Four Leaf Clover
Scottish Country Dance Instruction
Four Leaf CloverMaggie and Duncan Keppie Gaelic College SCD Book 1: The Sixpenny Reel
Strathspey n x 32 bars 2 Threesome Repeat 2 Threesome Set Progressive Round the Room Set
Line of 3 facing line of 3 as in The Dashing White Sergeant.
1-8 CIRCLE: 6-hands round and back;
9-24 FOUR-LEAF CLOVER:
CENTRE PEOPLE cross right hand, cast around the person on the right, cross with right hands from side to side, cast around the person on the right, repeat crossing and casting twice more to end in original place;
MEANWHILE, CORNERS CROSS AND SET AROUND A SQUARE. The corner people set and cross right hand with the opposite person, set on the right foot to the person you crossed with and on the left foot to the person on the next corner, the corner people cross right hands to the next corner and set, repeat twice more to end in original places;
25-32 ALL SET WITH A HIGHLAND STEP AND PASS THROUGH. In lines of 3, nearer hands joined, set with Highland Schottische setting (4 bars), then set with Common Schottische step (2 bars), and pass the opposite person by the right shoulder to face next line of three.
Repeat with next line of 3.
(Dance crib compiled by the devisers, Maggie and Duncan Keppie)
Dance Notes
As with all dances having this format, the number of repeats is not fixed.The three partners are not specifically men or women.
The dance may also be performed as a reel or as a medley (strathspey and reel).
25-32 In the reel version, with nearer hands joined, set, spring points and set (6 bars) and, with skip change, pass the opposite person by the right shoulder to face next line of three.
(Dance notes by Reuben Freemantle)
Dance Information
A four-leaf clover is an uncommon form of clover, most often found in the species Trifolium repens, which normally produces three leaflets.The additional leaflet arises through a natural variation, and the occurrence is rare, with estimates commonly cited at around one in several thousand plants. Other variations with more than four leaflets also exist, though they are progressively less frequent. The plant itself is widespread across Europe and has been introduced to many other regions, where it commonly grows in grassland.
The four-leaf form has long been associated with good luck in European folklore. Written references to this belief date back several centuries, and it became widely established in popular culture during the early modern period. The rarity of the extra leaflet is central to this association, as it distinguishes the plant from the much more common three-leaf form.
In addition to its symbolic role, clover has practical agricultural value, as species such as white clover contribute to soil fertility through nitrogen fixation.
Four-Leaf Clover - Trifolium Repens
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Text from this original Four-Leaf Clover article on Wikipedia.
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