What is Irish dancing?
Irish dancing is best known for its fast footwork and the dancer’s immobile upper body. Unlike other dance styles, traditional Irish dancing does not move the hands at all, which emphasizes precise footwork.
Irish dancing is very technical, with a lot of attention paid to crossing and opening the legs. Ballet has also had an influence on modern Irish dancing, bringing with it certain movements and sequences. This dance style increases fitness without you noticing!
In show-style dancing, the use of the body is more free. Very popular performing Irish dance groups such as Lord of the Dance and Riverdance have taken Irish dance to new heights in recent decades.
Irish dancing as a hobby
Irish dancing can be practiced by anyone, regardless of gender, age or skill level! You can dance just for fitness and fun, but if you want to make your hobby more ambitious, our dance school offers the opportunity to take Irish dance level exams (Grade Exams) or participate in competitions both in Finland and abroad.
In addition to dancing, you can also get to know Irish music and culture.
Irish dance shoes
In Irish dancing we use two types of footwear, soft shoes and hard shoes.
Hard shoes (jig shoes) are quite similar to tap shoes, except that the tips and heels of the shoes are made of fiberglass instead of metal.
Women and men wear different types of soft shoes. Women’s soft shoes (ghillies or pumps) are made of leather and fit like ballet shoes.
Men’s soft shoes (reel shoes) are also made of leather but are more like jazz shoes. However, these shoes have fiberglass heels, like hard shoes, which can be used to create different rhythms.
When starting out, dancing is always started with soft shoes so that the movement language specific to Irish dance becomes familiar first. As the beginner course progresses and skills develop, practice is also started with hard shoes.
Irish dance organizations
CLRG
An Coimisiún le Rincí Gaelacha, or CLRG, is the world’s largest Irish dance organization, founded in 1927. The CLRG’s aim is to protect and promote Irish dance, including solo dance, céili dance and other group dances, and to promote the use of the Irish language.
inSpiral Dance Company is registered to CLRG.
RCCEA
The Regional Council of Irish dancing teachers for Continental Europe and Asia (RCCEA) is a regional council registered with An Coimisiún le Rincí Gaelacha. RCCEA holds several competitions each year, the largest of which is the Continental Europe & Asia Championships or Oireachtas.
Qualifications of dance teachers and judges
A dancer may choose to complete CLRG’s Irish dance teacher and adjudicator qualifications.
TMRF (Scrúdú Teastas Rince Céilí)
Dance teacher qualification to teach céilí dances only.
TCRG (Teagascóir Coimisiún Le Rinci Gaelacha)
Dance teacher qualification to teach both solo and céilí dances.
ADCRG (Ard Diploma Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha)
Qualification of dance teacher and competition judge.
SDCRG (Scrúdaithoir Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha)
Qualification of a dance teacher as well as a competition and examination judge.
Irish dance competitions and grade exams
Feis
An Irish dance competition is called a feis (plural feiseanna), which means “festival” in Irish language.
Dancers are scored based on dance technique, style and other factors, such as timing, rhythm, body position, choreography and the sounds of hard-shoe dances.
Competition divisions are divided according to the age and skill level of the dancers. The divisions are divided into Beginner, Primary, Intermediate and Open.
Oireachtas
Open Championship level dancers compete annually in their respective regional championships, known as Oireachtas. These competitions are also qualifying competitions for the World Championships (Oireachtas Rince na Cruinne).
The CLRG World Championships are the largest of all competitions, with thousands of dancers competing from all over the world.
Other major dance competitions include the All Irelands (Oireachtas Rince na hÉireann) and the All Scotlands.
Grade Exams
The purpose of the Grade Exams is to provide a strong foundation for Irish dance and to provide dancers with a sense of purpose in pursuing the sport.
Grade Exams differ from competitions in that each dancer is judged individually and receives a detailed written assessment of their performance and a grade on a scale of A+ to D-.
Grade Exams consist of an optional “preliminary” level, followed by 12 levels, each of which increasingly requires the dancer’s skills, knowledge and abilities. All 12 grade exams must be passed in order for a dancer to apply for the TCRG teacher exam. A dancer who has passed all 12 grade exams will receive a diploma from the CLRG (The Diploma of the Irish Dancing Commission).
Please note that competing and taking grade exams at our dance school is completely voluntary!
Céilí dances
Céilí dances are Irish group dances. Some céilí dances date back to the 16th century.
Most céilí dances are danced to reel or jig rhythms, but single jig and hornpipe rhythms are also performed.
CLRG’s book Ár Rincí Céilí contains 30 different céilí dances.
You can also compete in céilí dances at the world level!
You can compete in groups of two (2-hand), three (3-hand), four (4-hand), six (6-hand) or eight (8-hand).
inSpiral Dance Company Finland has participated in the RCCEA Continental European Championships and the CLRG World Championships several times with its céilí teams.
Irish music
In Irish dancing, traditional Irish music is an important part of the genre. Dances are divided into different groups according to the style of music and the footwear used. The tempo of the dances varies according to the level of the dancers and the dance style.
Single jig, light jig, slip jig and light reel dances are danced with soft shoes, while hornpipe, heavy (or treble) jig and treble reel are danced with hard shoes.
Reel and hornpipe are in 2/4 or 4/4 time, slip jig is in 9/8 time and other jigs are in 6/8 time.