry, Treoir magazine, 1970
- General
- Toss the Feathers - Irish Set Dancing Pat Murphy, Mercier Press ISBN 1-85635-115-7
- The Flowing Tide: More Irish Set Dancing Pat Murphy, Mercier Press ISBN 1-85635-308-7
- Apples in Winter - Irish Set & Social Dancing Pat Murphy, available at: [email protected]
- A Handbook of Irish Dances, 5. Edition, J. G. O' Keeffe, Art O' Brien, Gill & Son Ltd., (1934)[1]
- The Story of Irish Dancing Helen Brennan, Mount Eagle Publications Ltd., 1999 ISBN 0-86322-244-7