Black Nag, also called The Galloping Nag.
Source: The Dancing Master, 4th Ed. written by John Playford and published in 1670.
A great illustration of the dance; however, in our group’s version
when we slip step to trade places we pass back to back. This seems to
be a convention passed on from international folk dancing.
when we slip step to trade places we pass back to back. This seems to
be a convention passed on from international folk dancing.
Steps.
Males form one side of the set and females stand opposite them. All hold their partners hand and face the top of the set after acknowledging their partners.
- Starting on the L foot. Forward L, R, L, bring the R foot together with the L one. 4 Counts.
- Backwards R, L, R, bring the L foot together with the R one and turn your face in to nod to your partner on the last beat. 4 Counts.
- Starting on the L foot. Forward L, R, L, bring the R foot together with the L one. 4 Counts.
- Backwards R, L, R, bring the L foot together with the R one. Turn your body to face your partner and take both of your partner’s hands on the last beat. 4 Counts.
- 1st couple does 4 slip steps up the set. 4 Counts.
- 2nd couple, same. 4 Counts.
- 3rd couple, same. 4 Counts.
- All turn single over R shoulder. 4 Counts.
- 3rd couple does 4 slip steps down from the set. 4 Counts.
- 2nd couple, same. 4 Counts.
- 1st couple, same. 4 Counts.
- All turn single over R shoulder. 4 Counts.
- All walk forward until their R shoulders are even with their partner’s. 4 Counts.
- All walk back to their spots. 4 Counts.
- All walk forward until their L shoulders are even with their partner’s. 4 Counts.
- All walk back to their spots. 4 Counts.
- 1st man and 3rd woman slip step to trade places, passing each other back to back. 4 Counts.
- 3rd man and 1st woman, same. 4 Counts.
- 2nd couple, same. 4 Counts.
- All turn single over their R shoulder. 4 Counts.
- 1st man and 3rd woman slip step to return to their original places, passing each other back to back.
4 Counts. - 3rd man and 1st woman, same. 4 Counts.
- 2nd couple, same. 4 Counts.
- All turn single over their R shoulder. 4 Counts.
- All arm their partner with their R arm, turning in a clockwise rotation.
8 Counts. - All arm their partner with their L arm, turning in a counter-clockwise rotation. 8 Counts.
- Men perform a no-hands hay for three on their half of the set,
creating a figure-8 pattern on the floor. 16 Counts. - Women, same. 16 Counts.
Music.
There are MP3s of the song available on Amazon to buy. The first two are a bit fast, but the one by Idlewild is a bit on the slow side and the one from Melissa Kacalanos has a tempo that's nothing other than weird. This one is my favorite:
There are some recordings on the internet available free for download and use to reenactment groups for non-commercial purposes.
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I have heard Child Ballad #32: King Henry sung (vaguely) to the melody used in Black Nag. It's performed by Heather Alexander from her album Festival Wind. Your mileage may vary, I haven't yet given it a try.
The playlist on the right is ordered with the slower versions starting first. As usual I haven't judged any of the recordings on being time period appropriate, just made sure all of them seemed good to dance to.
You may want to listen to the first repetition of the melody to see if it has an extra long intro, sometimes musicians like to get fancy to keep the dancers on their toes. That's why I decided, after some consideration, to leave the last one on the list. Enjoy! ;) |
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