Sean-nós dance in America - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Sean-nós dance in America has its roots in Irish culture, but may be practiced differently from how it is danced in Ireland. When Irish people emigrated to America in great numbers during the early American Colonial period, or when escaping troubles in Ireland, they brought their dance culture with them. One of the many forms of Irish dance

Irish dance

Irish dancing or Irish dance is a group of traditional dance forms originating in Ireland which can broadly be divided into social dance and performance dances. Irish social dances can be divided further into céilí and set dancing...

is sean-nós dance

Sean-nós dance

Sean-nós dance is an older style of traditional solo Irish dance. It is a casual dance form Irish Stepdancing....

, which is an informal, spontaneous, solo form of dance. Sean-nós dance has both modified, and in turn been modified by, similar forms of traditional vernacular solo dance in America

American traditional informal freeform solo folk dancing

American traditional informal freeform solo folk dancing is a form of dance oriented to spontaneous individual dancing, where self-expression and creativity are expected.- Contrasts of American traditional dance styles :...

Irish traditional dance

The most widely-known form of traditional Irish dance

Irish dance

is competition-oriented Modern Irish Stepdancing

Irish stepdance

Irish stepdance is a type of performance dance originated in Ireland from traditional Irish dance, characterised by solo dancers who dance with hands by their sides and upper body stiff, making quick, intricate movements of the feet, often with a troupe. Irish stepdancing was popularized by the...

. Other popular forms of Irish dancing are for couples and group social dancing, such as Set dancing and Céili dancing

Céilidh

In modern usage, a céilidh or ceilidh is a traditional Gaelic social gathering, which usually involves playing Gaelic folk music and dancing. It originated in Ireland, but is now common throughout the Irish and Scottish diasporas...

. Less known is the traditional solo dance form called "sean nós"

Sean-nós dance

Sean-nós dance is an older style of traditional solo Irish dance. It is a casual dance form Irish Stepdancing....

or "old style" dance.

Sean-nós dance

Sean-nós dance is characterized by its "low to the ground" footwork, free movement of the arms, improvisation, and emphasis upon a "battering step" (which sounds out the accented beat of the music). By its nature, sean-nós dance follows the music closely. Indeed, the rhythmic nature of sean-nós dance results in a percussive music of its own. It frequently is danced by only one person, and even when danced in pairs or small groups, there is no physical contact between the dancers. Because it is a freeform, solo type of dance, it is not necessary for a pre-arranged routine to be decided upon by the dancer. In fact, spontaneous expression is preferred in the tradition. Therefore, it is less common to see groups performing synchronized sean-nós dance (which requires choreography in advance). Instead, the dancers may dance in turns, playing off of the energy of the other. Another more specialized form sean-nós dancing is the Brush Dance Brush Dance.

Sean-nós dance's influence on other forms of dance in America

Sean-nós dance has made a significant contribution to American traditional informal freeform solo folk dancing

American traditional informal freeform solo folk dancing

, which includes Flat Foot Dance (or Flat-Footing), Hoofing (or Hoofin'), Buck Dancing, Soft Shoe (casual tap dancing performed in shoes without metal taps), Clogging

Clogging

Clogging is a type of folk dance with roots in traditional European dancing, early African-American dance, and traditional Cherokee dance in which the dancer's footwear is used musically by striking the heel, the toe, or both in unison against a floor or each other to create audible percussive...

(in its older non-show form), Irish Sean-Nós Dance

Sean-nós dance

Sean-nós dance is an older style of traditional solo Irish dance. It is a casual dance form Irish Stepdancing....

, and the Irish Jig

Jig

The Jig is a form of lively folk dance, as well as the accompanying dance tune, originating in England in the 16th century and today most associated with Irish dance music and Scottish country dance music...

. (Various other names may be applied for this category of dance, depending upon the specific regional, language, cultural, or social group involved.) Solo Southern dancing and solo mountain-style dancing show strong influences from sean-nós dance.

