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- It is likely that medieval morris dancers wore bells because in masques bells were used to represent Moorish people. Because of the sheer volume of bells used, it is possible that the earliest dancers had bells all over their body. By the 17th century bells had largely became confined to a special bell-pad worn on the shin.
www.efdss.org/learning/resources/beginners-guides/34-english-folk-costume/110-early-morris
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Jun 8, 2023 · The symbolism of the bells in Morris dancing is complex and multifaceted. On one level, the bells represent the joy and celebration of life, and the sound of the bells is meant to evoke feelings of happiness and merriment.
Morris dancing is a form of English folk dance. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers in costume, usually wearing bell pads on their shins and/or shoes. A band or single musician, also costumed, will accompany them.
- Introduction
- The Travelling Morrice
- Morris Sides and Styles
- Cotswold
- Molly Dances
- Welsh Border Morris
- Longsword
- Rapper
- The Morris Calendar
- Mumming: The Play
Movement, Music, Colour!
If you've ever watched a show of morris dancing, it will have contained all of these elements - and a lot more too. You have witnessed the result of more than 500 years of the evolution of a dance. Yes, morris dancing was well known in England before the Spanish Armada, the Gunpowder Plot and even the Wars of the Roses. The Morris Ring hopes that this short description will provide a starting point for those who have an interest in morris dancing and Englands traditions. Among the most freque...
Decline and Revival
THE loss of patronage from the gentry, changing attitudes, migration, and the growth of other leisure pursuits, contributed to the decline of morris dancing during the nineteenth century. However, it was kept alive in some villages by those who had it in their blood. Towards the end of that century, the entrepreneur D'Arcy Ferris, of Bidford on Avon, Warwickshire, recruited and paid a team of morris dancers to perform at 'Olde English Revels' and pageants in local towns. To further suggest a...
1899 and After
Cecil Sharp spent Christmas 1899 with his mother-in-law at Sandgate Cottage, Headington near Oxford. On Boxing Day, the local morris dancers from Headington Quarry danced outside the cottage upon the snow-covered drive. Sharp at this time was a London music teacher, who found the tunes interesting, and noted them from their leader and musician William Kimber. Sharp later became a great folk music collector collecting more than one hundred and seventy morris and sword dances. In 1911 he formed...
In 1924, members of the Cambridge Morris Men (as the Travelling Morrice) toured some of the villages where Sharp had collected morris dances. They danced in these villages and met many old dancers, who taught them more dances, tunes and steps. In subsequent years more tours were made through the area, resulting in additional morris dance material b...
The majority of contemporary morris sides have been formed in the last 80 years or so. Each club will have a Squire who is responsible for the performance and the sides leadership, a Foreman or Captain who teaches the dances, and a Bagman who acts as its secretary. Clubs are autonomous so they can make their own decisions as to when, where and what...
The most widespread style seen today was collected from the South Midlands (sometimes called Cotswold morris), an area including Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire and Warwickshire, but extending beyond these areas. These dances are usually performed in sets of six or eight dancers, and are distinguished by the dancers waving handkerchi...
Molly Dances developed in East Anglia: these dances were performed in January, as part of the Plough Monday celebrations. It was the custom for local farmhands to take a plough around the local villages and, if payment (including beer and food) was not forthcoming, they would cut a furrow across the householders front lawn. The figures of the dance...
THE Welsh Border counties of Hereford, Worcestershire, and Shropshire developed their own style of dance, simpler in form than those of the South Midlands. It is distinguished by more vigorous stepping, robust stick clashing and loud shouting and is danced in sets of four, six, eight or more dancers. Often the costume will include a Rag Coat, (a co...
The Longsword dance is found in Yorkshire. This type of dance can also be called a hilt-and-point, and is performed by six or eight dancers linked together in a circle by swords. Each sword is about a metre in length and generally made of steel with no point or cutting edge, and with a wooden handle at one end. This can be clearly seen in the photo...
Durham and Northumberland have their own versions of the sword dance, the Rapper dance. In these dances, the sword is a flat strip of flexible or spring steel about 60cm long, with a rotating handle at one end and a fixed handle at the other. A sword can be bent into a complete circle and some figures require this degree of flexibility! The dance i...
At the beginning of the last century when Sharp and other collectors sought out former morris dancers like Thomas Wright, they noted down the dances and tunes. In some cases only one or two men in an area knew any dances, but in others a side still continued to dance. For example at Bampton in the Bush, Oxfordshire, the morris has been performed wi...
Morris dancers may perform a locally collected play during the Christmas season, especially if they are dancing on Boxing or New Years Day. They are likely to perform a Hero-Combat play, with Father Christmas introducing himself as: In comes I, Old Father Christmas, Am I welcome or Am I Not! I hope Old Father Christmas will never be forgot. He will...
Sep 1, 2023 · Morris men and women usually wear bell pads on their shins and dance with sticks, swords and handkerchiefs. Contrary to popular belief, there is normally no man named 'Maurice' dancing. The name is most likely derived from the French word morisque meaning 'a dance, the dance' then morisch in Flemish which eventually became 'Morris' in English.
A Short History of Morris Dancing. Morris dance is a form of English folk dance usually accompanied by music. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers, usually wearing bell pads on their shins.
Bell pads which are still worn by many morris sides today, are pieces of cloth or leather, tied just below the knee which have many rows of bells attached to them. These additional symbolic items could have been worn over regular clothing, or special shirts and breeches made for dancing in.
Sep 25, 2019 · Morris dance is characterized by energetic stepping and skipping, as well as the use of bells, handkerchiefs, sticks, swords, and the occasional beast. Morris dancer and musician. The first reference to Morris style dance comes from the wedding of Raymond Berengar, Duke of Barcelona , and Petronilla of Aragon in 1149.
