Breton Dancing

Featuring Louise Ebrel . Ifig Flatrès . Plinn . Ar Vro Vigoudenn Plinn . Hanter Dro De Languidig . Vonnette . Yvette . Fisel . Le Bon Maudire . Gavotte . Andro . Dual Voice . Startijenn . Ba Kerchef . Frères Guichen . Plinn . Fisel . Loened Fall . Pach Pi . Red Cardell . Les Frères Morvan . Joli Coucou . Plinn Ton.Doubl .

The RootsWorld : The “fest-noz” (night feast in Breton language) is a village dance which originally began in the center of Brittany after the chores of the community were completed. The folk revival of the seventies spread that tradition through the whole province. This dance session, which was formerly led by local singers and rarely musicians, became a ball with a sound system, a bar, a ticket clerk and bands.

International Folk Dancing in Dayton and Ohio : Hanter-dro : Formation / Open circle, mixed; hand joined with elbows bent such that forearms are parallel to the floor, forearms cross mid arm; not as tight as a Turkish hold. Face slightly L of ctr. The dance moves to the left.

Tony’s Celtic Music Pages : The bagad (sounds something like “buh-GAHD”) is a very unique part of Breton music. A bagad (plural: bagadoú) is organized like a Scottish pipe band and typically consists of Scottish highland pipes, bombardes and drums. In my mind, the one thing that stands out most about bagadoú is their originality.

Alan Stivell : Alan Stivell introduced the concept of Celtic music as a genre and was responsible for popularizing it.Alan wants to re-popularize songs that were once popular in Brittany and other Celtic and English-speaking countries. He used to hear these songs in his youth but they had almost been forgotten in his country. He has brought them back into the public eye and hopes they will catch on again.

Celtic Music : Breton musicians favor a harsh oboe-like instrument called a bombarde. They also have a higher-pitched shrill reed instrument, the biniou. The harmonies and dance rythyms are often different too. The result is clearly celtic, but strikingly different sound than Scottish, Irish or even Acadian or Quebecois music. I am still acquiring the taste, and enjoy some of it in small doses.