Successful school fundraiser at West Anstey Village Hall, Devon with Barnbuskers Ceilidh & Folk Dance Band

With ever tightening school budgets, many schools are looking for ways of raising funds and, judging from the success of the fundraiser held at West Anstey Village Hall, Devon, last night (25th January 2013), a Burns Night ceilidh or folk dance band together with a traditional meal might be just the ideal solution to raising funds for your school or college.

The evening started off with a few traditional tunes provided by the Barnbuskers Ceilidh and Folk Dance Band as the guests arrived, followed by a splendid meal of traditional haggis with a scrumptious desert. The haggis was played in to the assembly by a fully kilted bagpiper and there were lots of toasts and some traditional poems, all of which got the evening off to a really good start.

Dance caller Tom Addison at West Anstey Village Hall Devon

After everybody had eaten, there were a few fundraising party games, well organised by a very smart and kilted MC, then soon most of the guests were joining in and dancing to the foot tapping traditional sounds of the Barnbuskers Ceilidh and Folk Dance Band.

The advantage of having a ceilidh or barn dance band is that the dancers need no dance knowledge to participate in and enjoy the dances because the dance caller shows everybody how to do the dances. Tom Addison was the dance caller for the evening and the combination of his expertise in selecting and organising the right dances for the dancers, together with the astonishing ability of the dancers on this night who picked up the dances really quickly, ensured a  good time was had by everybody.

In fact, Tom Addison, newly calling for the Barnbuskers Ceilidh and Folk Dance Band, was so liked by the musicians that he will certainly be top of the band's favourite caller list for future events. His relaxed and friendly style, whilst ensuring the dances suited the abilities of the dancers, enabled the band to concentrate on doing what they most like doing which is providing the pulsating sounds and rhythms that will get the guest's feet tapping and put a smile on everybody's face. Tom's excellent ability to double as sound engineer so the band's sounds were best presented by the PA system was also a massive plus.

Traditional barn or ceilidh dancing is often quite an energetic business when the dancers are enthusiastic so it is usual for the band to play tunes in between dances while the dancers have a rest and refresh themselves. Tunes played in-between dances and for the dances included traditional Scottish, traditional Irish, traditional French, some ragtime, a couple of Klezmer and, of course, a good staple diet of jigs and reels from the English folk dance tradition which is the speciality of the Barnbuskers Dance Band  represented on this occasion in photo above by core musicians Rockin' Robin and Martin Hughes (band leader), Tom Addison on folk flute (when not calling the dances) with  Gill Seabrook acting as percussionist, photographer, business manager, roady and just making sure everything went smoothly (so well done Gill)!

So, if you are thinking about organising a fundraiser for your local school or college, a ceilidh or folk dance band might be the the ideal solution and Barnbuskers would be more than happy to talk to you about it. Judging from the laughter as the dancers danced, a great time was had by all (see more photos of the dancing at West Anstey Village Hall on Rob's Facebook page) and, given the numbers attending, the event appeared to be an excellent way of raising funds for the local Devon pre-school.

Traditional music, as played in idyllic setting of Culbone Inn and Restaurant near Porlock, Exmoor at their special buffet could also be ideal entertainment at your open air buffet, barbecue, village fete or garden party

When the BarnBuskers Duo were asked to play some traditional tunes as incidental music to entertain guests of the Culbone Inn and Restaurant, Exmoor at their buffet celebrating the passing of the Olympic Torch, my first reaction was what a fantastic location to hold a buffet. The views across the Doone Valley are spectacular and I knew the Culbone Inn had recently been refurbished under new management and was rapidly gaining an unrivalled reputation locally for its food and friendly welcome.

We turned up early, to avoid any possible problems with road closures, which was great because it gave us a chance to warm ourselves up musically in the car park before the buffet guests arrived and record the video below of us playing Three Around Three and Enrico.

Soon after, the guests turned up and the mouth watering smell of barbecued food was drifting over Exmoor as we headed into our repertoire of traditional English, French, American and Eastern European music. The ambience looking out across the Lorna Doone Valley was amazing and somehow fitted perfectly the tunes we were playing.

All in all, Martin and I decided that, although we love playing for ceilidhs, barn dances and folk dances with the full band, entertaining guests at open air buffets, barbecues, village fetes and garden parties as the BarnBuskers Duo on a sunny day in an idyllic rural setting was certainly the sort of gig that we should definitely encourage.

So, if you are looking for somewhere to eat in the Exmoor area, judging from the tasty food we were provided with when we took a break from playing, the Culbone Inn restaurant and pub near Porlock is well worth checking out.

If you're looking for some traditional tunes to be played at your open air buffet, barbecue, village fete or garden party, why not check out our availability because the BarnBuskers Duo will probably be very pleased to come along and provide the music. We look forward to hearing from you :-)

BarnBuskers Ceilidh and Folk Dance Band providing the traditional dance music at a private 50th birthday party village hall folk dance in the well-appointed Meadway Hall, Compton Dundon, Somerton, Somerset, UK

Turning up to play for a ceilidh, barn dance or folk dance at a village hall we have not previously played can be a bit daunting but the Meadway Hall, Compton Dundon, Somerton, Somerset, UK where we played yesterday evening (20th April 2012) for a 50th birthday party barn dance proved to be brilliant. The stage was large enough, the lighting fine and there were electrical sockets positioned brilliantly for our use. Parking was totally easy and the acoustics, when the room filled up with perhaps a hundred people, were great (check out the video above taken when we were playing The Great North Run and Jack Robinson). We were able to gain access to the village hall earlier enough to avoid setting up being rushed which reduces strain and stress. It also seemed like a new hall and, for us, was absolutely spot on for us to provide the barn dance, ceilidh and folk dance music for the evening!

