The Lóma mór Irish Dance Club was formed in 1999 to promote set, ceili, 2-hand, and sean nós dancing as a lifelong social, cultural, and community-building activity in the Twin Cities area.
What goes on.
Sean nós dance
A solo, improvisational dance style, danced in a relaxed posture and relatively low to the ground. The development of a personal style is highly valued, as is close accord with the music and the musician. The sean nós dancer typically considers themselves to be a percussionist. Distinct regional and family (or teacher) styles exist. The brush (broom) dance is a particular type of sean nós dance.
—see Reference Videos
Set dance
Group dances characterized by set patterns danced by 4 couples in a square. Dances consist of 3 to 7 distinct parts, with very short breaks between. Each dance hails from a specific village or region, and regions have distinct styles which are reflected in the music and the steps used for the set. There are 4 basic types of footwork, with infinite optional variations. Many sets are danced with percussive steps. (Set dancing is happening 2x/month at The Dubliner Pub. Not a LmIDC event.)
—see Reference Videos
Ceili dance
Simple to extremely complex dances done in squares, lines, or large circles. Most dances consist of groups of couples, but some are done in groups of 3. Some dances are of a predetermined length but many are a short series of moves that are repeated until the music stops. Footwork consists of 2 to 4 basic steps, and 2 flourish steps, all of which are non-percussive. (See our sister site, www.lomamor.org for ceili dancing info.)
—see Reference Videos
Old Style Dance
A formalized style of solo step dancing that was standardized in the 19th century. Upper body posture is erect and still, but not stiff. Feet are rarely lifted higher than the knee. Steps are relatively fast and quite complex, and not improvised. Non-percussive old style steps did exist, but almost all steps still danced today are percussive.
—see Reference Videos
Two-hand dance
A group of dances that are danced by 2 people (one couple), with no interaction with other couples. Dances typically consist of 8 or fewer moves, which are repeated as long as the music plays. Footwork is frequently simple (with options for personal embellishment), and rarely percussive.
—see Reference Videos
Music for dancing
While social dance can be done to recorded music, great value is placed on live music for dancing. Each Irish dance style requires a slightly different set of musical skills relative to speed, rhythm, emphasis, tune type repertoire, and specific tune selection.
—see Reference Videos