We have never experienced a time like this. To help cheer us up, the RSCDS is issuing a series of newsletters to its members and anyone in the SCD community. It will develop and improve as time goes on and as we respond to what you would like to see and read. Our aim is to have articles, music, games, podcasts and even online classes that will entertain and connect us with our dancing friends across the globe.
You are encouraged to share Dance Scottish At Home with dancers and musicians in your club. We are all part of the Scottish dance family and now is the time to show it.
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Dance Scottish At Home - 3rd April 2020
Highlights of this issue include our regular podcast, the latest Thursday Challenge, a newly devised dance The Toilet Roll Reel, the story behind The Duchess Tree, our first online class and some brand new dance-themed puzzles.
At Home Podcast
Led by RSCDS Music Director Ian Muir, the podcast starts with two marches with a North East of Scotland connection, played by Graham Berry and his wife, Angela Young. There’s another musical quiz and this week the interview from the archives features Ann Dix talking about her dance, Culla Bay. Luke Brady is back to review his “Albums of the Week” and takes up your feedback requests for even more music.
The Thursday Challenge
We stay with the topic of dances for this week's Thursday Challenge, but have adapted the theme to the common feeling of "I'm really eating too much for the little exercise I do at the moment". So here is this week's #ThursdayChallenge: What's the most difficult dance to do after tea-time at an evening social? Post on social media using hashtags #ThursdayChallenge and #DanceScottish or email info@rscds.org with more details. Looking forward to your replies!
What's behind the name?
Although not an RSCDS published dance The Duchess Tree is popular with a dance title that leads to an interesting story linking aspects of Scottish history, a Duchess and historic architecture as well as a couple of important musical figures in the Scottish traditional music scene. The dance is named after a tune which itself was named after a tree!
Do you know where the tree was, who the Duchess was and why she ended up with a tree, a tune and a dance named after her?
RSCDS online class
Join a different RSCDS Teacher each week for a mixture of basic movements, warm ups, technique and steps to keep you active. Live every Wednesday at 19:00 UK time, the class will give you the chance to dance with RSCDS members around the world at the same time.
Dance Puzzles
Our first puzzle is a dance anagram challenge. All the strange jumbled words and phrases below are anagrams of 15 hopefully, well-known dances that are mostly, but not all, published by the RSCDS.
Why not try your hand at unjumbling them?
The answers will appear in next week’s edition of Dance Scottish At Home.
Find the full Dance Scottish At Home newsletter here >
This first newsletter contains rich infomation and fun facts on how to continue enjoying Scottish country dance and music online during the confinment.
Join us for a weekly dance session with our RSCDS Teachers.
