One With the Music: Cape Breton Step Dancing Tradition and Transmission
Available in many bookstores and on-line. Also available for your e-reader from Kobo, Kindle store and Apple iTunes. International customers can find the book on Amazon (ANZO: thenile.com.au).
Swedish-born traditional dancer and researcher Mats Melin has worked and performed extensively in the Scottish Highlands, the Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland, in their schools and communities promoting Scottish traditional dance. He has also taught and performed in Sweden, Canada, USA, Russia and New Zealand. Mats has a vast knowledge of all aspects of the Scottish traditional dance scene, but specializes in Cape Breton step dancing.
One With the Music is informed, in part, by Melin’s PhD research on transmission practices—how the tradition and steps of generations of dancers in Cape Breton get passed on to subsequent generations. His research gives us insight not only into the processes of transmission, but also into the complex ways dance and music in Cape Breton are deeply ingrained in the island’s culture. In this book, the home, classroom and square-dance contexts—and, to some extent, concerts—are examined and analyzed following years of interviews and participation.