General Information

Originally devised by Charles Upton of Deeside Caledonian Society, Wirral, UK and now maintained by a small group of friends (The MiniCrib Team), MINICRIB is an easy to use "database" of brief notes (cribs) covering  over 4,600 Scottish Country Dances which enables "Cribsheets" to be quickly produced for most dance programs.  MiniCrib started life about 25 years ago as little printed cards - one for each dance.  In the mid-1990s Charles Upton transferred all his dance cribs to computer and in 2000 started publishing MiniCrib on the internet - the MiniCrib Team are continuing this task, continually updating (and correcting) the database.

The notes are contained in a MicrosoftTM Word template which can be placed on the Desktop, then simply double-click on the Icon to enter the program.  This program does not work with other word processors (eg Microsoft 'Works' or starter versions of Microsoft Word).

The Basic or Standard version is for use with Word 97 (& Higher) which allows quick assembly of crib sheets.  The Advanced versionfor use with Word 2000 (& higher), contains many macros which will help speed the preparation of crib sheets and also provides a detailed searching facility. 

An Alphabetical version is also available as a Microsoft Document (.doc) 380 pages long, but can be read by most other word processors.  In addition there is a pdf version (Portable Document File) which should be useable on almost any device, including Kindle and Android devices.

Each new version includes all entries contained in previous issues with corrections and many additions, so the MiniCrib Team recommend removing old versions and downloading each new version as it becomes available - that way you will always be up to date!  The new version does not overwrite the older versions (so remove old versions to prevent "clutter"). Information about installing all the current versions of MiniCrib are shown on the MiniCrib Versions page.
You can download the version you require from the Downloads page.

Please remember that MiniCrib recaps are just that - recaps to jog your memory - if there is any doubt about a particular dance you should always consult the original published dance (publication noted in MiniCrib where known).

The notes are available FREE but in return please leave the MINICRIB footnote that appears on each sheet!  It is hoped that Scottish Country dancers everywhere will find the notes of great use, but please let us know if you see an error.  



Although these recaps are copyright there is no claim to the copyright of any dance as each dance is already the copyright of another.  It is hoped that the many devisers of the dances listed, will not be offended by the brevity of the notes but will appreciate their usefulness as an aid to dancing. 

If you require more information about the Deviser, Publication or available Recordings of any dance the Strathspey Server database or the Scottish Country Dance Dictionary maintained by Reuben Freemantle will be of assistance. 

Happy dancing to all!

If problems occur, please contact us at minicrib@minicrib.org.uk  stating the version of Minicrib that you are using and the version of WORD and Windows that is installed on your computer.