Have you ever felt that there must be lots of social fun and entertainment happening near you in Somerset or Devon but somehow you’re not hearing about it? Single or as a couple, why not join Barnbuskers Ceilidh Club Somerset and Devon Mailing list. It’s absolutely free to join. We’ll send you details of Barnbuskers Open to the Public Ceilidhs and Barn Dances when they come available. Tell your friends and get them to sign up too. The more people joining our ceilidh and barn dance club in your area, the more chance there is of us putting a dance on near you . It makes sense, doesn’t it. Maximum people, maximum fun! We like putting on dances and the more the merrier to make them exciting, entertaining and social events. 😃
If you’ve never tried ceilidh dancing, no problem. The person responsible for organising the dances and ensuring everyone is having fun is called the ‘dance caller’. Easy to spot. They usually have a hand or head microphone so they can be heard above the cheerful dance music and hubbub. Before each individual dance, the dance caller explains how to do the dance in easy stages and continues calling out the next thing to do as the dance starts to the music. There is no need to do complicated steps unless you want to and know how. Lots of people (perhaps most) walk, skip or even shuffle around the floor. Age is no barrier for country dancing. It’s good for all age groups.
Also, you don’t need a partner to join in a dance. Simply join the groups in the centre of the room and a partner will be arranged for you. Alternatively, you can join a dance as a couple or invite somebody else to join in the dancing with you. Lots of dances are progressive which means you might end up dancing with lots of different people in the course of the dance. Country dancing is essentially group dancing (called sets). You dance with a group of other dancers, sometimes even the whole room.
Which brings me to the music that we play. It’s called English Country Dance Music and it’s been going for hundreds of years… because it’s cheerful, foot tapping and fun. Sometimes, in the summer, we Barnbuskers go down to the local sea front near us in West Somerset and play a few tunes, just for fun, and it’s amazing how many people start doing skippy steps as they go past! They also smile. Ceilidh dancing puts a smile on your face and ours too. What’s not to like?
So where do these fun dances take place? Well, ceilidh barn dances can be found in all sorts of village halls and function rooms country wide. That’s why they are not always easy to find. They are popular because they are so inclusive and are really good at bringing a family or community together.
We do a lot of private special birthday, anniversary or wedding ceilidhs at these halls and function rooms where the dances are only for family and friends or members of a particular group.
But we also get invited to play at lots of ceilidh events put on by different clubs or organisations which are open to the public. So we can tell members of our ceilidh club about these through our mailing list. Alternatively, occasionally, we book a hall and put the event on ourselves. We like doing those and we’d like to do more. We just need to know where people want us to do them and our ceilidh dancing friends need to know where they are happening. This is the reason for the Barnbuskers mailing list.
Still wondering what happens at these dances? Here’s an example of a dance. They all have names and the caller might announce the name. Just as likely, the dance caller might just invite everyone into the centre of the room to form, for example, two lines. Your partner is then the person opposite you which is nice and easy and social. The caller will then walk everyone on the floor through the dance. It might be hold hands on your line, 4 steps in, 4 steps back, one line lifts arms to form an arch and the other line walk forward to go under the arches. Then the other line of dancers lift their arms to form an arch and the people in the other line duck under to return to their original place. The top couple in the line might then join hands and gallop (basically a side step) down between the lines while everyone claps in time to the music. Then it all starts again with forward and back etc. The caller calls out what to do before each move. It’s incredibly easy, fun and great exercise. People laugh and smile and have fun. We know they do because we put on lots of ceilidhs and barn dances and often we can hardly hear ourselves playing the music with the whoops, hollers and laughter. It’s no problem though, we just turn up the volume on our amplifiers. It’s people having fun and that’s what we’re all about!
There are lots of different English country dances. Dancing is generally in groups (sets). There can be sets of 4, 6, 8 or more… often as many as can fit down the hall or function room. The best way to discover the incredible variety is to come along and join in.
So, if you are in the Devon or Somerset area, why not avoid missing out on the fun by joining our Barnbuskers Somerset and Devon Mailing List so we can send you details of open to the public barn or ceilidh dances as they come available.
Alternatively, if you’re a bit nervous about mailing lists (aren’t we all), and are on Facebook, we have a Barnbuskers Ceilidh Club Facebook group that you can join, also free, where we post information about lots of events we are involved with. The Barnbuskers mailing list is better because it tells us where you are and enables us to plan ceilidhs and barn dances near you.
Of course if you are thinking of holding a private celebration for a special birthday (20th … 70th), anniversary or wedding, our band leader Judy would love to hear from you on our Barnbuskers contact page.
Finally, Barnbuskers Ceilidh Barn Dance Band is about bringing people together to have fun through dance and music. Whether, you are interested in holding a private event or joining in an open to the public ceilidh or barn dance, we look forward to hearing from you!
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