Welcome! On this page you’ll find resources and links to accompany the workshop Playing for Irish Set Dances | The Kilfenora Plain Set, hosted by Maldon Meehan and Betsy Branch.
This workshop is part of a series leading up to the 3rd Friday Céilí on May 15th. For this céilí we’ll have an open band, and we’re inviting both adult and youth musicians to join us. You’re welcome to play for any of the sets, whether or not you’ve attended the workshops.
During the workshops we’ll be crowd-sourcing tunes from participants and finding common repertoire that suits the dances, the regional styles, and the lift of each set or county. We are delighted to be teaching this series and genuinely excited to see what grows from this project.
When it comes to set dancing, sometimes it’s the player who makes the dance—and sometimes it’s the tune itself. More often than not, it’s both.
On this resource page are a few links and examples of music and musicians for the Kilfenora Plain Set and for Clare set dancing in general.
Right now our workshop is focused on the Kilfenora Plains Set, but some of these tunes can also work nicely for other Clare sets.
Kilfenora Plain – Clare
Caledonian – Clare
Clare Plain – Clare
Corofin Plain – Clare
Lancers – Clare
Mazurka – Clare
Labasheeda – Clare
playlists
I have extensive Spotify and YouTube playlist resources available. You’ll find direct links to the Clare and Kilfenora resources if you’d like to save them to your own accounts. They’re also embedded here so you can play them right on this page.
List of All The Set dances by county – Links in the document take you to the instructions for the dance and in some cases sugested tunes for the dances. Very much work in progress and overwhelming, but it’s great to see them arranged by county.
Clare Resources – links to musicians, music and video playlists. This document has direct links to current bands playing fo rthe Connemara set and more.
Dance Minder – Michael Harrison’s site. The most comprenhinsive collection of Irish set dance insgructions wiht links to videos, instructions and musicial recourses.
Kilfenora Set – Callers notes, links and more. This is a document that I use when calling and teaching the Kilfenora Plain Set. You will see this dance writen as “Kilfenora”, The Kilfenora Plain Set and Kilfenora Plain. It’s all the same set.
Links go directly to where they are dancing/playing the Kilfenora Plain Set if you want to dive into the dances more. The tunes are not listed, but you may know some of them and want to included them in your own Connemara set list. Please let us know tunes you find.
Welcome! On this page you’ll find resources and links to accompany the workshop Playing for Irish Set Dances | The Connemara Reel Set, hosted by Maldon Meehan and Betsy Branch.
This workshop is part of a series leading up to the 3rd Friday Céilí on May 15th. For this céilí we’ll have an open band, and we’re inviting both adult and youth musicians to join us. You’re welcome to play for any of the sets, whether or not you’ve attended the workshops.
During the workshops we’ll be crowd-sourcing tunes from participants and finding common repertoire that suits the dances, the regional styles, and the lift of each set or county. We are delighted to be teaching this series and genuinely excited to see what grows from this project.
When it comes to set dancing, sometimes it’s the player who makes the dance—and sometimes it’s the tune itself. More often than not, it’s both.
On this resource page are a few links and examples of music and musicians for the Connemara Set and for Connemara-style dancing in general—whether you’re playing for a sean-nós dancer or for other sets.
Right now our workshop is focused on the Connemara Reel Set, but these tunes can also work nicely for other Connemara dances:
Connemara Reel Set
Connemara Jig Set
Aran Set
Inis Oírr
Inis Meáin
Claddagh Set
All of these traditions can share the Connemara step—or a close cousin of its rhythm and lift—which means the same core repertoire can give dancers that shared pulse and drive that makes them want to dance their Connemara steps.
playlists
I have extensive Spotify and YouTube playlist resources available. You’ll find direct links to the Connemara resources if you’d like to save them to your own accounts. They’re also embedded here so you can play them right on this page.
Spotify: Connemara Reel Set – Johnny Connolly, Matt Cunningham, Johny Reidy. Johnny Connolly is from Connemara and I like his tracts most for the Connemara set.
