I reconnected with a friend from college recently. After an intervening twenty plus years, we had a lot of ground to cover with updating our lives to date. We had both completed doctorates and while our research subjects were very different, language had played an important part in our work. Our conversation, therefore entered a fascinating realm discussing specialist language, jargon, and gibberish! For any of you with academics in your lives, you are all to familiar with the fact that they have a language of their own; I like to call it academese. I left this conversation reflecting on language that I use with respect to Irish dance and it occurred to me that “old-style Irish dance” is in fact a specialist term; though my use of it had been for the sake of clarity — oops! So today, I am going to define “old-style Irish dance” as I use it, providing a bit of history and context that helps to shape my use. No doubt, in time, I will have to adapt and refine this further, but as of today, this is how I use and understand the term.
The development of dancing in Ireland is not linear. It is not universal. It is not simple. For the sake of brevity, I’m going to create two very broad categories of dancing from Ireland – dancing that was caught, through community practice that invited people in, without any formal instruction, and dancing that was taught, which had a formal instructor and steps with structure. The “caught” style of dancing was prominent in several regions of Ireland, but the percussive style from the “caught” category largely associated with Connemara has become known as sean nós dancing. This style is percussive and dancers could be considered musicians as their style had them dancing the tune. This style had a particular focus on precise rhythm on a very small space. There were no rules with respect to body posture and style – rhythm was the focus.
The “old-style Irish dance” to which I refer falls under the category of taught styles. In the late eighteenth century, dancing masters in Ireland began to formalise dance. Structure was applied to steps, which became an eight-count step, danced on both the right and left side. This style required upright posture and arms at the side, as dancing masters sought to apply civility to dancing. Movements also acquired names, though these weren’t necessarily universal, such as the “crosskey” or “rocks.” I have even seen a reference to “butterflies” from 1946; but I haven’t decided if this was a newer development or an older practice. This old-style was largely danced in Munster province, in the south west of Ireland, including counties Cork, Clare, Limerick, and Kerry.
Kicks, and cuts were kept below the knee. Feet were not always crossed, sometimes the style would have wide stamps or points, but any crossing was slight, same for turn out. Steps from Clare were quite busy, steps from Cork, less-so. The style from North-Kerry had twisting elements not seen in the other counties. “Old-style Irish dance,” therefore, doesn’t not reflect a single geographic origin. In fact, I teach historical choreography from all of those counties.
To get us out of “old-timey” talk, “old-style Irish dance” comes from between 1860-1950. It is largely a post-famine dancing style, though there is always the chance that new sources may come to light that change our understanding. The style shifted in the 1950s as the more balletic-style from Northern Ireland became more prominent. This is also when the music tempi slowed down considerably. “Old-style Irish dance” steps are danced quite quickly! In that time period, musician and dancer still shared a common repertoire of music and “played” together. Though this shifted considerably through the late 1940s and into the 1950s.
“Old-style Irish dance” is step dancing that was danced in Ireland between 1860 and 1950. It is defined by movements that stay below the knee. It has both light and percussive styles, but did not require specialised shoes. While competitions emerged during this period, these were primarily gatherings to celebrate Irish culture rather than intense, win or lose moments. People wore their Sunday-best, not dedicated costumes, though costuming became more deliberate starting in the 1920s. The focus of old-style Irish dance was on composed steps with specific rhythm patterns, danced with a relaxed, upright carriage.
As with any attempt to create a clear definition, exceptions remain. If we hold loosely to our understanding of “old-style Irish dance” and relax our rigidity about “purity,” we will find our way into this modern expression of an historical practice. Even the idea of “Irish” dance wasn’t defined until the 1930s, but that’s a discussion for another day.
If this style of Irish dance appeals to you, we’d love to have you join us: in studio, or online! Or email me (Marjorie) directly to help you find your best option.