For information on English Country Dance events in Victoria, check the ECD info page. |
These dances have been done for years in kitchens, living rooms, town and church halls, and school gyms. They are truly social -- the dancers move around the set as the dance progresses -- and they are participatory, since they can be done by just about anyone, old or young, single or with a partner. Generally, the style is simpler and less formal than either "Western" square dancing, or "Scottish country dancing", and more sociable than Texas "line dancing", since people dance with each other and move through a set, meeting others as they go. Beginners are encouraged, and "No experience necessary" is the rule. The dances are easy to learn and are taught on the spot. Our callers are skilled at setting people at ease, and drawing them into the dance. The dancers wear loose, comfortable clothing, and soft shoes.
The music that accompanies the dances consists of lively jigs, reels, hornpipes, waltzes and polkas, foxtrots, etc. These tunes have many roots: traditional Celtic music from Ireland and Scotland; country dance music of England and France; and the indigenous folk music of Quebec and the Atlantic provinces, New England, Appalachia, and the American South. The music is offered up on traditional instruments: fiddles, accordions, flutes and pennywhistles, drums, guitars and banjos, and piano.
| Cancelled for Spring 2001 |
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or Call David (250) 386-4708 or John (250) 380-2800 (Victoria B.C.) |