How to Dance an Irish Reel

From LoveToKnow Dance

The joy of learning how to dance an Irish reel lies to a great extent in the fantastic music that reels are danced to. The Irish reel dance is danced to music by the same name, just like an Irish jig is danced to a piece of music called a jig. If you're looking to learn this fun dance, you'll first want to discover the wonderful music.

Irish Reel Music

Irish reel music is very lively, either written in 2/2 time or 4/4 time. The music can be heard on the YouTube videos listed below, ranging from a full band to a duet. The different instruments used, as well as the number of musicians playing, has an effect on the sound of the music; however, what they all have in common is their lively beat.

Irish Band Reels: This popular Irish band, Allow Céili, plays a lively set of reels for an enthusiastic audience
Irish Reel: Fiddlers and a harpist demonstrate Irish reel music
Reels: A fiddler and a guitar player play a few reels together

Reel music is not only common in Ireland, but also in Scotland. Historically, the music came to America and Canada through immigrants from the British Isles. The music is featured in parts of Atlantic Canada and Québec; check out the Québécois band La Bottine Souriante's hit song Le Ziguezon Zinzon to hear an Acadian twist on the Irish reels from YouTube. Another band with a French twist, Les Maudits Matous has a great video of the song Ville de Paris in which you can actually see the band member who is making the famous reel beat with his feet!

How to Dance an Irish Reel

In the history of Irish dance, Irish reels are danced in soft shoes. However, this is only one way in which the reel is presented in Irish Step Dance. There is also a reel called the 'treble reel', which is traditionally danced in hard shoes. Before attempting to learn an Irish reel yourself, check out these videos to see both soft shoe and hard shoe reels in the tradition of Celtic dance.

Videos of Irish Reels

First Reel Performance: A soft shoe reel performed by a young Irish dancer
Riverdance: Reel Around the Sun: Impressive Riverdance dance clip of a hard shoe reel
St. Patrick's Day Performance: A special performance featuring both soft shoe and hard shoe reel dancing

Getting the Rhythm

Just like any type of dance, success depends on getting the rhythm of the dance right. In reels, there are two down beats (usually the first and the third beat); these two beats get the accent. Try listening to the music and getting a feel for the beat before you start actually learning a reel. It is especially important to really understand the beat if you are planning on learning a treble (hard shoe) reel. When learning a soft shoe reel, the music is important, but not as crucial as in the case of the hard shoe version.

The Dance Figure

The most important thing to learn about how to dance an Irish reel is the figure you should make on the floor. In a reel, the dancers each have a starting point and an ending point, and traveling between these two points is part of the visual treat of the dance. Of course, the actual hops and steps are important too, but in the Irish reel, the figure is focal.

Most figures involve some sort of circle, whether it be a full or a half circle. Some dancers start in the middle and either make a circle going first to stage right or stage left, while other dancers begin stage right or stage left and make two inverted half circles to end up on the opposite side of the stage. A reel can be as simple or as complex as the participating dancers want to make it.

Many dance studios are now offering Irish dance lessons, so be sure to check your local area for lessons if you'd like to learn the Irish reel or any of the other exciting Celtic dance types.

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