A Capella: The Dirk Dance Of The Kings Of Mann Video

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This song reputedly dates back to Viking times over 1000 years ago. It is the accompaniment to a dance of the same name performed by a young prince or member of a royal family in Viking times at the yearly gathering of the population of the Isle of Man when the laws were read out at the centre of the island. This ceremony still takes place today on 5th July each year, or the nearest Monday to it if it falls on a weekend. I (and my brother before me) performed this dance with the Southern Manx Folk Dance Society under the tutelage of Leighton Stowell from the early 1950s to the end of the 1960s. Among the list of other Dirk Dancers there are at least two members of the House of Keys and one former Headmaster of Victoria Road School in Castletown as well as an accountant of my acquaintance. I never performed the dance at Tynwald, but did so in many other places including the Abbey Theatre in Dublin and in Stafford. My brother had the distinction of dancing it in the Royal Albert Hall in 1956 in front of a large audience which included in its number Princess Margaret. Aileen Hall, Leighton's daughter provided the accompaniment for both of us over the years and it was from hearing her singing that I unconsciously learnt the words and tune myself.

Author: threelegsoman; Uploaded: Nov 19, 2008; Duration: 2:49; Views: 86' favoriteCount='1

Tags: dance  dirk  folk  isle  man  of  threelegsoman  tynwald 

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