Classes, Past Classes

Class | Irish Set Dancing

intro

Irish Set Dance

Discover the Joy of Irish Set Dancing! Whether you’re a novice or an experienced dancer, these classes are designed for everyone. Step-by-step instruction makes dancing accessible and enjoyable for all skill levels.

What You’ll Learn:

  • Foundational Footwork: Start with essential steps and percussive “battering” moves unique to Irish Set dancing.
  • Partner Techniques: Breakdown of footwork for leads and follows for movements such as house, dance at home and battering while housing. With or without a partner. 
  • Set Dancing: Put it all together and explore set recourse and calling and memoization tips to get you ready for the dance floor.

classes

Online Class Playlist

clare steps

Clare Steps Playlist

sets

connemara

Connemara Steps

members only

music

Practice Music

Maldon’s Spotify Profile – I have many playlists that you can save to your own account or save the link. The are organized by tune, by set dance and by ceili nights. The tune playlists are great if you are practinging your steps and want a playlist of tunes.

Maldon’s YouTube Profile – I have many playlists here as well. They are organized by sets, tunes, dances and more. Save them to your own youtube account for easy reference or save the link. Youtube you can slow down the video if you want to practice at a slower speed.

Download tunes for practicing at home.

Reels

Classes, Past Classes

Class | Irish Old-Style Step

intro

Irish Old-Style Dance

Irish old-style step dance classes focus on teaching the traditional dances that paved the way for modern step dance and the Riverdance style. These dances share a similar structure but are performed close to the ground. Unlike sean-nós dance, old-style step dance incorporates choreographed steps executed on both the right and left foot, usually lasting 8 bars each and repeated on both sides for a total of 16 bars. Join us to learn these timeless dances that have been passed down through generations.

The class recording tab included all the live zoom classes for this course. Each dance we will cover has it’s own page as well so you can go directly to that tab to work on each dance. The members only page had links to additional material related to this course. The tunes tab has streaming playlists and recording that you can download for practicing.

Online

Mon & Wed 5:30 PM

In-person

Tue 7:30 PM

  • 8 Weeks (starts 10/1)
  • 2400 NE Alberta Street

class recordings

All the live zoom classes

JOJW

Job of Journeywork

The job of journeywork with Céline Tubridy and Michael Tubridy. Music by Michael Tubridy, flute. Recorded for the DVD ‘Irish Traditional Step Dances’, Dublin : Michael Tubridy, 2007.

  • 01:53 Slow tempo with voiceover 05:12
  • First step – the leadout 05:13 Set – right foot
  • 05:54 Set – left foot
  • 06:37 Finishing step

Céline and Michael Tubridy learned this dance from the Clare dancing master Dan Furey.

Helpful links and resources

joe's hornpipes

Joe’s Hornpipes


choreography

Step creations or choreography

List of choreographed steps

TUNESTEP
A1
A1Lead out – JOJW first half 2x
B1Joe – ground cuts
B1
A22 tricks rocks / heels
A2
B2JoJW Bunny Hop
B2
A3Joe – Drum
A3
B3JOJW Finish stamp
B3
A11234 patern
A1
B1heels / drums / heels
B1
A2tip down shuffle 12 hop back stamp
A2
B2Cut & Kick
B2
A3drums / ground cut
A3
B33 full shuffles / heels / JOJW ending
B3
A1Murry #1 / Classic Joe (Murrary side & heels) 
A1
B1Ground Cut or Cross with tips
B1
A2Rock
A2
B2tip cut / ground cut / kick cut
B2
A3Heels
A3
B3Murry #2
B3
A1Ground cut / heels / rock
A1
B1tip cut / cut & kick
B1

members only

Membership links related to this course

tunes

Downloads

Job of Journeywork practice music – A part only, B part only, Full tune with an extra A. These are in a google folder. You can download them or save them to your own google drive.

Playlists or Streaming

Spotify Playlist for the Job of Journeywork. Feel free to save it to your own Spotify account for future reference.

Classes, Past Classes

Class | Sean-nós Dance

intro

Irish Sean-nós Dance

This course is suitable for dancers of all levels, from beginners to advanced. We will focus on sean-nós jig steps, providing material tailored to each skill level. Throughout the course, you’ll learn steps, improvisation techniques, and variations. By the end, you’ll have a set routine and the opportunity to explore improvisation or freeform dancing.

Sean-nós, which means “old-style,” is a highly improvisational and rhythmic dance form that stays close to the ground. Unlike traditional Irish step dancers, sean-nós dancers swing their hips and use their arms to express the music. Historically, dancers performed solo on small surfaces like the hardwood of a half door or the top of a barrel, leading to steps confined to a small space. In sean-nós dance, the dancer and the musician are closely connected, with the dancer interpreting the music through their movements.

