Rapper sword (also known asshort sword dance) is a variation ofsword dance unique toNorthumberland andCounty Durham. It emerged from thepit villages ofTyneside andWearside, whereminers first performed the tradition.[1][2]
The dance requires five performers who co-ordinate themselves while using "rapper swords" made from flexible steel. Accompanied bytraditional folk music, the dancers wear hard-soled shoes that allow forpercussive foot movements. Mentalalertness, in addition to physicalagility, is required in order for dance participants to use the swords effectively without causing harm to themselves or the other performers.[3]
Whilst substantial evidence for the origins of the rapper sword tradition does not exist, as of 2012, since the publication ofRapper; The miner's Dance of North East England by Phil Heaton it is generally accepted that the dance was originally performed in the mining villages of theNorthumberland andDurham coalfield in North-East England. The dances derive from a well-defined geographical area with an intensity of activity traced to pits along both the Durham and Northumberland banks of the river Tyne, south into County Durham past Sunderland and along the Northumberland coast.[1][4] The earliest definite account ofhilt-and-point sword dancing in England dates back to an article in 1715 describing a dance in the Tyne Valley to the west of Newcastle upon Tyne. The dance described closely resembleslong sword dances of the Yorkshire and rather than the rapper dance. A documented account of the Tyne Valley dance has been located in a 1715 article, in which a fairly accurate description can be read. Later references to sword dancing in the northern counties include a dance described in 1787 in the Cumberland Packet newspaper of January 1788, and a description from Teesdale in 1778, referenced by Hutchinson in hisView of Northumberland.[5]
At some stage in the nineteenth century, the rigid swords were replaced by flexible rappers in the coalfield. Very little is known about this major development in the tradition because of an absence of sufficient evidence, and it may have been entirely accidental. It used to be commonly thought that the flexible version was used for removing dirt from the backs ofpit ponies, but there is no available documentation to verify this theory. It seems that two factors have influenced interpretations of when the rapper sword was introduced: firstly, the relocation of a steel works operation by Ambrose Crowley to the Derwent Valley, before which time it is believed that suitable steel for flexible swords would most likely have been unavailable; and secondly, the prohibitive expense of such instruments before theBessemer process in 1855 that allowed steel to be made inexpensively.[6]
The dance involves five people, with many including characters, such asTommy and Betty, who announce the dance, engage the audience and most importantly, collect money from the onlookers.[2] The performers are connected by short swords bearing two handles, with the handle on at least one end being fixed. The other handle is either fixed or swivelling, based on the preference of the rapper side. The flexible rapper swords form an unbroken chain connecting the dancers. The dance is related to the Long Sword dance of Yorkshire, as well as othersword dances in Europe. Some of the earliest teams used hornpipes, rather than thejigs used in the modern era.
During the nineteenth century, teams of rapper dancers from thepit villages of Tyneside and Wearside would travel annually to the towns ofNewcastle upon Tyne,Sunderland andDurham to perform the dance for the crowds, asking for monetary consideration. This was later revived as a source of income during the miners' strikes and lay-offs, especially when the collieries were closed down over winter. Sword dancers of the North East were also active in the political struggles of the coalfield. A team of Tyneside Rovers were part of an early march on parliament in 1890, and another team from Hebburn were part of the famous Jarrow Crusade in 1936. Teams were also reported all over Durham and Northumberland as dancing out and collecting in the 1926 miners' strike and later in the Great Depression.
By the early twentieth century, the tradition was beginning to die out, but was revived by the interest generated afterCecil Sharp published notations for five of the traditional village dances in his book,The Sword Dances of Northern England. After theFirst World War, the revival was marked by the fierce competition between pit villages in the rapper classes of the newly institutedNorth of England Musical Tournament held annually in Newcastle upon Tyne.
After theSecond World War, the tradition progressively declined in the original pit villages, partly as a result of social changes in the mining communities. However, another revival was initiated after the war, in 1949 by students at Kings College in Newcastle upon Tyne (now theUniversity of Newcastle upon Tyne), which subsequently spread beyond the traditional area. Revival teams worldwide now perform the rapper tradition, sometimes learned from published notations, sometimes taught by rapper dancers in what is almost a continuation of the earlier oral traditions.
The dance has transformed as it moved into the twenty-first century: the pace has quickened and is performed at around 140–160 beats per minute, with different team styles using different rates. It is nonetheless typically performed in a smooth and graceful manner, with one figure flowing seamlessly into the next. A number of acrobatic figures can be employed, including forward and backward somersaults over the swords.
The dance is now almost always performed to jigs (perhaps 90% of the time[citation needed]), with the normal form of rapper stepping being a form of shuffle imported from the localclogging tradition. The jigs used include local tunes and many instruments can, and have been, used to accompany rapper dances (the most popular being fiddles, tin whistles and accordions or melodeons). Many rapper jigs used for the last hundred years are tunes that were probably imported by Irish and Scottish immigrants to Tyneside in the nineteenth century. The music is usually performed solo, although it can be performed as a duet; however, rapper is not usually performed to a band. There is much controversy in the rapper community over the use of any form of percussion to accompany rapper beyond the rapper stepping included in the dance.
