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ENGLISH DANCE

EXPLORING ENGLAND...

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 Medios de comunicación social. Geralt. Pixabay. CC0

In this lesson, we are going to work on typical music, dances, clothes and festivities from England.

CAN YOU LOCATE ENGLAND ON THIS MAP? 

United Kingdom and Ireland location map.  Bmf 051. Wikimedia. CC0

WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS COUNTRY?

Try to guess the following answers and then click on Feeback to check:

  • Is it part of the UK?
  • What colours is the flag?
  • What languages do they speak?
  • Who is their patron saint?
  • Have they got a queen or a king?

ST GEORGE'S DAY

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Tablero tiza la cabeza. Athree23. Pixabay. CC0

Read the text about the patron saint of England and try to complete it with the missing words.

Saint George's Day is the feast day of Saint and it is celebrated on  April 23, the date of the saint's death.

St George's emblem is a red on a white background. Do you remember it? It is also the flag of and part of the British flag.

Other two symbols related to St. George are: wearing , because it was his favourite , and a red , because it is associated with his death.

In London, there are St George's Day and parades across the city, but one of the biggest public celebrations is the St. George's Day Festival in the city of .

Here you can see two celebrations in this day. Why do you think there are horses and a knight? Discuss with your group.


1 2

1. St. Georges Day  in Gravesend, Kent. Glen. Wikimedia. CC BY

2. English Festival, St. George`s Day, Riverside, Medway. The Local People Photo Archive. Wikimedia. CC BY

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ENGLISH MUSIC ORIGIN

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Tablero aprender formación. Geralt. Pixabay. CC0

English folk music is sometimes seen as the poorest cousin of the rest of the British Isles. It’s not part of England’s mainstream culture in the same way as Scottish, Irish and Welsh traditional music are.

The folk music of England is a tradition-based music which exists since the medieval period. It was preserved and passed on orally in social events, (such as dances or weddings), social gatherings (such as the pub or tavern) or as part of work songs , so that we have little knowledge of it.

There are different regional and local variations in content and style. Cultural interchange and processes of migration mean that English folk music has significant crossovers with the music of Scotland and other parts of the world such as the United States, Canada and Australia.

Traditional instruments used in traditional folk music include the fiddle, melodeon, accordion and squeezebox. The pipe and tabor are also a part of the English folk tradition, as regional instruments like the Northumbrian Pipes.

In England, folk music can be heard as part of traditional dances like Morris dance and Maypole dance, that we are going to work on later.

Question 1

English music is known as the richest cousin of the British Isles.

Question 2

It was preserved orally.

Question 3

All the regions in England have the same music style.

Question 4

English folk music has significant crossovers with music from other parts of the world.

Question 5

There are regional instruments such as Northumbrian Pipes.

Question 6

Morris dance and Maypole dance are not traditional dances in England.

Question 7

Some traditional instruments used in folk music include the fiddle, melodeon, accordion, squeezebox, pipe and tabor.

MORRIS DANCE

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Teamwork team. Geralt. Pixabay. CC0

Complete the following text to discover the main features of this type of dance. If you need help, you can have a look at the DICTIONARY.

ACCORDION - GROUP - LINES - WHITE - CELEBRATIONS - ENGLAND - KNEES - SWORDS - DRUM - HANDKERCHIEFS - CLOTHES - CIRCLE - BELTS

Morris dance was traditionally danced in the villages of rural . Nowadays, it is performed at festivals and national such as May Day.

The main instruments used to accompany the dance are an , a fiddle or a .

Morris dancers wear different depending on the part of the country in which they dance. They are often dressed in with coloured across their chests.

It is usually performed by a of six or eight dancers, in two or in a facing each other. The dancers may carry extra implements such as white that they shake, short sticks that they bang against each other or even .

Some dancers have bell-pads tied at their , which make noise as they dance.

ARE YOU READY TO DANCE?

Now, it's time to move! Click on the QR code or scan it with your tablet and go to the playground to practise the dancing steps.

How to perform a Victorian-style Morris Dance - with the Hammersmith Morris Men. Historic Royal Palaces. Youtube (accessed on 24/06/2022).

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MAYPOLE DANCE

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Teamwork team. Geralt. Pixabay. CC0

Complete the following text to discover the main features of this type of dance. If you need help, you can have a look at the DICTIONARY.

POLE - WHITE - SPRING - CIRCLE - INSTRUMENTS - COLOURFUL - DECORATED - FLOWERS - ACCORDION - TREES - RIBBON - HANDS

Maypole dancing is an ancient tradition on May Day in which people celebrated the arrival of by dancing around . They were decorated with spring and people danced in a around it holding their .

Nowadays, this dance is a bit different. It involves ribbons hanging from the or the tree. People dance around it holding a each and moving them as they dance.

Traditional used to accompany this dance are the fiddle, the pipe and the .

Maypole dancers usually wear pastel or clothes with flowers.

ARE YOU READY TO DANCE?

Now, it's time to move! Click on the QR code or scan it with your tablet and go to the playground to practise the dancing steps.

Maypole Dance - Charter Day 2013. GreenwichAcademy1827. Youtube (accessed on 24/06/2022).

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