Pat Murphy

Pat Murphy’s earliest memories from his childhood go back to when the Ballycommon Set, which was called the Plain Set at home, and the Cashel Set were the only ones they knew about. From Upperchurch, in County Tipperary, his father Jack played the accordion and he played for house dances in earlier years. Pat learned to play music from him, so his first connection with Irish Set Dancing was as a musician.  As children, they also learned to dance at home with their parents and neighbours.

In the early 1980’s, when Pat was playing music with a few friends for a Scór Set Dancing Competition, he was asked to dance in their Club’s competition team, as one of the male dancers was injured during rehearsals.  He danced, they won and the rest is history!

Pat’s travels over more than 30 years have now taken him to every county in Ireland and to most countries in Mainland Europe, including France, Germany, Italy, Holland, Denmark, Belgium, Luxembourg, Norway, Spain, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Russia. Some of the best recent Dance Festivals in Pat’s experience have taken place in France, Italy and Germany.  He has visited many parts of America, including, California, Seattle, Chicago, Milwaukee, Florida and New York. He has travelled to Canada, to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa.  His travels have also enabled him to teach in Japan, Australia and New Zealand.  In April 2018, Pat visited Australia for the third time and it was wonderful to have more than 100 dancers taking part in the set dance classes in Melbourne.

In 1994, Pat was invited by Irish Publisher Mercier Press to write a book on Irish Set Dancing. His first book, entitled ‘Toss the Feathers, Irish Set Dancing’ was published in 1995. It contained 64 dances and became the first standard reference Book for Set Dancers world wide.  Since then five more dance books have been published, the latest officially launched at the beginning of 2018. Together, the five books form a complete anthology of Irish Set Dancing from the revival in the 1970s to 2019.

Toss the Feathers, Irish Set Dancing (1995)
The Flowing Tide, More Irish Set Dancing (2000)
Apples in Winter, Irish Set and Social Dancing (2009)
Tabhair Dom Do Lámh, Irish Set and Social Dancing (2014)
Come West Along the Road, Irish Set and Social Dancing (2017)

Pat has also produced some instructional DVDs on Set Dancing, the first recorded during his time living in Westport, County Mayo and others recorded during the South Sligo Summer School here in Tubbercurry and at the Joe Mooney Summer School in Drumshanbo.