Like his new reel of six and new reel of three, this reel of four is another of London dancing master Thomas Wilson’s attempts to create variety in the dancing of reels in the early nineteenth century. While this reel keeps the classic interweaving pattern of the standard reels for three and four, it contains no setting at all, which makes it a particularly accessible dance for those whose strength is more in floor patterns than complicated steps.
The earliest source I have for this reel is the third edition of Thomas Wilson’s An Analysis of Country Dancing (London, 1811), from which the diagram at left is taken. The same diagram and description appear in Wilson’s The Complete System of English Country Dancing (London, c1815). The 1808 edition of An Analysis… included a different reel for four, which also appears in the fourth edition in 1822.
