The Electric Brae
Scottish Country Dance Instruction
THE ELECTRIC BRAE (S5x32) 5C set Jill Burrows, 20181- 8 1s+2s dance double Fig of 8 (1s cast, 2s cross up) while 5s+4s+3s dance mirror reels of 3 giving hands (5s in/up). End 5s in centre nearer hands joined between 4th/5th place, 4s in 5th place, 3s in 4th place
9-12 1s turn 2s (Ladies RH, Men LH) 1s end in original place, 2s nearer hands joined face up while 5s dance RH across on own sides with 4s+3s. 5s end facing up nearer hands joined
13-16 2s followed by 5s dance up between 1s and cast, 2s to 3rd place, 5s to 2nd place while 3s+4s set and link
17-20 1s+5s also 4s+3s turn partners ¾ 2H into line in centre facing partner (Men facing up, Ladies facing down) and set
21-28 1s+5s also 4s+3s dance half a Celtic Reels (8 bars)
29-32 1s+5s also 4s+3s turn partners ¾ 2H to own side and all set. 51234
(MINICRIB. Dance crib compiled by Charles Upton, Deeside Caledonian Society, and his successors)
Dance Information
The deviser tells us that this dance, The Electric Brae, was inspired by visiting the Electric Brae in Ayrshire in 2018 while on a branch coach trip.Water was poured onto the road, then it swirled around slowly before trickling in what seemed to be the wrong direction. The experience of sitting on the coach was of rolling backwards uphill!!!
The Electric Brae is a gravity hill in Ayrshire, Scotland, where a freewheeling vehicle will appear to be drawn uphill by some mysterious attraction. The phenomenon is an optical illusion.
The term "Electric" dates from a time when it was incorrectly thought to be a phenomenon caused by electric or magnetic attraction within the Brae. The Lowland Scots word brae means a hill-slope or brow.
The Electric Brae - Information Video
Electric Brae Photographs Taken From The Middle Of The Brae
Published in https://minicrib.org.uk/Publications/Electric Brae 5x32 strathspey.pdf.
Dance information licensed under this Creative Commons Licence 3.0.
Text from this original Electric Brae article on Wikipedia.
Image copyright Stephen Corry Creative Commons Licence 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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