List of All The Set dances by county – Links in the document take you to the instructions for the dance and in some cases sugested tunes for the dances. Very much work in progress and overwhelming, but it’s great to see them arranged by county.
Connemara Resources – links to musicians, music and video playlists. This document has direct links to current bands playing fo rthe Connemara set and more.
Dance Minder – Michael Harrison’s site. The most comprenhinsive collection of Irish set dance insgructions wiht links to videos, instructions and musicial recourses.
Connemara Set – Callers notes, links and more. This is a document that I use when calling and teaching the Connemara Reel Set. You will see this dance writen as “The Connemara Reel Set”, The Connemara Set, The Connemara and Connemara. It’s all the same set.
From Betsy: To sum up, here’s where each tune goes for the Connemara dance. Each set has 2 recordings: 84 bpm, and 108 bpm (for the reels) or 116 bpm )for the polka).
Figure 1: Miss McCloud’s (G) 3x / Miss McCloud’s (A) 2x
**Note on Miss McCloud’s: there are millions of versions of this! I chose an opening phrase that I heard on lots of recordings of dances. This tune is much easier in G if you play whistle or flute. It’s much easier in A if you are a fiddler. So that’s why both keys are represented! Whatever version you play will be fine. (For you whistles and flutes, I recorded the 1st time through in A with no G#’s. In case you want a variation that works without that note!)
Figure 3: Miss Monahan’s (D) 2x / Humours of Tulla (D) 4x / Miss Monahan’s (D) 1.75x (AAB)
Figure 4: Maggie in the Woods (G) 3x
Enjoy, and let me know if I screwed anything up!
Céilí Bands
links go directly to where they are dancing/playing the Connemara Set if you want to dive into the dances more. The tunes are not listed, but you may know some of them and want to included them in your own Connemara set list.
Ui Bhriain Connemara Set – switching to a bunch of different tunes. Miss McClouds, New Mowen Meadow – it’s almost like they are playing every typical Connemara tune in one figure. A sampler of them all and the dancers are loving it! Oh and Tam Lin is in there too! Everything and the kitchen sink!
11/28 Friday November 28 6pm Columbia Ecovillage Condominium 4647 NE Killingsworth St, Portland
Annual Butterball A night of friends, community, family, music, dance and song. Dance List Kilfenora Plain Merchant Ballyvoruney Lancers Connemara Open tunes/dancing (bands choice)
Geraldine Murrary & Friends Dylan Wilde Kevin Grgurich Brian Hart Amber Milmore Phil Meehan Maldon Meehan
Street Parking only Portland Cost: Donations encouraged, there will be a donation basket at the door
Dance List Merchant Lancers Ballyvourney Connemara Caledonian
Where: Waverly, 3300 SE Woodward St, Portland, OR 97202 When: Friday November 21, 7-11pm Cost: $15 general, $5 students, under 12 Free
Week 8: 12/23
Week 9: 12/30
playlist
Playlists
Included on this tab:
Spotify Playlist for the Term – A collection of tunes that match the sets we’re focusing on.
YouTube Playlist – Recordings and performances of the term’s featured set dances.
Lessons & Steps Playlist – Short videos of key movements, techniques, and steps for practice between classes.
Welcome to the Irish Set Dancing Playlists—a collection of resources to help you stay connected with what’s being danced at céilís near and far. Whether you’re preparing for a local dance, a weekend workshop, or a trip to Ireland, these playlists and notes are designed to help you build your repertoire and step confidently into any set.
Please use these resources to help you better understand the material. It’s not necessary to preview them before or after class, but they’re very helpful tools for remembering—and eventually memorizing—the dances.
Over the past three months, I’ve been keeping an eye on the dances that Bill Lynch (Set Dancing News) has been posting on YouTube. From that, I noticed a clear trend in which sets are most often danced. I’ll continue to track these through the Fall and Winter months to see if the dances shift or stay the same.