Online

Mon & Wed 6:30PM

In-person

Mon 7:30PM

  • 8 weeks (starts 9/30)
  • 2400 NE Alberta Street

classes

Class Playlist

practice

Deep Dive

Whole Dance

Roisin’s Steps

  • Connemara Step
  • Stamp & Stamp
  • Heel & Stab
  • Cross Step
  • Circle Step
  • Zig Zag
  • Side Step
  • Heel Toe Heel
  • Drum

choreography

Step Creation and Improvisation

  • Step Spreadsheet
  • Variation List
  • Yuka – Heel Stab/Connemara/Zig Zag (2x)
  • Marianne – 2 Connemara’s/Zig Zag to side (2x)
  • Kathy – Heel Stab (same pattern as cross step)

members only

music

Current Event, Events, Past Classes

2024 February | Old-Style Step Dance

intro

Introducing the Online Class Old-Style Step dance! Get ready to jump, swirl, and tap your way into the intriguing world of traditional Irish dance. This weekly online Irish old-style step dance class is the perfect opportunity for dancers of all levels to indulge in their passion for dance and embark on an exciting journey like no other.

Join us on Tuesdays as we take you on a delightful adventure of learning new steps at a nice handy pace. Whether you are a seasoned dancer or a beginner, our expert instructors will guide you through every move with patience and expertise. Don’t worry about missing a session – all classes are recorded, allowing you to dance to your heart’s content at any time that suits you best.

Now, let’s dive into Wednesdays, where we woodshed the steps. No, it’s not a mystical dance move, but rather a term embraced by musicians to describe intensive practice sessions before taking their tunes out to a lively session. Here, we’ll practice and fine tune the steps you learned on Tuesday, ensuring that your feet are in perfect harmony with the rhythm of the music.

Thursdays are all about embracing the spirit of “Keep Her Lit.” As the Irish saying goes, keep the tune going, even if you make a few missteps along the way. In this session, we’ll work on the entire dance routine learned thus far, allowing you to immerse yourself in the magic of old-style step dance. So, let your inhibitions go, and let your feet do the talking!

And then comes Fridays, where the energy is high, and the excitement is palpable. Get ready to experience the Speed and Craic session, where we focus on speed, endurance, and most importantly, having an absolute blast. Craic, which loosely translates to fun and a good time, perfectly encapsulates the joyous atmosphere you’ll find here. It’s all about dancing up to tempo, pushing your limits, and reveling in the sheer exhilaration of the dance.

Our signature learning and practice style ensures that you’ll master these mesmerizing dances in just half-hour sessions. Take them live and dance alongside others, or enjoy the flexibility of dancing at your very own leisure. The choice is yours!

Old-style step dance is a treasure trove of Irish cultural heritage, offering a glimpse into an era before Riverdance and modern step dance. With its distinctive lower-to-the-ground style and intricate steps, this magnificent dance form is the perfect choice for those who crave a routine and meticulously mapped-out steps.

So, let your inner dancer leap into action, and join us for the Online Class Old-Style Step dance. Let’s kick, twirl, and shuffle our way through the captivating rhythms of Irish tradition, all while having a ton of fun. Get your dancing shoes ready, because this class is about to take you on a journey you’ll never forget.

  • Tuesdays – Learn steps
  • Wednesdays – Woodshed steps
  • Thursdays – Keep Her Lit
  • Fridays – Speed & Craic

week 1

Welcome Step Dancers!

Old-style step dance, not to be confused with sean-nós dance, is the precursor to modern Irish step dance. If you have step dance experience many steps in this style will be familiar to you. In traditional Old-style step dance each step is danced for eight bars and is danced on the right and left foot. In future courses we will learn set dances which are “crooked” with a variety of bars of music (i.e. 7 1/2 bar phrases). We begin the Old-style step dance series by learning Maggie Pickie. This is the perfect introduction to old-style step dance. Each step has a structure that is repeated four times. Maggie Pickie is considered a set dance meaning there are specific steps to a specific tune. It is not crooked as many set dances are. 

Maggie Pickie or Maggie Pickins is a traditional dance from Donegal. This particular dance is currently experiencing widespread popularity and we love it too.  I first learned Maggie Pickie from Nic Gareiss during a residency that he held at Stomptown Collective Dance Studio in Portland, Oregon. Nic got the dance from Joe McGuiggan. Through several years of performing Maggie Pickie I created a few new steps along the way to go with the traditional dance. I include one of these new steps in the lesson — the Slide step. I hope you will love to dance Maggie Pickins as much as I do. 

Want to get a jump on your learning start here with the full Maggie Pickie Course.

Damhsa áthais sona ort! (Happy dancing to you!)

Tuesday

  • Cross
  • Hop hop flick flick
  • Side step (I taught this wrong :(, the good news is what I taught is very similar to the box step which we will learn on Wednesday) Correct version is here and in the Wednesday video.

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

week 2

Welcome to week 2 where we will learn the Priest in His Boots. I first learned this dance from Ben Power who learned it from James Keane while at the University of Limerick. James danced this a little differently than most dancers today. James danced the 4th step as two different steps with the 4th step being only 8 bars and then going back to the 16 bar structure. We will be learning the Tubridy because the music I have and the music you will be able to find will most likely be for a straight version of the dance. I will demonstrate both versions. If you dance this with live music you can make your choice how you want to dance the piece.

Keep Her Lit – Winter 2021

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

week 3

Week three we will work on St. Patrick’s Day.

Tuesday day 9

Wednesday day 10

Thursday day 11

Friday day 12

week 4

Old Style Step Dance – Hornpipes

Wednesday

cross, heels and drum step

Thursday

Rock & Kick and Cut

Friday