All in all, it was a wonderful night of traditional tunes and traditional folk dance in a brilliant rural Somerset, UK village hall setting. While we unloaded the equipment from my campervan, there were a couple of young girls playing on their bikes around the recreation area alongside the village hall, apparently completely unsupervised by parents. It was gentle village life just like I remember it many years ago when I was a young country lad.

Barn dances, ceilidhs and folk dances are such a good way for a community to get together to celebrate an event such as a birthday party because they encourage all guests to meet each other through dance in the course of the evening and are a marvellous form of entertainment for all age groups. Last night, almost everybody seemed to get up to dance at some time, even a rather elderly gentleman who said he would dance if the dance was simple and we didn't go too fast because he'd recently been in hospital having treatment. We were pleased to slow down the next dance for him and it was a joy to see him being helped around the dance floor by the other dancers. It was an example of communities, through dance, caring for each other and was brilliant!

In the course of the evening, we played traditional tunes from England, America, France and elsewhere so it was a truly international traditional folk music evening, which is the way we like it. The dance caller, Grahame, did a great job showing everybody how to do the dances and tailoring the dances to the experience of the dancers and the number of dancers wanting to dance at any particular time.  

So, if you are looking for a village hall for your birthday party, wedding, community event or whatever and you are local to the Meadway Hall, Compton Dundon, Somerton, Somerset, UK (eg. Street, Somerton, Glastonbury or Langport areas) it's well worth checking The Meadway Hall out.

If you also decide you would like to have a barn dance, ceilidh or folk dance at your chosen village hall, perhaps you will also consider Barnbuskers Ceilidh and Folk Dance Band to provide the music. It would certainly be a pleasure to return to the Meadway Hall to play again :-)

Barn dances, ceilidhs or folk dances are an ideal way for friends, family or local communites to get together, celebrate an important event or just have fun!

A barn dance, ceilidh or folk dance is a great way for communities to get together and enjoy each others company to the sound of music with fun dances where everybody gets to meet everybody else. It is good exercise and is very light hearted entertainment. When you participate in a barn dance, folk dance or ceilidh, it's hard not to smile!

Barn dances, ceilidhs or folk dances are ideal for a group of friends, family or a local community such as a PTA (parent teacher association), club or association to have fun together in a relaxed environment and celebrate a special occasion such as somebody's birthday, an annual dinner or other special event.

Because barn dances, ceilidhs or folk dances use traditional forms of dance, they are timeless and appeal to all age groups. Dances can be gentle or vigorous depending on the wishes of the dancers and can be arranged to suit all dancing abilities from youngsters with high spirits and lots of energy to the less athletic who might wish for more gentle dances.

There is no need for previous dancing experience because the 'caller' will identify the ceilidh dance experience of those present and 'call' the dances to suit their level of ability. Experienced 'folk dancers' may enjoy more complex dance figures throughout the event whereas newcomers to this sort of dance entertainment might prefer simpler figures they can quickly follow and enjoy.

Whether the barn dance, ceilidh or folk dance is for a birthday party, anniversary, wedding, annual dance for a PTA (parent teacher association) or other club or association, the important thing is that everybody enjoys themselves in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere and has fun ... which is what it is all about!

Privacy Policy

The privacy of our visitors to www.barnbuskers.com is important to us. At www.barnbuskers.com, we recognize that privacy of your personal information is important. Here is information on what types of personal information we receive and collect when you use visit www.barnbuskers.com, and how we safeguard your information. We never sell your personal information to third parties.

Log Files

As with most other websites, we collect and use the data contained in log files. The information in the log files include your IP (internet protocol) address, your ISP (internet service provider, such as AOL), the browser you used to visit our site (such as Internet Explorer or Firefox), the time you visited our site and which pages you visited throughout our site.

Cookies and Web Beacons

We do use cookies to store information, such as your personal preferences when you visit our site. This could include only showing you a popup once in your visit, or the ability to login to some of our features, such as forums.

We also might use third party advertisements on www.barnbuskers.com to support our site. Some of these advertisers may use technology such as cookies and web beacons when they advertise on our site, which will also send these advertisers (such as Google through the Google AdSense program) information including your IP address, your ISP , the browser you used to visit our site, and in some cases, whether you have Flash installed. This is generally used for geotargeting purposes (showing Cavite real estate ads to someone in Philippines, for example) or showing certain ads based on specific sites visited (such as showing cooking ads to someone who frequents cooking sites).

You can chose to disable or selectively turn off our cookies or third-party cookies in your browser settings, or by managing preferences in programs such as Norton Internet Security. However, this can affect how you are able to interact with our site as well as other websites. This could include the inability to login to services or programs, such as logging into forums or accounts.

Contact BarnBuskers Ceilidh and Folk Dance Band

To contact BarnBuskers Ceilidh and Folk Dance Band for more information about band availability, please click on comments below: