With thanks to the RSCDS and Jon Davey for the Flying Scotsman images on Page 2. All other images are ©RSCDS Edinburgh
Top: Dancing The Flying Scotsman with a Red Hot Chilli Piper!
Bottom: Lots of fun at our Beginners classes at Murrayfield and Greenbank
Welcome to our Spring edition of Dancing Forth! We have had a full and lively dancing year so far, enjoying the return to our full-scale activities together.
At the start of our dancing year the Branch welcomed our new Chairman, David Watson, taking over from Steve Carr who had steered us so well through the difficult years of the pandemic. David will be well-known to many members – he has a long history with RSCDS Edinburgh, having been chairman first in 1993-1996, and then again in 2015-2018. Like many of us, he took a short break from dancing during the pandemic, and we are delighted that he has now returned for a third term. He is greatly enjoying meeting new and old friends on the dance floor and helping everyone to feel welcome at our classes and events.
Our classes have been continuing to re-establish themselves, and it is wonderful to see so many dancers returning at all levels. The growing number of new dancers in our Beginners classes is especially welcome as we look forward to the years ahead. If you have not yet been tempted back to the dance floor, think about joining us for the Spring term which begins in the week of 17 April. You will have a supportive and friendly welcome!
We have much to celebrate over the next couple of years. This year marks the centenary of the RSCDS, with dance events worldwide. Here in Edinburgh, the Society’ s Centenary Ball will be held in the Assembly Rooms on 25 March, with our branch organising a supporting Centenary Dance the evening before and a Concert on the day. 2024 is the centenary of the Branch itself, and we look forward to arranging another year of celebration, with dancing events offering something for everyone of whatever age or experience.
Happy Dancing!
Our Christmas dance was a lovely festive way to round off the year with dancing friends from far and near. The music of Stuart Anderson and his Scottish dance band –with Judith Linton (fiddle) & Kieran Johnstone (drums) –kept us all on our toes throughout the evening, supported by a welcome seasonal break for Cheery Cherry Punch and mince pies.
This was swiftly followed by our Christmas Party night. Dancers were treated to fantastic music from Peter Shand (piano) and Tim MacDonald (fiddle).
This was a great way to introduce some of our newer dancers to other members of the Branch at a very informal dance and we hope to see many more of you at future events.
These were our last dancing events of the year, celebrating the end of 2022 before looking ahead to the new centenary year of the RSCDS in 2023.
Check out pages 4 and 5 for what’s on over the next few weeks and months.
Can you spare us some time?
We are looking for two volunteers to help us.
Our Branch shop is looking for a volunteer to keep the stock and post it out to purchasers, and bring it along to some Branch events.
You don’t need any previous experience; just a bit of space to store the stock and a willingness to help.
We also need a Child Protection Co-ordinator, able to help us ensure we have safe, welcoming spaces where children and young people feel valued .
Please contact us to find out what is involved and how you can help us info@rscdsedinburgh.org
The Royal Scottish Country Dance Society (Edinburgh Branch) is a charity promoting the fun, fitness and friendship of Scottish country dancing since 1924.
Website: www.rscdsedinburgh.org
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Lots of fun at our Sunday Socials with Dunedin DancersThis year the RSCDS celebrates its centenary. Over the weekend of 24 and 25 March events will be focused in Edinburgh, with the Society Centenary Ball taking place on the Saturday evening in the Assembly Rooms. Leading up to this, our Branch is holding a dance on the Friday evening and a Centenary Concert at lunchtime on Saturday 25 March. Tickets for the dance and the Ball are sold out but there are tickets available for our special Centenary Concert which we
This special concert celebrates the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society Centenary with a feast of the music that inspires our dancing.
Dancers and non-dancers alike will find toe-tapping irresistible!
Muriel Johnstone (piano), Pete Clark (fiddle), Peter Shand (piano) and Tim Macdonald (fiddle) will inspire you to dance at this amazing concert to celebrate 100 years of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society.
From its establishment in 1923, music has been as important a part of the RSCDS as the dancing itself. This special centenary concert brings together some of Scottish country dance music's leading exponents.
We are thrilled to give you the chance to share the tingle and inspiration of their playing. Join us for a celebration of our wonderful dance music.
