Eglish National School

This is our DVD about Irish music and dancing.All of the music and dancing you see are performed in school by

Eglish pupils.We hope you enjoy it.

The Beginning

The history of Irish dance begins with just a few references in ancient texts. Evidence reveals

that the druids were among the first dancers in Ireland. Their dances were an integral part of their religious rituals honoring the sun and the

oak tree. Remnants of these early dances survive in the ring dances that are still performed

today.T

Ceili DanceTraditional dances, or ceili dances, include

sword dances, round dances, line dances and progressive line dances. The Normans are credited with bringing the round dance to

Ireland in the 12th century. The Rince Fada or long dance is actually a family of line

dances that was brought by the Normans. The Carol was another of these dances

brought by the Normans; when an Irish town was conquered, the dance would be

performed by the Norman invaders. In this dance, the leader sang, and the dancers in a ring around him sang the song back to him.

Dance Masters and Step Dancing

Dance masters were first mentioned in "A Tour in Ireland, 1776-1779" written by

Arthur Young. Each dance master would travel to different houses in his area teaching

dances and steps to the local youth. Dance masters standardized the solo steps for jigs,

reels, hornpipes and slipjigs. Step dances emerged in the late 18th century, created by the dance masters. These dances, along with

the ceili dances, were often performed at weddings, patron's and saint's days, annual

festivals and Sunday gatherings.

Set DancesSet dances are a category of step dancing.

These dances evolved from quadrilles which came from the French court. The dance

masters changed them to fit Irish music, and elaborated on the steps so that they could showcase their dancing skills. Unlike ceili dances, which have been made uniform

throughout the country, these dances have regional differences. In 1936 the Catholic

Church tried to wipe out these dances using the Public Dance Hall Act, but they survived

in homes and at local gathering places

Dances Made Irish

There are several dances that do not have their origins in Ireland but are now

performed as traditional Irish dances. Among these are couple's dances and waltzes. The

round dance and the quadrille are also imports made Irish. "Shoe the Donkey,"

"Stacks of Barley," the "Gay Gordons" and "Schottische" are among the imports

regularly performed at ceilis. This amalgamation of dances and styles has led to

beautiful dances such as "St. Margaret's Waltz" and the "Pride of Erin."

The Gaelic LeagueDue to the Public Dance Hall Act of 1936, traditional dance was nearly lost. This act specified that all dancing events had to be licensed. The Gaelic League helped to save Ireland's tradition of dance as part of the efforts to help restore the sense of Irish

national identity. In 1897 the League held their first ceili in London. At this event there was Irish music and singing, step dances and waltzes. After this event the ceili spread to Ireland, and to Irish communities globally. Ceili events have since become a matter of

national pride and identity.

Irish dances

The following are traditional Irish dances performed by pupils at Eglish National School,

Ahascragh,Ballinasloe,Co. Galway

Ireland

Gay GordonsIrish dance danced to any march. Left hand to left hand in front of couple right hand of man to right of lady over her right shoulder.

Direction of dance counter clockwise around hall. Basically a walking dance with four spins by lady.

1st PartStart forward on left foot with left, right, left and then shift on with walking backwards. Continuing in same direction (though walking

backwards) , with left, right, left, then shift on right and walk forward with left, right, left, right.

2nd PartLady spins holding man's hand over head, right hand to right hand,

4 spins eight bars of music, two bars to each spin, ends with weight of each on right foot. Start part 1 sequence again on left

foot.Continue until music stops.

Shoe the Donkey

Shoe The Donkey

Lady on right. Holds left hand to left, right to right in front direction counter clockwise around floor. This is a forward, turn and return dance. All action is on outside foot (lifting and stamping). Inside foot hops continually.

1st Part

Hop 2-3, hope 2-3, hop-turn-2-3 Stamp on 4 outside foot (note all hops are on inside foot). Note, having turned, inside and outside feet are now reversed. Repeat sequence three times more. Total of four turns. Total eight bars of music.

2nd Part

Hop-turn 2-3 stamp on 4 on outside foot. This sequence is repeated seven more times. total of eight turns. Total eight bars of music.

Repeat part 1 and 2 until music stops

The Walls of Limerick.

The Walls of Limerick is a dance commemorating the victory of the people of Limerick over the forces of King William of England in the 17th Century. The repulse of William the Third from Limerick in 1690 is one of the most treasured memories of the Irish people; and is to this day continually before them. Songs are still sung about the famous victory, and orations delivered.

