What is Scottish Country Dancing?

Scottish country dancing is a modern variant of the country dancing that took place in assembly halls up and down the country in the 18th century. It's "Scottishness" is due to the choice of music and the inclusion of the Strathspey style, a slower tempo dance unique to the Scottish tradition. In form, it's closely related to ceilidh dancing, contra dancing, and all forms of country dancing (English, Playford, American etc).

We all dance with a partner but in sets of 2, 3, 4 or 5 couples working a team. Although you're dancing with a partner you're never "in hold" in the way you are in typical "couples" dancing such as ballroom dancing, so we all swap partners all the time without inhibitions (and sometimes, without intention!). Consequently, you do not need to bring a partner with you to a dance.

We dance reels, jigs and strathspeys. The paths the individual dancers take make patterns on the floor, and these can sometimes be quite intricate. The "dancing couple" does most of the work with everyone else acting as "supporting couples", but each couple gets to be dancing couple in turn until everyone has had a go and it's the end of the dance.

Have a look at some videos from our friends in Doncaster, and then come and have a go.

https://sites.google.com/site/doncasterrscds/videos

Like all the best hobbies, you will quickly learn enough to be able to join in and have fun, but there's enough challenge to keep you occupied and improving for years.