In modern times, the competitive element of rapper sword dancing has been revived in the form of theDancing England Rapper Tournament (DERT) competition, and in recent years its American counterpart, Dancing America Rapper Tournament (DART).
The costume in which the dance is usually performed, referred to as thekit, is a stylised version of the working clothes of the local nineteenth century coal miner (see photograph). It consists of a shirt;sash;breeks (breeches),hoggers (similar to breeks but shorter), or long trousers; and socks or stockings. Some traditional teams decorated their kit with ribbons or rosettes, and added a tie and/or waistcoat.
Modern teams use a variety of kits, mostly based on the traditional costume, with each team using different combinations of colours to try to have a unique corporate image. Some other modern sides, especially women's sides, use very different kits.
Unlike Cotswold Morris and other forms of traditional dance, Rapper Sword is often performed insidepubs, with 'rapper crawls', often on Friday nights, providing an opportunity for the general public (including those who have little interest in folk dance traditions) to see the dance being performed.
Performances in busy, noisy pubs in front of an audience which may not be familiar with the tradition provides an opportunity for the comic characters, theTommy and Betty (although often just the Tommy) to explain the dance and engage with the audience.
Rapper sword teams also appear atfolk festivals across the UK such asSidmouth Folk Festival.
TheDancing England Rapper Tournament (DERT) competition, which is open to all rapper sword teams, is held annually in a different UK city or town by a different Rapper side. The tournament initially comprised 3 divisions: Premier, Championship and Open, with a youth competition, 'DERTy', subsequently added. A further class, 'Traditional dance', was also introduced to highlight the original recorded dances and the style they were performed in.
| Event | Location | Hosts | Dates | Overall winner | DERTy winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DERT 2014 | Leeds | Black Swan Rapper | 7–9 March 2014 | Star & Shadow | |
| DERT 2015 | Bristol | Northgate Rapper | 10–12 April 2015 | Newcastle Kingsmen | NYFTE |
| DERT 2016 | Manchester | Medlock Rapper | 11–13 March 2016 | Newcastle Kingsmen | Oakenyouth |
| DERT 2017 | Kendal | Crook Morris | 7–9 April 2017 | Newcastle Kingsmen | NYFTE |
| DERT 2018 | Sheffield | Sheffield Steel | 23–25 March 2018 | Whip the Cat | NYFTE |
| DERT 2019 | Newcastle | Newcastle Kingsmen, Sallyport Sword & Star and Shadow Rapper | 5–7 April 2019 | Newcastle Kingsmen | - |
| DERT 2022 | Derby | Stone Monkey | 26 March 2022 | Tower Ravens | - |
| DERT 2023 | Rochdale | ??? | 10-12 March 2023 | Tower Ravens | NYFTE |
| DERT 2024 | Whitby | ??? | 12-14 April 2024 | Black Swan Rapper | NYFTE |
In 2020, the competition was postponed due toCOVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. The DERT 2021 competition, due to be held in Edinburgh on 26–28 March 2021, was also cancelled due to COVID-19.
The Dancing America Rapper Tournament (DART) is an American offshoot of DERT, happening annually on the East Coast of the United States since 2010. Featuring anywhere from 6 to 16 sides, DART is less focused on the competition side and more focused on building community among the still-growing rapper sword community in the United States.[7]
Rattle Up My Boys (RUMB) is a print journal for those with an interest in sword dance. Established in 1987 by founding editor Trevor Stone, it covers news, interviews, features, and reviews on rapper,Longsword, and other forms of European and worldsword dance. The journal has clocked up over 130 editions. It is published quarterly in the UK and is available via subscription. TheMorris Federation website hosts theRattle Up, My Boys online archive. It contains scanned copies of every edition from 1987 to the present, with a rolling 2-year delay behind the current print edition.
The Rapper Online website provides information on the origins and history of the dance,[8] team profiles[9] and notations of traditional dances. Current and historical information is also available at "The NUT on the Net",[10] the Internet edition of "The NUT", the journal of the rapper sword dance.
Leading exponents of the tradition in its traditional area include the High Spen Blue Diamonds, the Newcastle Kingsmen, Monkseaton Morris Men, the Sallyport Sword Dancers and Star and Shadow. In addition to the Rapper Online website's list of rapper sword teams the Sword Dance Union has produced a map of current UK teams.
Rapper dancing has gained international popularity. Jack The Rapper, based inNorway, attended DERT in 1996, 1999 and 2003. The DERT 2005 and 2006 competitions were attended by four teams from the United States, named, Newhaven, Candyrapper (2005), Beside the Point (2006) and Scrambled Six (2007). Red Mum Rapper fromDenmark competed in DERTs 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2018. The Pocket Flyers (USA) attended DERT 2015 in Bristol. Rapper teams also exist in Australia, Germany and theBasque Country of France.
