DESCRIPTION
If you are passionate about Scottish culture, dancing and music and want to keep fit and meet great people, we are here to help and guide you.
Scottish country dancing (SCD) is a sociable dance form with roots stretching back for centuries. Participants are grouped into sets, typically of 3, 4 or 5 couples arranged either in two lines (men facing women) or in a square, and work together to dance a sequence of formations. This will leave them in a new order, and the dance is repeated enough times to bring them back to their starting positions, with everyone dancing each position in turn.
SCD is mainly danced socially, for pleasure and enjoyment, but many groups also perform; there are even occasional competitions. Although the basic steps and formations are easy to pick up, the technique is being honed continuously so that at its highest levels it can now be an extremely athletic, balletic dance form (not that the majority of social dancers take it as seriously as that).
There can be no dancing without music, and Scottish country dancing has attracted some of the most talented musicians to play for it. From the first chord to the final bow or curtsey, dancers are inspired by the driving reels, jaunty jigs, smooth strathspeys or lilting slow airs leading to the popular expression the music will tell you (now also immortalised in the name of a dance). If you can't afford a live musician or band, there are numerous inspirational recordings.
New dances are being written all the time , and dances vary considerably in complexity and ease of dancing thus careful selection of dances for a programme can cater for beginners with a couple of months experience, or challenge and interest the most experienced dancers, or, as more usually happens, provide a range over the evening to suit most tastes.
SCD is very sociable and it is common practice to dance with different partners during a night of dancing and thanks to the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society is sufficiently popular and uniform that any SCD dancer can pack their dance shoes and be welcomed by a local group almost anywhere in the world.
The RSCDS has always stressed the importance of the social nature of the dance form but it is equally concerned with upholding the standards of correct dancing technique. It is this unique blend of wonderful music, disciplined dancing, intricate floor patterns and sociability that appeals to so many people throughout the world.
Branches (also known as Local Associations of members) are the bedrock of the RSCDS. They organise and run classes, dances and other social events in their own areas. There are currently 170 Branches in countries around the world.
Branches must have their own Constitutions, and are also bound by the terms of a Licence Agreement which they are required to sign with the RSCDS.
ORGANISATION ACTIVITIES