The goal is to include these popular dances in our 3rd Friday Céilí line up and in class, so that anyone heading to Ireland—or to céilís around the country—will be ready to jump in with confidence and familiarity.
Below is a list of the sets most often danced recently.
Most Danced Sets as of October 2025:
Connemara
Merchant
Moycullen
Lancers
Caledonian
West Kerry
Sliabh Luachra
Ballyvourney Jig
Plain
Kilfenora
Claddagh
Corofin
Danced Less Often:
South Galway
Ballyduff
Cashel
Mazurka
Labasheeda
Céilí Formula
Across the céilís, a common pattern emerged. For a typical three-hour céilí, most programs followed this general flow:
3 shorter sets (2–4 figures)
3 longer sets (5–6 figures)
1–3 couple dances (waltz, jive, or two-step) or a sean-nós dance demo
Many céilís finish with a lively four-figure dance such as the Connemara Set. Usually there are three sets before the break and three after.
Music & Video Playlists
Spotify Playlist for the Term – A collection of tunes that match the sets we’re focusing on.
YouTube Playlist – Recordings and performances of the term’s featured set dances.
Lessons & Steps Playlist – Short videos of key movements, techniques, and steps for practice between classes.
In this Zoom class we covered “The Crooked Road / The Foxhunter’s Reel” from Under the Moon by Martin Hayes. Edith noted that this track sits right around 126 bpm.
About the Album
“Martin returned to County Clare to record Under the Moon, gaining the accompaniment of his father, famed fiddler P.J. Hayes, and guitarist Steve Cooney. He is also joined by his American musical partners, accordion virtuoso John Williams and Portland guitarist/fiddler Randal Bays. This album contains all the spirit and eloquence of his eponymous debut and adds even more passion. No one can get inside a tune–be it barndance, jig, or reel–like Martin Hayes. Under the Moon is an album that stirs the heart and electrifies the mind!” – (Compas records)
No wonder the guitar caught my attention so much during class—it’s Randal Bays! He also plays guitar on Martin’s first album. It was a bit hard to hear the guitar clearly on Zoom, so if you can, go back and listen to the recording. It’s just gorgeous. Also I don’t have liner notes anymore and Steve is also on the Album but just from listening I’m pretty sure it’s Randal on that track.
A Note on Speed
Katrina asked a great question about tempo: Are we trying to get up to 120 bpm?
For my own dancing, when I’m at a session, reels are usually a bit slower—often 110–115 bpm. At a céilí, the tempo can be closer to 120 bpm, sometimes a touch faster depending on the musicians.
On stage, though—and this is where I personally get into trouble—the tempos can really take off. This often happens when I’m invited to hop in on the last tune of the night. The band is warmed up and flying, and if I’m not warmed up or haven’t been practicing at those higher speeds, I can find myself struggling.
So what I’m really saying is: I like to be prepared for those situations. I want to know what I can comfortably pull off before I’m standing on stage in front of a crowd. If I haven’t been dancing at those tempos for a few months, I can find myself in a bit of a pickle!
Through structured steps, humor and joy, explore these two Irish social dances with community. As you do, you’ll also learn about the culture from which the dances originated. All levels welcome.
Fall Term runs October 3 – December 12 (Notes: No class 10/17, 11/7, 11/21, 11/28. No black-soled shoes)
Set dancing teacher Padraig Mc Eneany posted a video of the French Lancers. It’s so cool! I’ve always hear about the Irish Set and other squares/sets coming from the orignial French Quadrila but never had the chance to see one. This is well worth watching if you are a set dance nerd. Same but different!
Barbra and Bret sent this to me and I wanted to share it with all of you:
History/Background – this a great video of set dancing on the site. One of the dancers look to me like the late Willie Keane. (the taller lead).
Kitchen Dance: The Corn Reeks (Na Corn Rigs)
In: hop (or drop) 123, hop (or drop) 123 (2x)
Out: hop back hop back hop back hop back
house: hop 123 (6x), hop back hop back hop back hop back
