Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

The Gypsy Girl's Headscarf

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

The Gypsy Girl's Headscarf
Reuben Freemantle  www.scottish-country-dancing-dictionary.com
Jig 4 x 32 bars 4 Couple Repeat 4 Couple Set Longwise Set

  1-8   All join hands on the sides, 4s join free hands, 1M2M make an arch and, with 1L leading, all (except 1M) dance slip step under the arch to finish in places, retaining hold;

  9-16 1L2L make an arch and, with 1M leading, all (except 1L) dance slip step under the arch to finish in places, 2s3s4s retaining hold on the sides;

17-18 1s take both hands and slip down the middle WHILE 2s3s4s take hands on the sides;

19-20 1s continue to slip down the middle WHILE 2s3s4s step up;

21-24 1s slip back up to 4th place;

25-32 2s3s4s1s 8 hands round to the left and back.

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


Dance Notes

  1-32 This dance is a derivative of The Gypsy Shawl; it uses slip step throughout (plus stepping up) and so is suitable for younger children who haven't yet learnt skip change or for inexperienced dancers at a ceilidh.

17-20 1s take large steps.

21-24 1s take small steps to finish below 4s, retaining M's right, L's left hand hold ready for the hands round.

    -32 At the end of every repeat except the last, all except 2s (M's left, L's right) retain the hands round hold ready for bar 1 of the new repeat.


Keith Rose's Crib Diagrams


Dance Information

Also see the derivative dance The Gypsy Girl's Headscarf (3-Couple Version) by Reuben Freemantle.
Gypsy Girl's Headscarf by Octav Băncilă
"The Yellow Headscarf" Romanian Painter Octav Băncilă (1872-1944), c. 1920


Image copyright Octav Băncilă, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Additional search terms: Ceilidh Dance.

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