Dance
Some of the first practitioners of dance were the Druids, with their religious rituals honoring the Oak trees and the Sun. Their circular dances have remained, to some extent, in the ring dances of today. Prior to battle, there were pre-battle dances by the warriors to bring glory to clans. Even when Ireland became Christian, the people still maintained their elements of dance and music. Most of the music played by the peasantry was for the benefit of dancing.
When the Normans invaded Ireland in the 1100's they brought with them their culture, including music and dance. In the towns they conquered, 'the Carol' was a danced love-song. In the 16th Century it has been recorded that the Irish 'Hey', a round dance in which the performers wound in and about their partners developed. It took until the 18th Century before 'Hey' was replaced by the word 'Reel' and applied to the dance in Ireland. Another dance was the 'Fada' or 'Long Dance'. There seems to have been various forms of this dance that was associated with festivities and holidays, and danced in succession.
Dance music was being published around 1500, mostly from France and Belgium. Change began in Italy around 1600, when, a single melodic line, replaced, ornamentation and a simple accompaniment based on a harmonized bass line. This was the beginning of Baroque music. The leading instrument was the violin. It took another century for the rest of Europe to make the change.
By 1700 the violin became popular in Scotland, replacing the medieval fiddle. Tunes, such as jigs and reels, are full of fast notes. Many of the old tunes had only a single strain, which would be tedious if repeated without variation. So existing tunes were equipped with second strains. In Ireland, as the Gaelic aristocracy was replaced by the English, the harpers attempted to keep their jobs by adapting to a style that was more fashionable in England, except for Denis Hempson playing the Gaelic harp.
The most noted harper and composer was Turlough O'Carolan. He devised a different style, which combined the Irish tradition with the Italian Baroque. His music was popular with 18th century Harper's and survived to be collected by Edward Bunting. The continental models influenced O'Carolan's melodies, but his style remained in the traditional manner of playing the Gaelic harp.
Ireland was connected to Europe during the Middle Ages. Irishmen and Scotsmen went to the Crusades, and Ireland had trade links to Spain. When the Irish and Scots returned home, they brought these musical influences home with them.
The traditional Irish dances were military regiments brought back to Ireland from the men who traveled in Europe. There are references of the 'Cake Dance' around the late 1600's; this was a session of dancing sponsored by the alehouse keeper who offered a cake as a prize to the best dance couple. This usually took place on a Sunday or holiday. The ordinary musicians adopted many of the jigs and reels and they took their existing melodic material and changed it to fit the new style. They turned clan marches into jigs and folk songs into reels. It is presumed that the jigs were directly transmitted from England. The jigs had developed as a solo dance towards the end of the 16th Century. It took another century before hornpipes and reels were danced. These dances came out of England as well.
The Dance Master appeared in the 18th century. He usually had a colorful personality, and competition was very high between the Masters. They traveled to different villages within a district, with a blind Harper or Piper, teaching native dances along with waltzes or quadrilles. The people sometimes found it hard to distinguish between their right and left foot. So the Master had them tie hay to one foot and straw to the other foot. This procedure made it easier for the student to follow instruction. The terms occurred in jingles, which were used to teach the elementary steps of the jig and reel.
Group dances developed, from the Dance Masters to the rhythm of the jigs and reels. These included three, four, and eight hand reels such as the High Caul Cap. The Set Dances were also developed from the Dance Masters in jig or hornpipe rhythm. These sets required a different time or structure from the normal eight-bar form of the jig or reel. This structure was called a 'set'. Soldiers returning from the Napoleonic wars introduced the quadrilles to Ireland. The Dance Masters adapted them to their own style, incorporating native dance steps, which spread throughout the countryside. Local versions developed, differing in the number and form of the figures. These became known as sets (four couples) or half sets (two couples), the full title of the dance being 'a set of quadrilles', modified by the Dance Masters. They became the most popular dances during the 19th and 20th Centuries.
20th Century Dancing
At the beginning of the 20th Century dancing was a large part of the social life in rural Ireland. Dancing was done in the home, and called a 'House Dance' or at 'The Crossroads'. Often these dances were held on Sunday summer afternoons. The dances consisted of the 'sets' of quadrilles, which were adapted to Irish music. Eventually, each county developed a distinct style of dancing. For example, the Highlands were very popular in Donegal. This was due to Scottish influence.
Dancing sets in rural Ireland continued until the mid 20th Century. However, the Gaelic League would not support them. They believed they were foreign and not part of the Irish national heritage. The Gaelic League promoted 'Ceili Dances' (folk dancing).
The Catholic Church did not condone dancing. They believed it immoral. In 1935 the Public Dance Halls Act banned House Dances. House Dances where held in private residences. At House Dances 'set dancing' was very popular. As a result fewer children learned set dancing. This in conjunction with increased mobility of the Irish people changed the dancing environment.
The Ceili Band was born as a result of the new laws. These bands usually consisted of fiddles, flutes, accordions, pipes, and banjos, and were sometimes accompanied by piano and a drummer. One of the first was the "Tara Ceili Band" in London. Because people where becoming more mobile, many immigrated to America in the 1920's and 1930's.
