Hanged Man's Reel

Notes

Jean Carignan playing Hangman's Reel
during a live session

There is an LP "French Canadian Fiddle Songs - Jean Carignan" (LEG120). This contains the track "Hangman's Reel" with superb fiddle playing. The tune is also known as "Hanged Man's Reel". I wrote this dance to include a Hangman's Noose figure.

Formation

4 couple Beckett. Folk dance
That is a line of 2 couples facing another line of two couples, with the lines up and down the hall.

Music

Hangman's Reel, also known as: Reel Du Pendu, Fandens Polsdans, and Hanged Man's Reel.

Hangman's Reel (4x32+8 bars)

Played 4×AABB + A.

At 128bpm the Jean Carignan recording on LEG120, which is also on Legacy CD427, is a bit too fast for this type of dancing and lacks any introduction, not even an opening chord. See lower YouTube link on the right; this is rather lacking in bass,
Here is an alternative track which is at a more dancable 112bpm and has an introduction
Hangmans Reel (1+4x32+8 bars) (file size 3.6 MB)

Scores can be found at:

abcnotation, and
THE SESSION which also has a discussion about the tune.

Notation

bars
A1 1‑8	The man at the top of a line of four takes his line (holding hands) around the other line of four back to places. This line keeps holding hands.
A2 1‑8	The Hangman's Noose: Top man and his partner hold up their joined hand to make an arch. Other line join hands and the two people at the bottom of the set join hands as well. The lady at top leads the whole line (of 7) through the arch (so she starts by "threading the needle"). She continues to take the line down around bottom of the set, then up until all are back to places. Drop hands across bottom of set.
B1 1‑4	Lines forward and back,
5‑8	drop hands to do-si-do opposite person.
B2 1‑4	All half right and left through with opposite couple,
5‑8	look diagonally left, if there is a couple there, then half right and left through with them.
Couples have progressed one place anti-clockwise around set. Repeat 3 more times, Once at end of dance
A 1‑4	Lines forward and back,
5‑8	swing partner.

Source

Graham Foster, March 2013