Scottische

The name 'Scottische' apparently comes from the German for 'The Scottish Dance'. The Scottische is danced in various forms throughout France, Western Germany, Switzerland, Austria and in most of Scandinavia, amongst other places.

Form of the Dance

This couple dance starts with the men facing anticlockwise (ballroom direction) around the room and is danced using a standard ballroom hold. The first part of the dance involves sidesteps into the middle of the room and out again and the second part is a slow turn.

Steps

1st Part: Side-steps into the middle of the room and out again (beats 1-4)
2nd Part: Slow turn (Beats 5-8)

Bar	1	2	3		4
Beat	1 and 2	3 and 4	5	6	7	8
Man	L r l	R l r	L	R	L	R
Woman	R l r	L r l	R	L	R	L

Music

There's a large repertoire of French and Scandinavian scottisches. The music is related to the English reel but slower. It is usually written in 4/4 time with a strong emphasis on the 1st crotchet and a lesser emphasis on the 3rd crotchet. It's sometimes written in 2/2 time to reflect this double emphasis.

Variations and Improvisation

Again, the scottische leaves lots of room for improvisation and variations. A common variation involves an open hold with the man's arm around the woman's waist. Both partners face towards the centre of the room on the first 2 beats, out of the room on the second two beats and then take a ballroom hold for the turn. The step is as described above. Turns can be thrown in and the Scandinavians are keen on throwing in hand claps and foot slapping.

Copyright

Text and images copyright (2004) Graham Knapp/Les Panards Dansants. Please contact graham@frenchdanceleeds.co.uk to arrange permission for copying and reproduction of any kind. Many thanks.