Date and Time:
Saturday 25 March 2023 at 12 noon
Venue:
Canongate Kirk, 153 Canongate, Edinburgh, EH8 8BR
Tickets (£10) are on sale now at www.rscdsedinburgh.org or at the door on the day.
We are delighted to invite you to dance with us at our annual ball on Coronation Day Saturday 6th May.
This highlight of our dancing year will offer the perfect way to celebrate the Coronation of our new monarch His Majesty King Charles. Greyfriars Kirk provides the historic and inspiring setting for the occasion.
The music of James Coutts and his long-established Scottish Dance Band will add wonderful zest to our dancing.
A light hot buffet supper of fresh local produce will be served during the evening. On Sunday 30th April we will offer a pre-event Workshop. You are welcome to join us, to practise the dances and meet other dancers before the ball, in a relaxed and informal setting.
Tickets are on sale now at our website
Scottish Step Classes with Atsuko Clement and Muriel Johnstone
Sundays 26 March, 16 April, and 7 May, 14.00 16.00
Join our community of step dancers sharing fun, fitness and friendship
Additionally, we have regular online workshops (check out our website for dates and times)
These workshops are aimed at dancers with some Ladies step dancing experience; however, all are welcome to join us and Atsuko will tailor the class to the individual dancers and give you feedback on your dancing. Each workshop is stand alone so you can join in as often as you wish. We are thrilled that Muriel Johnstone will be playing for all of these workshops.
Cost: £8 per workshop (£4 for 25 & under)
Nice’n’Easy Dance
Tuesday 28 March, from 20.00
Dancing to Matthew Maclennan
Barclay Viewforth Church Hall, 1 Wright’s Houses, Edinburgh EH10 4HR
Join us for a fun evening, with a programme of popular dances that is suitable for everyone, no matter how long you have been dancing.
Spring Fling and Spring Fringe
Friday 14 April Sunday 16 April
Meadowbank Sports Centre, St Peter's, Lutton Place and Mayfield Salisbury Church Hall
Musicians: Ewan Galloway, Jim Lindsay and Matthew Maclennan
Hot on the heels of the Centenary weekend we are delighted to welcome Spring Fling back to Edinburgh and all of the Spring Fringe activities which run alongside this.
You can dance into the roaring 20s with Spring Fling and Spring Fringe, as this returns to Edinburgh with a weekend full of dancing, socialising, and a whole host of other activities. There is dancing for everyone on Friday and Saturday evening and classes on Saturday and Sunday for all ages and abilities.
Everyone comes together for the Friday evening welcome dance, and the Saturday evening Ball. Both events are being held in the new Meadowbank Sports Stadium.
Friday 14 April 19.30 Welcome dance with Ewan Galloway and his Scottish dance band.
All day Spring Fling classes for age 12 – 35, see www.rscds.org for more info
Springe Fringe classes at St Peter’s, Lutton Place
9.30
11.00
13.30
Saturday 15 April
Improvers; this fun class will help you improve and give you the opportunity to meet new dancers.
Advanced; This class is for dancers who are more experienced, have a good standard already and will help you continue to improve your dancing
Dances for the Brave; Aimed at advanced dancers, get ready to be intrigued, stretched, challenged and made to think.
Feel free to bring a sandwich and combine our Advanced and Dances for the Brave classes. Tea and coffee provided.
Classes for young dancers 12 & under at Mayfield Salisbury, West Mayfield
Sunday 16 April
10.00
11.30
19.30
Ceilidh Kids at Spring Fringe; Family fun with Mum and Dad for pre-school children
Come and Try; Come and try Scottish country dancing for Primary School age children
Spring Fling Ball with Jim Lindsay and his Scottish dance band.
Spring Fling and Ladies Step classes (see page 4 for info on our Ladies step classes)
Summer outdoor dancing
Saturdays 3 and 17 June and 1 and 15 July (weather permitting), 19.00 21.00
North Lawn, St Mary’s Cathedral, Palmerston Place, Edinburgh, EH12 5AW
Dancing to Roddy Johnston and Seonaid Lynn
Join us for summer fun with your dancing friends.
