Highland Dancing

Most of the true Highland dances are connected with ancient Scottish folk customs. The present form had been developed through the centuries and been refined into its now general form; however the original basic steps and themes have been passed through the years.

Highland dances were originally only performed by men, but today there are far more women who perform these dances.

The Highland dances are performed solo, and have precise, difficult movements and require much stamina and co-ordination.  They are also regarded as being one of the most sophisticated forms of national dances in the world.

Highland dancing is most commonly done to bagpipes, and the version pipers play today dates back to the 16th century. The music itself consists of the melody, which is played on the chanter, backed by continuous and unvarying tones from the three drone pipes.

The most commonly known Highland dances are the Sword Dance and Highland Fling, other frequently performed dances are the Sean Triubhas, the Sailor’s Hornpipe, the Irish Jig, and the Strathspey and Highland Reel.

大多数高地舞蹈都与苏格兰的古老民俗有密切的联系。现在的舞蹈形式，虽已经过了几个世纪的演变，依然保持着原来的基本舞步和主旋律。

最初的高地舞蹈只能由男人表演，但发展到现在，女性表演者的数量要远远超过了男性。

高地舞蹈属于独舞，由清晰但难度颇大的舞蹈动作组成，要求舞蹈者有良好的耐力和协调性。高地舞蹈被认为是世界上最复杂的民族舞蹈之一。

高地舞蹈通常由风笛伴奏，今天演奏的风笛曲的源头可以追溯到十六世纪。音乐由指管演奏的旋律和低音管演奏的不变的背景音乐组成。

最常见的高地舞蹈是剑舞和一种叫Highland Fling的活泼舞蹈。其他的常见舞蹈包括: Sean Triubhas舞，水手号笛舞，爱尔兰吉格舞、斯特拉斯贝舞和高地双人舞。