|
IRISH DANCE
Welcome to
the Martin Percival School of Irish Dance!
For years, Irish dance lessons have been a
wonderful activity for both children and
adults. More recently, Irish dance shows like Riverdance and Lord of the Dance have showcased
the brilliance of Irish dance, encouraging more
children to become involved in this fast growing
art form. If you are new to Irish dance, please
note that it takes about a year to experience
and hopefully, to understand what Irish dance is
all about.
 Irish dance
is the ultimate combination of mind and body. The
intricate footwork unique to Irish dance
requires both mental concentration and physical
agility. The limits to which one can grow in
these areas through Irish dance are boundless.
The roots of
Irish dance can be traced back to 18th
Century literature when it was purely a social
outlet. Originally, dances were taught by men
traveling from village to village. Villagers
eagerly awaited the arrival of the “dance
master,” and provided food and shelter as a
means of payment.
 Today, of
course, Irish dance has become an extra
curricular activity for many children and
adults, Irish or not. Some enjoy the art and
physical challenge of the dance, some like
learning dance as part of their heritage, and
some enjoy the pageantry of the costumes. Whatever the case, we hope that you or your
children learn to love the art of Irish dance.TYPES OF IRISH DANCES
While watching
the advanced, beginners in awe at a dance school
performance or competition, a parent may wonder,
“How long will it take for my child to learn to
do those amazing steps?”
Individual
dancing skill is a progression, and there is no “normal” time line for this
progression. The degree of skill ultimately developed depends on the dancer’s
age, talent, commitment, practice intensity and desire!
Irish Step
Dance is performed as both individual dance (solo) and as a group dance (figure,
ceili, choreography). Both types of Irish dance are taught at the Martin
Percival School of Irish dance.
SOLO DANCES
As it exists
today, there are seven basic Irish Step dances (solos):
the Reel, Light Jig,
Single Jig, Slip Jig, Treble Jig, Hornpipe and Set Dance. There are many
variations of these dances and each school choreographs its own version of the
steps.
Reel –
This is the first dance
to be taught. It is danced in soft shoes and is in 4/4 time.
Light Jig
– another soft shoe dance,
this time in 6/8 time
Single Jig
– slightly faster than the light jig, also danced in soft shoe to 6/8 timing.
Slip Jig
– beautiful dance performed to the highly unusual and complex 9/8 timing. This
dance is taught to all students, however at higher levels females only dance
this dance.
Treble
Jig
– also known as the double Jig or heavy jig.
Danced in
hard shoes to 6/8 time. Beginners
will dance this to Traditional
speed and as
the student progresses the music will become
slower.
 Hornpipe
– also danced in hard shoes with a time
signature of 2/4
or 4/4 – played a lot
slower than the reel. Beginners will dance
to traditional speed with the music slowing
down as the student progresses.
Set Dance –
there are two types of set dance –
traditional and non-traditional. The
traditional set dances are danced to
traditional speed, and the steps are almost
identical throughout the world, being
traditional in nature and some extremely
old. The non-traditional dances are either
in jig time (6/8) or hornpipe time (2/4 or
4/4) and are performed by the preliminary
championship and open championship students.
There are a
total of 38 set dances both traditional and non-traditional. The set dance has
two parts referred to as the “step” (part one) and the “Set” (part two). In a
set dance, a dancer is performing to a prescribed tune, thus, the footwork and
rhythm of the dance are expected to interpret the tune.
Irish Step Dancing is
a complex art form that demands a significant level of commitment and
dedication. If a dancer wishes to compete there is no substitute for class
attendance and practice! To attain full competitive potential a dancer must
attend class regularly and must devote many hours to practice. The encouragement
and involvement of the dancer’s parents can be a highly motivating factor for
the dancer.
 CEILI DANCING
Ceili
dancing, or figures, involves dancers dancing together in groups of 2, 3, 4, 6, 8 and 16 and involves
some beautiful traditional and non-traditional choreography. Participation in
team dancing is highly encouraged. A School costume is required for competitive
team dancing.
Take a free class! >
|
