What is a Ceilidh?
Folk festivals are one of the most enjoyable ceilidh dance experiences - many of them are absolutely free too!
Read more about Cecil Sharp at the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS)
The origins of the English longsword tradition known as 'Rapper' (below) are thought to originate from mining tools.
No doubt many fanatics would regale you with detailed descriptions of what each is, their history and differences. I prefer the easy definition – they are all flavours of the same fantastic thing!
If you are at a dance where everyone around you is dancing the same moves to music which is neither Pop nor Classical you’re probably at a folk dance - a social gathering that is fun, entertaining and rooted in hundreds if not thousands of years of history!
A Brief History of Folk Dance
When I was a lad, country dancing was still on the school curriculum and barn dances were all the rage. At some point since then they seemed to fall out of favour. Except they didn’t! They were rebranded ceilidhs and are currently enjoyed by the masses all around the country if not the world.
We can thank one man for this continued popularity: Cecil Sharp, a musician and teacher who in the early 1900’s travelled around the UK and overseas noting down these traditional dances for posterity.
Not surprisingly prior to this, the history of folk dancing is quite sketchy but has probably been a form of social entertainment ever since man discovered that his feet tapped in time to a tune he had just made with two sticks!
Folk or country dances are historically linked to the location in which they were danced, each region or even village may have its own local repertoire of dances, for instance Scottish dancing and American square dancing look quite different in their purest forms but elements of both occur in a modern ceilidh.
The term Ceilidh (or Ceili) comes from the Celtic language literally meaning ‘party’ but is nowadays used to indicate a folk dance party and is thought of by many as a more funky upbeat version of the Country Dance although this distinction is academic.
The modern ceilidh is a social dance party incorporating many features of traditional folk dancing from around the world particularly England, Scotland and the USA. Each dance works to a pattern of moves (called ‘figures’) led by a ‘caller’ who saves the dancers having to remember each figure, although a hundred years or so ago people were expected to know what to do without a caller – they still are in Scotland!
The term Barn Dance is a misleading description since they rarely occur in barns – but if you have one empty why not use it! It has the feel of a more raucous rowdy event possibly with an American twist, or is that a Hoedown? American Hoe Downs are often square dances or contra dances and the caller may even sing each figure in time to the music!
Whether you are after a traditional English barn-dance, a Burns night ceilidh or an American hoe-down - these different 'flavour' ceilidhs are all great ways to enjoy social occasions from a wedding or birthday party to a fundraiser or club supper. They are terrific fun and great for all age groups.
If this wasn’t enough to contend with history also takes us down a parallel path of similar but distinct dance traditions that include Morris dancing, Longsword or Rapper dancing, Clog, Step and Bacca pipes dance. But we haven’t time for all this – lets get dancing!
Ben Moore ©