The Sliabh League Schottische barndance

This is one version:

Open hold, side by side and facing Line-Of-Direction/Anti-Clockwise
(various options, such as cross-back or waist-shoulder or inside-hands…)

starting the step on outside feet - (Man-Left/Woman-Right)

Bar 1: dance forward = hop-1-2-3
(1-2-3 = M:L-R-L/W:R-L-R)

Bar 2: hop and kick inside leg forward (M-R/W-L) and dance back = 1-2-3
(1-2-3 = M: R-L-R /W: L-R-L)

In the next movements there is a tendency to continue moving slightly forward (LOD) with the separation and return…

Bar 3: drop hold and seperate, man to his Left/woman to her Right = hop-1-2-3
(1-2-3 = M:L-R-L/W:R-L-R)

Bar 4: hop and kick as in Bar 2, come back together = 1-stamp-stamp
(1-2-3 = M: R-L-R /W: L-R-L - - - the emphasized step or stamp is flat footed but not exaggerated. Don’t damage yourself!)

Take a closed hold, for example the classic waltz-hold/ballroom-hold and as a couple turn Clockwise while continuing to progress around the hall ACW/CCW.

Hop-1-2-3, Hop-1-2-3
Hop-1, Hop-2, Hop-3, Hop-4 That classic finish of ‘doubling’/pivot step/dreher… This isn’t a prerequisite and some couples would and could choose to just continue with twice more at ‘Hop-1-2-3’ around…

Also, turning isn’t in any dogma, you could just do the steps while moving forward around the dance space and not turning at all. There are other variations on this dance. This basic form, as given here, with a few minor differences, existed across the North as well as in the south and was quite popular at least up to World War II…

& Confession time, yes, this is one of my tunes. I was feeling particularly touchy about it and, while you might not believe it, without words. I never made it over the ridgeback, but I had the wonderful hospitality of the Cassidys and the Cunninghams and others while out on that bit of Donegal. It rained knives and forks. I remember one outing to chase up a recommended fiddler, a long trek through rough weather, only to arrive at his house and for him to tell me, “I don’t play my father’s old stuff, just the new things I’ve learned off the radio.” And I had felt some promise when I entered his earthen floor house and saw there wasn’t a tele, ah well… I had tea and we had some pleasant chats, and he played for me all the new stuff he’d learned.

Another adventure in and around that area was trying to find the missing Frank Cassidy recordings, reel to reel. It was like a treasure hunt. They were supposed to be somewhere in the Golden Gate Pub in Carrick, but they hadn’t a clue. There was also the story that some teacher had them. I got soaked over that one too, and never found that priceless treasure. I would have liked to have discovered that and handed it in at the treasure house of such things in Dublin, the repository… If anyone ever does find it and remembers this tale, I’d love to have a copy of Frank’s playing…well spoken off across that region of Donegal…

This has to finish with further appreciation of the music and the dancing, the tea and the bread shared with me by Con and Kitty Cassidy and Peter and Terea Cunningham, fine and wonderful folk, much missed, as is the place, rain and all…

well,how nice to see sliabh league again.i’m still sporting a lovely bruise from a close encounter with it.and it was n’t even raining.
but on the plus side,i did get to finally meet Mick (Teach Tom) and what a gent and fine player he is.