Maureen Sullivan's Medley
Scottish Country Dance Instruction
Maureen Sullivan's Medley 64S+64R Medley in a 4C square set Rod Downey The Golden Bear Collection1- 4 All turn partners 2H, 1C and 3C turn once and 2C and 4C turn 1½ times, and finish with nearer hands joined facing in.
5- 8 All set and petronella in tandem anti-clockwise around the set, and finish facing in, 1C and 3C nearer hands still joined. The set has been rotated so all are on the "points".
9-12 1C, 3C set advancing and then cast back to where they were at the end of bar 8, and remain facing out.
13-14 2C and 4C set advancing with nearer hands joined. 1C casts clockwise into the positions 2C hitherto occupied at the end of bar 8, so that 1M is in 2M's position, and similarly 3C into 4C's positions.
15-16 2C and 4C cast back to finish where they were at the end of bar 8, as the 1C and 3C dance in passing the relevant casting person by the right shoulder (e.g. 1M passes 2W) finishing so that 1M is left shoulder with 3W and 1L is left shoulder with 3M, and 2C and 4C are (on the diagonal) ready for ....
17-20 1C with 2C, 3C with 4C dance RH across finishing ready for, a modified Snake Pass, as follows:
21-24 With 1L and 3L leading, and turning immediately left, 2C following 1C, 4C following 3C, dance a "Snake Pass" with 1C dancing a track through original 3C position and finishing in (original) 2C position, 2C dancing a track through 1C's position, with 2W leading, and finish in original 3C position and similarly 3C finishing in 4C position, and 4C in 1C position. They should finish with men on the inside and in promenade hold facing anticlockwise.
25-32 All promenade anticlockwise around the set (don't rush) men bringing partners in to face in new positions ready for the next repetition on the last bar.
33-64 Repeat 1-32 from new positions, with 2C and 4C taking the roles of the head couples and 1C and 3C the roles of the side couples.
65-128 Repeat in reel time. The two hand turns should be in Pas de Basque. See below for the more challenging version in reel time.
(Dance crib compiled by the deviser Rod Downey, Johnsonville SCD Club Tutor)
Dance Notes
Advanced variation If the group wants a challenge they might try the reel time with the side couples dancing the set advancing on bars 9 and 10, with the side couples only turn once and the head couples being the ones who turn 1½. The effect of this is that the diagonal line of the set is rotated 90 degrees, but the progression still goes one place clockwise.(Dance notes compiled by the deviser Rod Downey, Johnsonville SCD Club Tutor)
Dance Instruction Videos
Maureen Sullivan's Medley - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction VideoDance Information
This Medley was first devised 10/4/2021. Modified 13/12/2021 (promenade instead of hands round) for flow.Maureen is a longtime friend and Johnsonville club (and committee) member.
Recommended tunes are Strathspey: Manchester Caledonians (Jimmy Shand), The Miller o'Hirn, Reel: Angus Campbell, and The Brides Reel (the last 3 by James Skinner) and can be found on Jim Macleod's "Golden Hour of Scottish Dancing".
Failing that any decent recording of Schiehallion will work. Dancers will need their wits about them especially if they choose the rotating version.
(Dance information from The Golden Bear Collection Of Scottish Country Dances, reproduced here with the kind permission of the deviser, Rod Downey)
Published in The Golden Bear Collection, reproduced here with the kind permission of the deviser, Rod Downey.
Published in https://homepages.ecs.vuw.ac.nz/~downey/dances/book5.pdf
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