In past years when I've taught students how to play a jig, we usually make sure that they can play a dotted rhythm and then work on softening that out into more of a relaxed, lilting feel.

I still stand by this method, but it can be easy to get stuck in one of the steps and not be able to move into that more fluid connected tone we're going for.

So in this video, we're going to do a bit of troubleshooting!

I'll walk you through the 3 phases of developing your rhythm:

• Counting out your meter
• Building muscle memory
• Relaxing and softening out your rhythm

Then we'll go over a couple of pitfalls to watch out for! These were inspired by an interview I listened to between Liz Doherty and Matt Cranitch as part of the iTeachTrad community membership for Irish traditional music teachers. 

If you're a teacher reading this and want to join the membership + check out this interview as well as a slew of other valuable trad teacher trainings + discussions, please visit: https://iteachtrad.com/community/

I highly encourage my fellow trad teachers to join-- and I'll see you in there if you do! :D

Here's the video tutorial:

Let me know in the comments what questions you have!