If you go to a céilí – an Irish evening of song and dance and story-telling – you may dance “The Walls of Limerick.”

The “Walls of Limerick is a dance commemorating the siege of Limerick, which took place in 1690.

Symbolically you will make the circuit of the walls, passing from partner to fresh partner.

  At the start, the dancers line up in couples, girl on boy's right, each set of two couples facing each other. It is danced to reel-time, and consists of four movements as follows:This is only the floor pattern walk only. Girl on the right of boy. Walk forward, walk back x 2. 2 opposite 2

Right shoulder leading in cross overs. Ladies cross to each others place. Boys cross to each others place. Walk with opposite partner out to the sides and return.Walk around with own partner.Repeat formation using appropriate dance steps.Take right hand to the sides.

Walk a circle, anti-clockwise around opposite circle.Advance and retire using 1,2,3's. Cross over using side step.Out to sides using side step. Circle around using 1,2,3's.After circling, couples must finish up facing the direction they started the dance in.

The Siege of Ennis Background: 

Ennis is a town in County Clare on the west side of Ireland.  This dance represents the battle when Ennis was under siege.  The dance is known as a progressive dance because the dancers move forward to meet a new line of dancers on each repetition of the dance sequence.In the advance and retreat(or retire) portion of the dance, one can imagine a battle taking place, followed by a rearrangement of forces, a confrontation or struggle, then a moving on to begin again.

Formation: Lines of  four dancers facing each other. Dancers are organized in partners standing side by side.

Irish songs and Ballads

Star of the County Down – love at first sight

The Star of the County Down is a story of love at first sight involving a young man who sees a beautiful young girl while out walking.

He first sees her as she walks down a boreen – a small country lane – one summer morning.

She has bare feet so she is a poor girl but that doesn’t diminish her beauty.

In fact, she is so stunning that the singer has to shake himself to make sure he is actually standing there and not dreaming.

Óró Sé do Bheatha ‘Bhaile – Irish rallying call

 Óró Sé do Bheatha ‘Bhaile had been rallying call for Irish nationalism for nearly 300 years. It was widely used as a marching tune for Irish rebels taking part in the 1916 Easter Rising and has remained popular ever since.

In 2006, it was put before a worldwide audience when it was featured in the misty, atmospheric marching scene in the Ken Loach film, The Wind That Shakes the Barley.

There are two versions of this song. The one you are about to hear is the Padraig Pearse version, and is sung by the pupils of Eglish National School senior classes.

It sings of Granuaile, the famous pirate queen, who became a symbol of Irish rebellion against English rule.

The Bog Down In The Valley O’

(Also known as “The Rattlin Bog”, or “The Rathlin Bog”)

This is an Irish folksong, played in this DVD by Alana Mulry on the tin whistle.

The tin whistle is a traditional Irish instrument and comes in the key of C or D

The Nightingale

The Nightingale(A Traditional folk song)

Sung by Ciara Cusack

Galway Girl

“Galway Girl” or “The Galway Girl” is a song written by Steve Earle and recorded with Irish musician Sharon Shannon, which was featured on Earle's 2000 album Transcendental Blues. A cover version of the song by Mundy and Shannon reached number one and became the most downloaded song of 2008 in Ireland.

On this DVD, “The Galway Girl” is sung by Geraldine and Nora Corcoran

“The Dawning of the Day”

(Irish: Fáinne Geal an Lae, literally "The bright ring of the day") is the name of two old Irish airs. "Fáinne Geal an Lae" (sometimes called "The Golden Star"), an air composed by the harpist Thomas Connellan in the 17th Century.

The Irish-language lyrics of "Fáinne Geal an Lae" describe an “Aisling” or vision poem, (a poetic genre that developed during the late 17th and 18th centuries in Irish language poetry) where the poet encounters a mysterious beautiful woman. In this case, she upbraids him as a frivolous rake and points to the approaching dawn.

On this DVD the melody of “The Dawning of the Day” is played on the tin whistle by Kevin Mulry

There is a booklet accompanying this DVD which gives the history and other information on all of the dances and pieces of music mentioned in it.

It has been fun for us to put this together, and we hope you enjoy watching our DVD and reading the booklet.