What can I say? We’d been dancing a Wareham Folk Harvest, all the other teams had gone home and we were sitting in the garden of the King’s Arms listening to a small group of morris musicians playing ‘Hesleyside’.
A pint of Old Rosie, good music, and a handy space to try out dance moves.
We worked out two figures that evening, and added more at our next practice session.
Tune: The Hesleyside
Play A, B continually. Don’t worry about matching any particular figure to A or B. Any mention of A/B below is more of a length indicator than anything else.
This is a dance for three dancers, each with two swords.
The overall aim is for a relatively slow dance, with graceful flowing movements.
Having said that, a slow run seems the best pace to fit the music…
All moves progress anti-clockwise.
Walk On
Form a line (with the person in the middle further back – making a right angle with the linking swords). To begin with, just sway the swords forwards and backwards.
1-2 Swing swords forward.
3-4 Swing swords backwards.
Keep this up for an A melody.
Now, start moving forwards. Assume it will take roughly a B melody.
1-2 Swing swords forward, while stepping forward with the left foot, bring up the right beside it.
3-4 Swing swords back, while standing still.
Chorus (Swing Ring)
Keep moving forwards until in the position where you want to dance, then link up into a ring.
In the ring, step forward with the left foot and bring right to match (just as in the walk on), but step back with the right foot (it feels more natural this way).
Swing the swords up higher (about face height) and cross your arms (right over left), while stepping forward with the left foot and bringing tghe right to match (just as in the walk on), then swing the swords down while stepping back with the right foot (it feels more natural that way).
Rabbit’s Ears
1-4 Number 1 goes under an arch formed by 2 and 3. Everyone raises their arms up in a ‘v’ – hence ‘Rabbit’s Ears’. Keep your hands together until beat 3, then all open out to make the ‘V’ together – ideally touching fists with your neighbours.
5-8 Number 1 brings his hands together, backs out under the arch and returns to place. Swords are swung gracefully out into a ring.
The move progresses anti-clockwise round the set. Every dancer gets to do the move once.
Chorus (Swing Ring)
Needles (Basically a thread the needle move with a small circle between each thread)
Number 1 lets go of the sword in his left hand, turns under his own sword (passing from the inside of the circle to the outside) and then moves on to go under the sword held between 2 and 3.
He pulls the group back into a small circle and they link up again to do a few steps moving in a circle.
The dancer on his right then does the same. (this move seems to naturally progress anti-clockwise), followed by the next dancer.
Chorus (Swing Ring)
The Swing Ring is not intended to take up a full phrase of the music. When every person has done Needles, then do one or two swing rings to use up the remaining music. This will be the case for all following swing rings.
Over and Under
1-4 Number 1 goes over the sword held down by 2 and 3.
5-8 Number 1 brings his hands together and backs out under the sword he just went over. Finish in a ring.
Try to keep the swords in a triangular formation wherever possible in this move.
The figure progresses anti-clockwise.
Chorus (Swing Ring)
‘Squares’ (because it’s the same move as Squares in Yorkshire Pudding, even if it’s done by three dancers here)(1 tune)
Turn right 180 degrees, while stepping into centre and lifting swords over head and down into position with hilt over point. Aim for the swords to lie horizontal, so everyone try to hold their crossed swords at height of the tallest dancer’s chin. The aim is to have the wrists INSIDE the triangle made by the swords, so don’t hold the swords right at the very end. and for that triangle to remain rigidly locked in shape.
Chorus (Swing Ring)
Campfire Lock (as much music as is necessary)
Dancer 2 or 3 (doesn’t matter which) uses a flowing move to hold their two swords out parallel at waist height, roughly hip width apart. Dancer 3 or 2) places their swords across at right angles to make a tic tac toe board at waist height. Both dancers keep a firm hold on their swords.
Dancer 1, preferably with as much dramatic flair as possible, places one sword in-between the swords that were laid down first – making sure that the hilt is in the same direction as the other hilts.
Then, he lays his second sword at right angles to the first and weaves it in – making sure the hilts line up.
Now, comes the tricky part….
The dancer closest to the corner with two hilts takes a firm grip on both hilts without moving them.
When they are confident that this corner is securely held, the other two dancers move carefully to the sides that have three points. They take one side each, being careful not to drop the lock while moving round. They grip the two outer swords on their side, and checking that the other is ready, they move simultaneously to bring their own right and left hands together in a brisk move.
If you’ve got it right…. The result is a pleasing fan shape with hilts down both sides and the points gathered into a group on each side of the bottom.
It may need a little tweaking before you lift it for display.
Optional alternative lock. If you do this one, put a Swing Ring before it as there is a natural progression.
Twisted Triangle Lock (B)
This move follows naturally from the chorus.
Do one more swing up and keeping the wrists crossed, bring the swords down to waist height.
Move top hilt towards the centre.
Look at the two points under your control, and ensure that swords are correctly crossed. (Each pair of swords should make a thin ‘x’ shape.)
Weave the leftmost of your two points.
Weave the rightmost of your two hilts.
Note that this lock is unusual in that the swords do not alternate over and under. They will pass over (or under) a group of three other swords and weave with a single sword at each end.
Rose (AB)
Carry the lock off and display it.