Celebrate the Centenary of the RSCDS and Dance through the Decades
Saturday 9 September, 19.30 22.30
Greyfriars Charteris Centre, 138/140 Pleasance, Edinburgh, EH8 9RR
Join us to celebrate 100 years of the RSCDS at this special centenary event. More info will be available soon on our website.
Adult
17 April for 6 weeks
Advanced Beginners Tuesday 8.00 9.30 pm
Intermediate Plus Tuesday 8.00 9.30 pm
Advanced Thursday 8.00 9.30 pm
Murrayfield Parish Church, Ormidale Terrace, EH12 6EQ
Greenbank Parish Church (Upper Hall) Braidburn Terrace, EH10 6ES
Barclay Viewforth, 1 Wrights Houses, EH10 4HR
Murrayfield Parish Church, Ormidale Terrace, EH12 6EQ
does it cost? RSCDS Edinburgh Members Non-Members
Yoshi Shibasaki Ewan Galloway/ Matthew Maclennan
Maggie McLeish Roddy Johnston
Rachel Shankland Seonaid Lynn
Read all about Andrew’s experience in our classes on Page 10
Class Descriptions If you are unsure which class is best for you please speak with any of our teachers or contact us for advice. Our teachers will be able to suggest which of our classes would be most suitable and give you the most enjoyment. We are happy for you to transfer between classes to find the right level for you.
Beginners
Open to all who have little or no experience of Scottish country dancing You will learn basic steps and simple formations including reels and some corner formations. By the end of the term you will be able to dance many Scottish country and ceilidh dances.
Advanced Beginners
Aimed at Dancers who have previously completed a Beginners class, or who are returning to dancing after a long period, and have limited footwork and knowledge of formations. You will want to improve your technique, learn more complex formations and increase your own ability.
Intermediate This energetic class is designed for dancers who are already familiar with core movements of Scottish country dancing and who have attended at least one Advanced Beginner class or been dancing regularly for over two years. You should be able to dance the steps and many of the key formations such as Allemande, Promenade and Ladies chain.
Advanced This class will improve your footwork, rhythm, phrasing and technique so that your dancing will be of a high standard; this will involve some constructive critiquing of your dancing.
Our Autumn term classes restart during the week commencing 25 September. Full details will be available on our website during August and in the next edition of Dancing Forth.
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In January, Edinburgh celebrated Chinese New Year, the year of the Rabbit, with spectacular celebrations across the city. On 22 January a colourful cultural display was staged at The Mound outside the Scottish National Gallery, organised by Edinburgh Chinese Arts Association, and presenting the Chinese Lion Dance, New Year Folk Dance, and Children’s Rabbit Dance. Chinese Calligraphy combined with a Han costume show highlighted Chinese New Year traditions.
Edinburgh Branch of the RSCDS was excited to be invited to share the celebrations with a Scottish country dance demonstration with a piper, moving into audience participation in a ceilidh to bring this Chinese-Scottish event to a joyful intercultural end.
Our new Chairman, David Watson, was kept busy distributing Lucky Red envelopes to the crowds. At Lunar New Year, it's a tradition to give the gift of a bright, beautiful red envelope (known as 紅包, hóngbāo) to your friends and family.
One of our dancers, Zoe Gardner, tells us more about the event:
‘I was very lucky to be asked to perform as one of the team of eight dancers at the Chinese New Year celebrations at the Mound: it was my first experience in dancing in front of an audience and I thoroughly enjoyed it. We danced ‘The Duke of Atholl’s Reel’ for a big crowd beside the National Gallery. Then we danced ‘The Gay Gordons’ and invited the public to dance with us: it was great to see so many wanting to try Scottish dancing.
This was the first time that I have been in Edinburgh for the Chinese New Year and it was a privilege to be there and witness the mix of cultures through dancing. There were a lot of people with very colourful costumes and it felt like a happy occasion which we were able to share with the Chinese community. It was very joyful and we were taught how to say ‘Happy New Year’ in Chinese (which I can now say but not write!).’
The Branch was delighted to take our part in this joint celebration, and share the traditions of our communities.
On Friday 24 February 1923 the world-famous steam locomotive, The Flying Scotsman, set off on its first journey. One hundred years later to the day, it arrived at Edinburgh Waverley station to celebrate its centenary. It was welcomed by the poet laureate, Simon Armitage, reading his new poem written especially for the event: The Making of Flying Scotsman which honours the famous engine that has become a well-loved icon of the golden age of rail travel.
