FiddlersWreck Ceilidh Band have been playing for ceilidhs across Yorkshire and beyond for over 20 years with a lively repertoire of tunes and dances to get everyone up on their feet. Expect a mixture of dances you recognise and some you may not, including some of Michael’s own.

Bluejay is Benjamin Rowe (Bearded Dragons, Contrasaurus) Joshua Webster (Contrary Faeries) and Nicky McConkey (Chaotic Good, Definitely Contraband). Combining the power of three fiddles, they play driving, exciting and lyrical music for contra dancing.

Caro Appleby and James Rhodes have been playing together for nearly as long as they’ve known each other. Their experience taking European tunes out of their comfort zone in larger bands like Trip Hazard and Portmanteau has taught them exactly what makes the music work for dancers. As Flying Cat, they strip the sound back to flute and melodeon, playing a mix of traditional and modern European repertoire that just feels right to dance to.

With thanks to the Society for International Folk Dancing for sponsoring this event.

Dance the night away. Anyone can call, anyone can play, anything can be danced.

What happens when you look at Constant Contra and go “yes…but Playford”.

Allow a handful of callers to guide you through a persistent string of Playford dances – no walkthroughs and no interruptions. Limited teaching of figures will be done at the start.

Programme

• Liquid Assets (J8x32) 3C (4C set)
• The Royal Deeside Railway (R8x32) 3C (4C set)
• Sandy O’Er The Lea (S8x32) 2C (4C set)
• The Wild Geese (J8x32) 3C (4C set)
• Gordon’s Cider Press (R5x32) 5C Sq.Set
• The Falkirk Lass (S8x32) 3C (4C set)
• Gaelforce Wind (J8x32) 3C (4C set)
• Crom Allt (The Crooked Burn) (R8x32) 3C (4C set)
• Friendships (S4x32) 4C set
• Fair Enough (J4x32) 4C set
• The Dancing Bees (R8x32) 3C (4C set)
• Langholm Fair (S3x32) 3C set
• The Carefree Highway (J8x32) 3C (4C set)
• Peridot And Sapphire (S3x32) 3C set
• The De’il Amang The Tailors (R8x32) 3C (4C set)

Full cribs for the dances can be found in this PDF.

Canna’Laigh has been playing for Scottish Ceilidhs and Country Dances nationwide for many years, including for IVFDF in Sheffield last year. The band is lead by Bernard on diatonic button accordion, with Jill on flute and Anna on fiddle. Their foot-tapping jigs, reels and strathspeys are sure to have everyone up and dancing!

A ceilidh with a difference, between the normal ceilidh dances there will be lots of display spots where you can come and show off the display dance your university society has put together. From amazingly sublime dances to sublimely silly dances (think Lord of the Rings themed Postie’s Jig or Scottish meets Monty Python).

What is the display ceilidh and who should sign up?

Way way back many centuries ago, IVFDF actually included an intervarsity dance competition. Over the years, the competition was lost, but the fun opportunity to do a dance for all the other universities to watch and cheer remains! Displays are particularly welcome from university folk dance societies - it is an excellent IVFDF if every university attending does a display at the display ceilidh. We also welcome displays from the morning workshops - one year the mumming workshop brought their play to the display ceilidh! We love to have other displays as well if there is time for them. Displays can be to live music or recorded music, we have had everything from a single fiddle player to Pitbull’s Timber.

Just sign up for a display on the list at reception if you want to display. The order will be chosen based on who signs up, but let us know if there are times at the display ceilidh that will be difficult for you

You may sign up for a practice slot when the hall is free between 14:00 - 15:00, if you want to try dancing your display in the space.

Ness’ Monsters is a ceilidh band based in York, leading dances for groups of all ages, sizes and levels of experience. Whether this is your first ceilidh, or you’ve danced many times before, you’ll enjoy many of the Scottish classics, with a few of our favourite Irish and English dances thrown in for good measure. Featuring violin, flute, guitar, keys, bass and drums, Ness’ Monsters creates a big sound and hopefully, big fun too!

Enjoy an afternoon of dancing from the 17th and 18th century, based around the dances published by John Playford, danced as they should be danced - fun, with lots of energy and to wonderful music.

Vicki Swan & Jonny Dyer have played for dance at clubs, festivals and social events all across the country. Musical chameleons, they regularly play for Ceilidh, Contra, ECD and Scandinavian dances. When the need calls, they have the right hats and indeed the right instruments for Medieval, Renaissance and Regency dancing too. They effortlessly blend traditional material with original tunes so you won’t know where the traditional and the modern. When given the freedom of ceilidh, expect driving tunes and a sound way bigger than two people should by rights create. if you’re up for multitasking, there may be choruses to sing while you’re still dancing!

Trip Hazard are a new Contra dance band, featuring an unusual mixture of instruments.

To help keep you dancing, our piano and bodhran do all the driving, and our multiple saxophones involve the operation of heavy machinery.

Side effects do NOT include drowsiness!