I believe that to get some idea of the process of Southern vernacular dance development, we must consider it in parallel with its companion music and the dominant cultures that have mixed to produce it: British, African, and to some extent, Native American. These cultures began their intense musical interaction here in the 17th century, ﬁrst among African-Americans and then in the 19th century among British-Americans, especially in small Southern towns and nearby rural areas. A good example of Anglo/Afro interaction in music is the introduction of the banjo, originally an African instrument. It is quite certain that the interaction between the European ﬁddle and African banjo changed the styles and repertoire of both. African-Americans ﬁrst played these instruments together soon after being brought here, and the banjo/ﬁddle combination was the basis for the late 19th-century/early 20th-century mountain music to which most of our older dancers moved.

- Mike Seeger, Musician, Documentarian, Ethno-Musicologist

Sean-nós dance in America today

Sean-nós dance is not widely found in America today. Small sean-nós dancing communities exist in Boston, Washington D.C., Baltimore, Seattle, and Portland, Oregon. These communities are centered around American sean-nós dance teachers -- some of Irish-American heritage -- who learned their dancing in the West of Ireland. This new generation of younger American dancers now teaches and performs regularly. Both Kieran Jordan (Boston) and Maldon Meehan (Portland, Oregon) have produced instructional DVDs in sean-nós dance. Workshops in sean-nós dance can also be found at Irish festivals like the Sean-nós Northwest Festival, the Milwaukee Irish Fest Summer School, the Catskills Irish Arts Week, and the Minnesota Irish Fair. Sean-nós dancing workshops are also often incorporated into smaller workshop weekends focused on set dancing. Occasionally, sean-nós dancers from Ireland tour in the U.S. with well-known Irish traditional bands, such as The Chieftains and Dervish.

Minimalist means of preserving Irish music and dance

The Irish people's practice of sean-nós dance

Sean-nós dance

Sean-nós dance is an older style of traditional solo Irish dance. It is a casual dance form Irish Stepdancing....

, sean-nós song

Sean-nós song

Sean-nós is a highly ornamented style of unaccompanied traditional Irish singing. It is a sean-nós activity, which also includes sean-nós dancing...

, Lilting

Lilting

Lilting is a form of traditional singing common in the Gaelic speaking areas of Ireland and Scotland. It goes under many names, and is sometimes referred to as "mouth music", diddling, jigging, chin music or cheek music), puirt a beul in Scottish Gaelic, Canterach, or portaireacht bhéil in Irish...

(AKA "mouth music"), and "the bones"

Bones (instrument)

The bones are a musical instrument which, at the simplest, consists of a pair of animal bones, or pieces of wood or a similar material. Sections of large rib bones and lower leg bones are the most commonly used true bones, although wooden sticks shaped like the earlier true bones are now more...

(a simple percussion instrument convenient to carry in a pocket) represents a minimalist means of preserving their musical and dance heritage—despite concerted efforts by the English authorities to usurp Irish music, dance, modes of dress, language (see Irish Gaelic and Hiberno-English

Hiberno-English

Hiberno-English is the dialect of English written and spoken in Ireland .English was first brought to Ireland during the Norman invasion of the late 12th century. Initially it was mainly spoken in an area known as the Pale around Dublin, with Irish spoken throughout the rest of the country...

), Catholic religion, nationality, and history—or simply due to a dearth of resources when emigrating. Accordingly, the Irish in America have been able to promulgate the dance and musical aspects of the Culture of Ireland

Culture of Ireland

This article is about the modern culture of Ireland and the Irish people. It includes customs and traditions, language, music, art, literature, folklore, cuisine and sport associated with Ireland and Irish people today. However, the culture of the people living in Ireland is not homogeneous...

—even after large waves of migration subsequent to highly disruptive events in Ireland, such as the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland

Cromwellian conquest of Ireland

The Cromwellian conquest of Ireland refers to the conquest of Ireland by the forces of the English Parliament, led by Oliver Cromwell during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Cromwell landed in Ireland with his New Model Army on behalf of England's Rump Parliament in 1649...

or the Irish Potato Famine (AKA the Great Irish Famine).

Sources

External links

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Irish traditional dance

Sean-nós dance

Sean-nós dance's influence on other forms of dance in America

Sean-nós dance in America today

Minimalist means of preserving Irish music and dance

Sources

See also

External links