To add to the celebrations, and to mark the shared centenaries in 2023 of both The Flying Scotsman and the RSCDS, Edinburgh Branch was invited to arrange for two sets of young dancers to perform ‘The Flying Scotsman’ on the platform by the train.
Children from South Morningside Primary School came along with their P5 teacher, Branch member and demonstration team dancer Katy Leiper. They added something very special to the event by performing beautifully, and proved outstanding ambassadors for Scottish country dance both in their dancing and in talking to the press.
Congratulations to Katy and her teams of young dancers! Following their success, we look forward to expanding our outreach work with Edinburgh schools, to inspire more young dancers.
Flying Scotsman images on Front cover and page 2 Chinese New Year images on back cover
Membership of RSCDS Edinburgh allows you to be part of a community of dancers both locally and worldwide and supports Scottish country dancing in Edinburgh and beyond.
Members benefit from a range of discounts and exclusive deals, as well as helping the continuation of the Scottish country dance tradition.
Membership fees for 2023—2024 will be due in the next few weeks and you will be able to pay online via our website
For all sports related injuries, including Scottish country dancing. Facilities open to all members of RSCDS Edinburgh Branch at reduced rates.
In December Edinburgh’s Scottish country dancing community lost one of its longstanding friends and inspirations. For those who had so recently seen Esmé Randall in excellent form, her enthusiasm for life hardly diminished by the passage of almost eighty-five years, her death, last December, came as a shock. The Church in Davidson’s Mains where her funeral service was held in January was filled to capacity by those who, travelling from far and wide and with many who had known her for more than half a century, came to pay their respects.
Esmé was a dancer, par excellence, a beautiful exponent of the art who also possessed the ability to pass on her mastery to others. She was a dancer by profession, commencing her training at The Scottish Ballet School in the 1950s and then qualifying as a teacher of ballet, highland dancing and tap-dancing. For many years she ran her own school. Esmé was a very able and graceful Scottish country dancer and she appeared, perhaps inevitably, on a number of occasions in ‘An Edinburgh Fancy’.
She took frequent part in the activities of the parent Society, dancing in the International Team when it went to St Jean de Luz in France’s Basque country, in 1964, and teaching regularly at the International Summer School. There she was chosen by Mrs Isobel ‘Tibbie’ Cramb (a leading expert on step dancing at the time) to demonstrate the ‘The Village Maid’, as a solo in the Younger Hall. For some years thereafter she assisted Mrs Cram in the teaching of Ladies ease, given her own training, with the demands of the soft, graceful, balletic style which such dances demand.
Many in the Edinburgh Branch will have encountered Esmé when she was teaching the Advanced or the Demonstration Class. She was an excellent teacher, appreciated by her students and by the musicians who worked alongside her. As teacher of the Demonstration Class, Esmé had an important role to play in the Branch’s shop window, ‘An Edinburgh Fancy Her professional training and active participation in dramatic productions ensured that she had a lot to offer. Dancers in Edinburgh and beyond welcome the fact that Atsuko Clement, who carries forward Esmé’s work in keeping alive Ladies’ Step Dances, persuaded her to allow dances she had created to pass into the public domain.
Esmé married Bill Randall in 1970, the two having previously encountered one another at Summer School. The wedding was a memorable occasion with a team of dancers and a piper performing an Eightsome Reel on the platform of Waverley Station as the newly-weds were about to depart on honeymoon. In due course Esmé and Bill’s marriage was blessed with the birth of a son, Nicholas, who, in an all too brief adult life, became a planning officer. Nicholas was an able flautist and formed part of a ceilidh band. It was a source of great pleasure to Esmé that she continued throughout her life to enjoy contact with Nicholas’ friends and their growing families.
