Jig Workshop: Sean-nós Northwest Festival 2026
This workshop “Sean-nós Jigs” explored basic movements, rhythms, and skills for jig dancing. The steps selected were based on my own jig dancing which is influenced by the dancing and teaching of Seosamh Ó Neachtain and Gearóid and Patrick Devane. We explored different jig shuffles and combinations. We experimented with borrowing movements from reel steps. We concluded class by learning a couple steps from the Devane family that invite new directions in learning sean-nós jigs.
Thanks to Patrick Andrews and Margaret Keefe for playing tunes for our class!
Resources
Upcoming in-person sean-nós dance workshops with Seosamh Ó Neachtain at O’Flaherty Irish Music Retreat in Texas, October 2026.
Sean-nós Jigs, YouTube Playlist. Questions to consider: What movements and ideas do you notice? What makes each dancer’s style unique? Which steps do you want to adapt to include in your own dancing?
Instructional videos: Liam Scanlon’s beginner sean-nós jig series: Class 1, Class 2, Class 3
Local classes in Portland: Maldon Meehan
Online classes: Edwina Guckian, Siobhan Butler
Music for practice:
<iframe style="border: 0; width: 400px; height: 472px;" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1987864910/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/artwork=small/transparent=true/" seamless><a href="https://tomdoherty1.bandcamp.com/album/dance-sean-n-s-2">Dance Sean Nós by Tom Doherty</a></iframe>
