25 September 2018 –– New Haven

The dances:

New Year Jig  –  (32 J 3  –  Bk 51
The Sands of Morar  –  (32 S 3)  –  Priddey
Glastonbury Tor  –  (32 R 3)  –  Bk 47
The Pawling Mermaid  –  (32 J 3)  –  Price
The Scallywag  –  (40 J 3)  –  Bk 52 (Kelly)
Barbara's Strathspey  –  (32 S 3)  –  Bk 47 (McKinnell)

 Ú   ÒÒ   ÚÚ   ÒÒÒ   ÚÚ  Ò  ÚÚ   ÒÒÒ   ÚÚ  ÒÒ  Ú

New Year Jig:- The dance is well constructed. The flow is superb, better it close to perfect. Is there a mantra? Yes. "1st lady - face out!" Always! The dance is growing on me. Thumbs up.

The Sands of Morar:- A Barry Priddey gem. You do understand that I am severely prejudiced just about every dance of his is going to be one of my favourites. This one is interesting and lovely.
Key: the timing/phrasing of the reels. It needs to be impeccable. No overshooting the halfway point.

Glastonbury Tor:- Really, what can I say? The dance is a good one. If there is a catch, it is with the four bars of Set + Link for 3. At first the dancers will go with muscle memory and try and add a second link. Oh well.

The Pawling Mermaid:- Look at earlier posts 'cause I have pretty much said it all already.

The Scallywag:- At first look I wasn't sure. At first teaching I still wasn't sure. I am now sure. This is a good dance. For those who can the opportunities for eye contact, for flirting, are there for the taking.
And it is fun! Thumbs up for this one. And by the way, the Jim Lindsay recording for Book 52 is really, really, good.

Barbara's Strathspey:- This is one of my Top 50 dances. That it is not danced everywhere is beyond my ken. Yet I just found out that it is not part of the Paris Branch repertoire. The newest dancer in New Haven, a professor of French Literature fresh from Paris, had never heard of it. And my greatest joy is to see dancers light up when I introduce them to a new fabulous dance.