Set And Link For 3 Couples
This is a more complex form of Set and link which occurs in a Longwise set.It normally starts with 3rd couple in 1st place, 1st couple in 2nd place and 2nd couple in 3rd place, all on Opposite sides of the Longwise set. Bars 1-2 require Pas-de-basque or the Strathspey setting step as appropriate to the tempo of the dance; bars 3-4 require Skip change or the Strathspey travelling step. In detail:
Bars 1-2
all Take hands On the sides and Set Facing Across the set;
Bars 3-4
3rd lady and 2nd man (at the left End of each line) Dance In, Pulling right shoulder back, and Pass left shoulder to Finish at the other End of the same line, 3rd lady Facing Down in 1st lady's Place, 2nd man Facing Up in 3rd man's Place
While
2nd lady and 3rd man (at the right End of each line) Cast, Pulling right shoulder back, to Finish at the other End of the same line, 2nd lady Facing Down in 1st man's Place, 3rd man Facing Up in 3rd lady's Place
While
1st lady and 1st man (in the Middle of each line) Cast, Pulling right shoulder back, to Finish on the Centre line, 1st lady Facing Down in 1st position, 1st man Facing Up in 3rd position,
all now in lines Across the set, Facing Up and down.
For clarity, the movements in bar 3 are shown in the upper diagram and for bar 4 in the lower.

Set And Link - Bar 3

Set And Link - Bar 4
This is usually followed by the same sequence performed with the starting lines Across the set:
Bars 5-6
all Take hands in lines Across the set and Set Facing Up and down;
Bars 7-8
3rd lady and 2nd man (at the left End of each line) Dance In, Pulling right shoulder back, and Pass left shoulder to Finish at the other End of the same line, 3rd lady in her Original Place, 2nd man in 1st man's Place
While
2nd lady and 3rd man (at the right End of each line) Cast, Pulling right shoulder back, to Finish at the other End of the same line, 2nd lady in 1st lady's Place, 3rd man in his Original Place
While
1st lady and 1st man (in the Middle of each line) Cast, Pulling right shoulder back, to Finish in 2nd place on their Own sides,
all Facing In.
The 8-bar sequence appears in exactly this form in bars 25-32 of the Strathspey, Gang The Same Gate and the Reel, The Cuckoo Clock.
In the 5-couple Reel, Reel Friends, the 4-bar sequence starts in the Sidelines but is modified so that the Dancers at the right End and in the Middle of each line Cast only one Place, all Finishing in the Sidelines. This is, more precisely, a derivative of Set and link for two with the right hand End Dancer replaced by two Dancers in Tandem.
It is essential that devisers and teachers should make it absolutely clear which version of Set and link for three is to be performed.
Here are examples of those Scottish Country Dances for which we have instructions on this site and in which the term, Set and link for 3 couples, either appears explicitly or is implied; note that for a common term these will be a small selection; for a rare term, these may be all that exist:
Corian Strathspey
Crossing The Bay
Dee In Spring
Dragonflies
Findlater Castle
Kynoch Of Bucksburn
Normal For Norfolk
St Andrews Links (Sheffield)
Weary Willie's Reel
Whiteadder Jig
Dance Video Clip Which Demonstrates Set And Link For 3 Couples
Set And Link For 3 Couples Video ClipLinks To Pages Related To 'Set And Link'
Complex FiguresAdditional search terms: Set+Link for 3.
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