Another interruption to blogging as I've just been on my annual pilgrimage to Whitby Folk Week. One of the highlights of my year - a lovely place just to wander around anyway, and during Folk Week lots of great entertainment. We were even treated this year to a breathtaking display by the Red Arrows as Folk Week overlapped with Whitby Regatta. As someone who barely understands how planes fly at all, flying upside down just confused me!Continuing the theme I started last year of trying to illustrate the great variety of English traditional dance (it's not all bells and hankies!), this year I give you the Flag and Bone Gang. A vibrant team of black and red, face veils, clicking bones and waving flags.
So, now it's back to work - most emails have now been read or deleted and the preparations for the new academic year start in earnest. Should be back to blogging regularly now as there's lots happening.
5 comments:
Some might argue that morris dancing is becoming a forgotten art for a reason...
To quote Sid Kipper:
While you take part in this frolic
Remember that it's all symbolic.
You'll bless the crops and speed the plough,
And all by jumping up and down.
My favourite Sid Kipper quote about Morris dancing - from his classic Bored of the Dance (to be sung to the tune Lord of the dance):
I drank with the Morris-men, James and John,
They drank with me as the dance went on,
We drank and we drank till it all went black.
It's hard to dance when you're lyin' on your back!
To quote Les Barker
“Weight in stones only 17, You’re in the Morris Team”
the the Abba tune "Dancing Queen"
My favourite Sid Kipper moment was when he spent some time going into the history of the "English bodhran" and how it makes a lighter sound than the Irish version and is more conducive to thought, before proceeding to pull out a garden sieve.
Two comments on this:
1. Jim Colston who represents the North of England on "Round Britain quiz dances with Flag and Bone Gang.
2. The Red Arrows clearly base their moves on morris dancing. They have a foward and back move, a cross over, rounds and so on. The only difference is that they do it faster and we don't have smoke.
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