Esmé had a wide range of interests apart from Scottish Country Dancing. For many years she was one of the leading players in the St Columba’s Dramatic Society, turning in memorable performances as Lady Bracknell in Oscar Wilde’ s The Importance of Being Earnest and the clairvoyant Madam Arcati in Noel Coward’ s Blithe Spirit. She was an incorrigible Francophile establishing and maintaining friendships in France and working regularly to keep her French up to the mark. She played the clarsach and was a poet, with a recent poem read at her funeral. Esmé, with the support of Bill, was a wonderful hostess, entertaining a large circle of friends on a regular basis – and frequently thinking to provide hospitality to those who were new arrivals or contending with a difficult situation in their life.
Esmé had many, many friends in Edinburgh – and beyond. She will be greatly missed and there will be few who will not retain a positive and inspiring memory of the exceptional lady she was.
Images from RSCDS Edinburgh Archive
Also, sadly missed is:
Patricia Waring, a long standing member dancing in our classes and was one of our trustees. Patricia enjoyed dancing with many local groups and will be remembered for the joy that Scottish country dancing always brought to her.
For over 50 years, Dunedin Dancers have run biennial International Folk Dance Festivals in Edinburgh. Each Festival brings together two or three folk dance groups representing different dance traditions from across Europe, learning each other’s dances and celebrating the diversity of traditional dancing.
This summer Dunedin is organising its 26th International Folk Festival in conjunction with Edinburgh University New Scotland Country Dance Society. It will be held 6-9 July 2023, based at Edinburgh Academy Junior School. Guests will be Agrupación Folklórica Celme, a dance group from Pontevedra in Spain, and Belgian group Gelmelzwaaiers Hoogstraten, who perform with flags. A third group may join the event, yet to be confirmed.
The festival will feature public displays of traditional music and dance at various venues around Edinburgh, finishing with a performance at Stirling Castle on Sunday 9 July. Each group will also share their dance styles with the other participants in workshops.
Everyone is very welcome to come and watch the performances (more details will be published shortly). You are also welcome to take an active part in the festival –though you do need to be a member of Dunedin or New Scotland in order to participate (see Dunedin’s website to become a member). We are looking for people who want to perform: perhaps you would like to join the team of musicians or dancers. However you don’t need to perform in order to take part; you are welcome to get involved in other ways, muck in with the many jobs associated with the festival, befriend our guests, and join in the evening parties.
We are also looking for hosts to accommodate our European visitors, and provide bed and breakfast for a few nights. If you would like to make some new friends from overseas who share your love of music and dance, this is a great way to meet them!
For more information contact Ian and Caroline Brockbank at enquiries@dunedindancers.org.uk
My earliest memory of Scottish Country Dancing was as something my sisters got packed off to on a Saturday afternoon at Cramond Kirk Hall – though I confess I didn’t then feel deprived at my exclusion. Wind forward and I remember my parents occasionally going to grand balls and dancing through the night until breakfast was served –this sounded more interesting. And later still I had the occasional brush with ceilidhs and wondered why they weren ’t compulsory, with the infectious cheeriness of the jigs lifting the spirits and setting the feet a-tapping. How good, I thought, would it be to participate fully by knowing the dances.
So off I took myself to a local RSCDS beginners class on a Monday evening. It was great to find myself among a mixed group of folk all there to enjoy learning. Under Yoshi’s enthusiastic but patient guidance, a good group made steady progress with the basic steps and formations while building up a reasonable repertoire of dances from The Duke of Atholl’s Reel to The Deil amang the Tailors and, a favourite of mine, the slow Strathspey, Rakes of Glasgow.
We were extremely fortunate in having Ewan Galloway playing accordion for us – I can’t overstate the difference it makes having such an accomplished musician encouraging
When the end of term came I had no hesitation in signing up again for the Advanced Beginners class. I’ve certainly got a long way to go to achieve proficiency and I’ve a lot to learn; but maybe some day I’ll achieve that ambition of attending an all-night dance and boy will I enjoy the breakfast!
As a charity we rely on charitable donations, and by leaving a legacy to the Edinburgh Branch of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society Anniversary Fund, you not only help to build a resilient, dynamic future for Scottish dancing; your gift will also support meaningful initiatives such as training new teachers and musicians, supporting talented young dancers, or giving schools access to our schools outreach programme.
Visit our website, or contact us, if you would like to learn how a gift in your will can make a real difference in the future to Scottish country dancing.
©RSCDS Edinburgh 2023
Thank you to the many members who contribute to make each edition of Dancing Forth possible.