Banter are Nina Zella, Simon Care and Tim Walker. Three fine musicians whose roots are firmly in the traditional English genre, but who enjoy stretching the limits – in what a lot of people refer to as “the quirky Banter twist”. Formed in 2015, due to a happy accident, they immediately realised their common love for traditional English song and dance and began to mess around with it. They gained popularity, or should it be notoriety, very quickly and were soon performing at many of the country’s largest festivals, including Glastonbury, Cambridge FF, Sidmouth FF and Towersey. Now firmly established as one of the UK’s finest bands they have recorded their fourth studio album “Heroes”. Their second album of traditional material ….. but with that “twist” Described as “the world’s smallest big band”, Banter go from strength to strength.

“Banter were amazing. Fantastic harmonies and great playing” – Ralph McTell 2023

Doug Eunson (Melodeon / Hurdy Gurdy) and Sarah Matthews (Fiddle) perform for energetic ceilidh, concerts and Euro Bal dances.

“They are a duo that performs like a much larger group with dynamic vocals, great harmonies, warm stage presence and first rate instrumentals.”

For ceilidh, they pick great English traditional and self-penned melodies, enriched with harmony, and strong driving groove! They are experienced dancers themselves, and play for dancing regularly.

In their concert sets, Doug (Voice, Melodeon) and Sarah (Voice, Five-String Fiddle) use their natural, expressive musicality to craft their arrangements with style and intuitive elegance. As well as drawing on some of the finest English folk song repertoire to sing in breathtaking harmony, they play English and European dance music in outstanding instrumentals and beautifully flowing tune sets.

Dance the night away. Anyone can call, anyone can play, anything can be danced.

Just Keep Dancing! Allow a cavalcade of IVFDF’s finest contra dance callers to guide you through a constant stream of contra dance – no walkthroughs and no interruptions! If you want a break or to ask somebody else to dance, just stop dancing at the end of the set and join back in when you’re ready. Suitable for dancers comfortable with common contra figures.

Celebrate the end of another fantastic IVFDF by calling, playing and/or dancing at our survivors’ ceilidh!

There will be a sign up sheet for calling at the reception and Stephanie Martin will be leading the IVFDF Scratch Band (Scratch band rehearsals are on Saturday and Sunday mornings).

What is the survivors’ ceilidh and who should sign up?

The last dance of IVFDF is a scratch ceilidh where each dance is called by a different person. This is a great opportunity to introduce a pile of keen folkies to dances you love, get some practice calling in a friendly space where you only have to call one dance, (and maybe people will notice your calling and book you for more gigs!)

Callers must call gender neutral and pick a dance that the scratch band can play for (see IVFDF website for scratch band tune book).

We especially welcome student callers, young callers, career-young callers, and callers who have not called at IVFDF before. We will prioritise these if we get too many callers - but there is usually space for old favourite callers too!

Dancers will have a wide variety of dancing experience and be very tired by Sunday afternoon, so friendly accessible ceilidh dances are excellent choices. Please do not call a dance that has not been danced before.

Just sign up on the list at reception if you want to call a dance.

All My Life’s Buried Here - The Story of George Butterworth A Documentary Film

This documentary tells the story of George Butterworth’s life and music for the first time in a film, from his earliest childhood to his final hours in the violent confusion of the trenches. We follow Butterworth on his forays collecting folk songs to discover how they informed his own music. We learn why Butterworth once described himself as a ‘professional morris dancer’, and explore what led him to destroy so many of his own compositions before he died. Tracing his journey to its tragic conclusion we go with Butterworth into the trenches of northern France where he eventually led a battalion of Durham miners.

Featuring classic recordings of Butterworth’s music by the London Philharmonic under Sir Adrian Boult, plus exclusive live performances by Roderick Williams OBE, folk singer Peta Webb and archive recordings of English folk singers, this is a powerful portrait documentary revealing the emotional heart of George Butterworth’s remarkable story.

Join Dee Wright – the presenter of University Radio York’s popular show ‘For Folk’s Sake!’ on an exploration of the work of the country’s talented student musicians. Taking in a diverse range of Instrumental and vocal music; whether you need a break from the dancing or are looking out for a new musical rabbit hole this event is not one to miss!

Featuring

University of Kent folkshop

Heather (Flute), Emma (Flute) and George (Fiddle) and play all kinds of folk music including traditional English, Scottish, Irish and Swedish tunes. They hve been playing together for the last 3 years (our whole time at university). They have been performing at open days, pub sessions and festivals and very much look forward to playing in this concert at IVFDF.

Alex Skinner

A Bristol based piano accordionist currently studying in York, with a background in dance music. With his unique playing style, he plays an instrumental repertoire arranged from traditional and original tunes.

Rowan Scourfield

A talented young singer songwriter, based in Hitchin, Herts. With roots from both Folk music and Rock music Rowan creates a unique sound that captures his identity

Ada Wood and Georgie Rix

Central to the collaboration between Ada Wood and Georgie Rix is a desire to break the mould of conventional roles in both music and society.

Displaying an attentive understanding of space and melodic communication within their unique blend of two voices, fiddle and viola, Ada and Georgie create refined and heartfelt arrangements. Masterfully applying a grass-roots backgrounds in folk traditions and techniques to contemporary and globally inspired repertoire, they carry you through tear-jerking lows to foot stomping highs