The barn dance or ceilidh is imminent. Everybody is looking forward to toe-tapping music and the excitement of joining in with friends and family at the ceilidh dance. The band is ready, the venue is booked … and the bass player goes down with the flu or some other lurgy that would make their presence at the Somerset or Devon UK ceilidh or barn dance impossible!
But the show must go on and this is why Barnbuskers barn dance and ceilidh band works very hard to ensure that there is a backup for every aspect of that which is necessary to turn up explain and play the traditional jigs, reels, polkas, hornpipes and waltzes that have entertained gatherings of family and friends over the centuries.
(listen through earphones to hear the bass properly)
Happily, Barnbuskers is a family and friends based band, and most of the family are multi instrumentalists, so there are lots of options for reconfiguring the performers. Strings are particularly well supported, with violins and cellos through to guitars and mandolins. Then there is the accordion, flute and clarinet to add to the wind alternatives. Instruments from friends of the family that play regularly include bass guitar and accordion. If there is an electronic glitch there is even a backup mixer / pa amplifier to make sure the person explaining the dances and the band can be heard above the party chatter and laughter. If the person explaining the dances (the caller) doesn’t turn up, the band leader (Judy) is able to step in and make sure the party goes with a swing,
But, as the saying goes, you can never have too much of a good thing and Judy, who likes a bit of soldering action on the side, came up with the idea of a foot bass. The idea was that she could play her violin whilst at the same time tapping the appropriate bass notes with her feet. Strangely (lol), this wasn’t available to buy, so she set about building one. Check out the video to see it being played during the final stages of its development as part of a home practice duo with Robin, the resident clarinettist.
As it happens, Robin and Judy are quite partial to a bit of getting out and playing in public for fun (aka busking). It’s just more interesting than practising at home and, if the weather is nice, is a lovely way to spend the afternoon and we do like an audience! Typically we play accordion and clarinet but eagle eyed observers might in the future see Judy playing her violin and stomping on her foot bass invention cheerfully accompanied by Robin on the clarinet as a duo. Of course, when busking, we play the same bouncy tunes we play for ceilidhs and barn dances, with a bit of ragtime jazz and Eastern music thrown in for fun, and, it’s not unusual to see the passing audience dancing by or even performing a quick do-si-do or right hand star.
I hope you enjoy the video – click on the link if you are interested in checking out whether we are available to play (usually including a 100% fit and healthy real life bass player) at your Somerset or Devon UK ceilidh or barn dance. We look forward to hearing from you!
Barnbuskers 