Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

Gold And Silver (Drewry)

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

Gold and Silver (Drewry)
John Drewry  
Strathspey 96 bars 4 Couple Repeat 4 Couple Set Square Set
Part I:

  1-2   Taking hands with partners, 1s 3s set;

  3-4   1L3M 1M3L advance and turn halfway, finishing 1L3M facing out between 4s, 1M3L between 2s, retaining hold;

  5-8   1L3M 1M3L cross out of the sides and cast to original places;

  9-16 2s as 1s, 4s as 3s, repeat bars 1-8;

17-20 Ls advance, take hands briefly and retire WHILE Mn set, advance and take nearer hands;

21-24 Mn set and retire WHILE Ls set and advance, pulling right shoulder back to face first corners;

25-26 all turn corners halfway with both hands, Mn retaining left hands with corners and turning on the spot to take right hands in the centre;

27-28 all dance double right hands across halfway;

29-32 Mn release right hands and, led by corners, dance out to take hands with partners for 8 hands round to places.

Part II:

33-40 Passing in front of partner to start, Ls dance figures of 8 around partner and second corner, finishing in places;

41-42 1L2M 3L4M turn halfway by the right, retaining hold;

43-44 1L2M3L4M right hands across halfway, finishing with 1L4M 3L2M retaining hold;

45-48 1L4M 3L2M turn 1½ times by the right, finishing in places;

49-56 passing in front of partner to start, Mn dance figures of 8 around partner and second corner, finishing in places;

57-58 1M4L 3M2L turn halfway by the right, retaining hold;

59-60 1M2L3M4L right hands across halfway, 1M2L 3M4L retaining hold;

61-64 1M2L 3M4L turn 1½ times by the right, finishing in places.

Part III:

65-68 Ls 4 hands round to the left, finishing by pulling right shoulder back to face partner;

69-72 all set to partner and turn halfway by the right, finishing with each L in the couple's mid-place, 1L1M3M3L on the centre line, 4L4M2M2L in a line across, all facing partners;

73-88 all dance beehive reel, to finish as at the end of bar 72:

73-74 giving right shoulder to partner, Ls dance in diagonally left to the position halfway between the centre of the set and the corners' mid-place next clockwise, finishing by pulling right shoulder back to face diagonally out toward the next clockwise couple's mid-place WHILE Mn dance out to their own couple's mid-place, finishing by pulling right shoulder back to face in and diagonally to the left;

75-76 Ls dance diagonally out to the next clockwise couple's mid-place, finishing by pulling right shoulder back to face in and diagonally to the left WHILE Mn dance in diagonally left to the position halfway between the centre of the set and the corners' mid-place next clockwise, finishing by pulling right shoulder back to face diagonally out toward the next clockwise couple's mid-place;

77-78 Ls repeat bars 73-74 WHILE Mn dance diagonally out to the next clockwise couple's mid-place, finishing by pulling right shoulder back to face in and diagonally to the left, the whole set having now rotated one place clockwise in the last 4 bars;

79-86 repeat bars 75-78 from new positions twice;

87-88 repeat bars 75-76 from new positions, Mn modifying their path to finish on the centre line (1M 3M) or across (1M 3M), facing out to partners;

89-90 all turn partners halfway with both hands, Ls retaining left hands with partners and turning on the spot to take right hands in the centre;

91-92 all dance double right hands across halfway;

93-96 Ls release right hands and, led by partners, dance out to take hands with first corners for 8 hands round to places.

(MAXICRIB. Scottish country dancing instructions compiled by Reuben Freemantle)


Dance Notes

There is no progression and so each of the three parts of this dance could be performed independently.

25-26 The deviser recommends that all should make some progress clockwise around the set so that Ls finish close to their original places.

41-42 Turn second corner around whom, and your partner, you danced the figure of 8.

45-48 Turn the other (first) corner.

57-58 Turn second corner around whom, and your partner, you danced the figure of 8.

59-60 Turn the other (first) corner.

73-88 Once the reel is established (at the end of bar 74) the dancers all follow the same path (cf Schiehallion Reels); Mn follow partner, Ls follow second corner, taking 2 bars to reach the place vacated by the preceding dancer. The Ls' starting/finishing positions are positions in the reel; since the Mn's starting/finishing positions are not exactly positions in the reel, they must modify their initial and final 2 bars appropriately.
This figure requires two positions to be identified in order to define the path: each couple's mid-place, halfway between their original places; the corners' mid-place, halfway between first corners' original places. Successive positions in the reel are the couple's mid-place and halfway between the centre of the set and the corner' mid-place next clockwise. The lines joining opposite couple's mid-places intersect in the centre of the set to form a St George's Cross; the lines joining opposite corners' mid-places similarly form a St Andrew's Cross.


Dance Instruction Videos

Gold And Silver (Drewry) - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

Also see the dance Gold And Silver (Birdsall) by G Dale Birdsall.

This strathspey, Gold And Silver, was composed by John Drewry (published in his Autumn Collection, 1984) to mark the 50th anniversary of the Manchester branch of the RSCDS and the 25th anniversary of the Manchester Scottish Singers.

The recommended music is Colonel Byng's Favourite, the second tune for Strathglass House (RSCDS Book 13).



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