Chandos Five Dance

One of my favorite Morris dances that Briggate dance is Chandos Five. The dance is set up with the five dancers in the figure of a cross, facing inwards and each dancer has a name for the figure she dances; pick-up, arches, twiddle, windows and reel.

Though it took a while to learn (I only had chance to dance it through twice at a practice and since then have had to muddle through at dance outs) now I know it well it has become very fun to dance and the various circles and arcs made as we move have played on my mind. I dreamt about the patterns it would make if you drew the dance out and Phil helped me make an image to represent this:

I would like to film some dances from above to try and create some images which show the patterns the dances make as I thought the Chandos pattern looked extremely beautiful.

We use bobbins with bells and ribbons on for a lot of our dances, North West style Morris is derived from the parade dances of mill workers, which also gives us the wooden clogs. Some people say the steps of some dances are supposed to echo the sound of the mill machinery, perhaps a little of the weaving patterns made it's way into the dances too. 

Why Rush - Institute of Stone Age Sex Performance.

Before we rush off to step out on Ilkley moor, a few photos taken by Si Cliff of the performance that happened on Friday.

Briony on cello, Simon on cello, Phil on vox/accordion, me on vox/harmonium/bells and so on!

More photos will follow I hope, and hopefully more gigs! Having tested out my mettle at the Grove Folk club on friday singers nights was a great introduction to performing for a small audience and I hope summer will bring the free time to go back to my folk roots.

Dry brittle branches bear bones, we plan to make bone flutes and bring new life out of them. The summer blooms despite the cold.

Dancing the Sun Up

Dylan Thomas records in the introduction to his selected poems:

I read somewhere of a shepherd who, when asked why he made, from within fairy rings, ritual observances to the moon to protect his flocks, replied: `I'dbe a damn' fool if I didn't!'

I was struck when I heard of the custom attached to Morris dancing of dancing the sun up on May 1st, up high on hills around the country. I was even more taken when I discovered that it happened on the Chevin above Otley, a place of immense beauty and historical interest. It was one of the reasons I chose to join Briggate Morris, knowing they danced upon the summit every May Day.

The views across the Wharfe  valley are beautiful, the clear view of Almscliffe and the archaeological remains of a beacon suggested to me that these two locales were used to communicate across the valley, Almscliffe also being in sight of the Grey Stone at Harewood, where cup and ring markings indicate Bronze age settlements nearby.

Touching on the archaeology, the Chevin has many prehistoric remains to see, including a roman road, cup and ring marked rocks and a standing stone known as the Bull stone. Further down the hill are remains of an Iron age settlement, more local standing stones are recorded in recent memory but are lost to the passing of time.

So fitting that we dance upon the Chevin on May Day, a place where our most ancient ancestors would have congregated on such auspicious days to ask for light in the coming months.

And the sun came up, and I couldn't help but feel proud of us - for even if we didn't personally raise the sun for all to see on the morning following the rainiest April in a 100 years, we still danced upon a hallowed hill that has meant something special to people for over 5,000 years, on Beltane.  

We'd be damn fools if we didn't. 

IOSAS

The Institute's last practice went quite well and Phil posted some samples of the recordings we made to his new blog so I thought I'd share them here too.

Simon Bradley - Cello
Phil Legard - Accordion/Vox
Layla Smith - Harmonium/Vox
Briony Yorke - Cello

Click here for sounds.

Institute of Stone Age Sex performance - Why Rush?

The Institute will be leading more forays into folk wyrdness at the Temple Works in Leeds on the 11th of May for the Why Rush? festival of experimental performance.

The Institute now features not one but two wonderful cellists as we have been blessed with the presence of Briony Yorke among our number. Also on the bill is another Institute member Seth Cooke, performing as Ultra Humanitarian.

We will also be leading a workshop on the Sunday on using vocal improvisation and vowel singing techniques. Come, drink and be merry!

203 Years

Today, on the 203rd anniversary of Mary Bateman's execution, Briony Yorke and I visited the Thackray Museum to play a song to Mary. The Yorkshire Witch, who is macabre entertainment for the visitors to the museum, received a short recital, on cello and voice of a Yorkshire dialect song.

Two days after Mothering Sunday, on the spring equinox, we play a dirge to the sad remains of a women who left behind four children to die on the gallows. Nothing is sacred - every emotion, every memory has a price. No forgiveness or peace for those who, through their misery, can bring financial gain.

12 Tapes

Aghartha and Seth recording in the Dark Arches.

I will be involved in a 12 hour long performance, 8am-8pm this Friday the 23rd of March at Gallery II in Bradford- the first performance of 12 Tapes which was conceived by Seth Cooke and our fellow Bang the Borers. The project has involved recording performances in 'B' inside car parks to cassette tape. Seth, Briony Yorke and I spent an evening a few weeks back recording in several car parks in Leeds for this project, including down in the Dark Arches, which came complete with its own ambient 'B' drone.

Also curated by Bang the Bore - this event at Left Bank on Cardigan Road in Leeds looks to be exciting.