Dinna Fash Celtic Trio

Dinna Fash is Scots Gaelic for don’t worry, and this trio uses cellos and fiddles to play a wide variety of old and new Irish, Scottish, Québécois and Shetland tunes.

Song Circle

Share a song, lead a song, request a song, or listen as we go round the circle. Song Circle is free and open to all who wish to participate.  Bring your own instrument, borrow one, or just sing.

Tonight’s Balkan-emphasis dance will feature
live music by

Živeli

Julie Firman – violin and vocals
Jeff Muhr – guitar
Bill Pfender – clarinet
Diane Rainsford – percussion, vocals
Leigh Ann Starcevich – tambura,  vocals
Brian Wood – guitar, tambura, bass

Živeli is a Corvallis-based Balkan folk dance band who have played for Hoolyeh dances twice last year to enthusiastic response.  They have played for folk dances in Salem and Eugene also.  Their repertoire includes dances from Bulgaria, Macedonia, Greece, Serbia, and Roma traditions.

KGB

• Julie King – piano
• Claude Ginsburg – violin, concertina, viola
• Dave Bartley – mandolin, guitar, cittern, etc.

This KGB is not a spy organization, but a band from Seattle that plays for New England style contradance, English Country Dance (as MI-5), Mostly Waltz and other social dance events, concerts, and private functions such as wedding receptions. We write a lot of our own music, and the rest comes from all over the world: the British Isles, French Canada, the Northeastern USA, Western and Eastern Europe, South America, the rest of the USA, and places we haven’t yet identified.  Their last (first) dance in Corvallis in January was cancelled because of a major storm.

William Watson

William Watson, a resident of Eugene, OR, danced his first contra in 1989 and began calling in Texas in 1992. Having called numerous contra events in cities coast-to-coast, William’s extensive experience and soothing voice project a calm confidence. His vigilant and thoughtful dance programming ensures a variety of figures, transitions, and sequences to entertain and support new dancers while offering the occasional challenge for the more advanced. His calling proficiency and sensitivities ensure everyone has a good time.

Note the changed location:

Wilson Elementary School
2701 NW Satinwood St

Beginners lesson starts at 7:30pm (experienced dancers welcome) dance starts at 8:00pm

Each dance is taught.  No partner necessary (it’s traditional to dance each dance with a different partner)

First and Third Saturdays of the month except July, August. Occasional special dances.

First and Third Sundays

We will mix Balkan, Israeli and other folk dances each week, with occasional live music from Balkan, Israeli and other traditions.  Watch the calendar for announcements about special dances, but just come to each dance and learn all sorts of dances.

Bring your instrument or just yourself and sing, play or just listen.

A Winter Gift

is presented by three of the premier Celtic Harpists in the world. Patrick Ball, Lisa Lynne & Aryeh Frankfurter perform Celtic legends, along with Irish and English literature woven together with beloved and rare pieces of holiday music. 

This trio is well known for  their first show “Legends of the Celtic Harp” which tells stories and legends of the harp through time. In their new show “A Winter Gift” storyteller and wire-strung harpist Patrick Ball along with harpers and multi-instrumentalists Lisa Lynne & Aryeh Frankfurter step into a magical world of Irish and English literature. The trio presents a heartwarming collection of tales and music from Celtic legend and traditional folk stories. They perform a  Child’s Christmas in Wales, a chapter from The Wind in the Willows, and passages from Shakespeare, William Butler Yeats, and Thomas Hardy, and mingle them with beloved and original pieces of seasonal music. Audiences will hear three Celtic Harps, Swedish Nyckelharpa, Fiddle, Bandura, Bouzouki and more. www.LegendsOfTheCelticHarp.com

Patrick Ball is an American master of the Irish harp and a captivating spoken word artist. He has recorded nine instrumental and three spoken word albums which have sold well over a half million copies internationally, winning national awards in both the music and spoken word categories. Patrick’s critically acclaimed concerts and solo theatrical productions have toured extensively throughout the United States, Canada, Ireland and the UK, and have been awarded grants by the California Arts Council and the Circle of Excellence Award from the National Storytelling Association. www.PatrickBall.com

Lisa Lynne is a multi-instrumentalist and performer who has gained worldwide recognition for her original music featuring her Celtic Harp. She is widely acclaimed for composing memorable and heartwarming melodies on the Windham Hill/Sony music labels that have repeatedly placed in the Top 10 & Top 20 on the Billboard New age music charts. Lisa tours year round performing at large US festivals and performing art centers. Her work in Therapeutic music has gained recognition from NBC, CNN, Fox News Atlanta and numerous newspaper and magazine articles including Wall Street Journal. Lisa’s music is heard throughout the award winning PBS special “Alone in the Wilderness,” amongst many other soundtracks for commercial television and independent films.Lisa was recently selected by Los Angeles Magazine as one of 50 most inspiring women. www.LisaLynne.com

Aryeh Frankfurter is also a renowned Celtic harper and world traveling multi- instrumentalist who went from virtuosic progressive rock violin to intricate Swedish folk and Celtic Music. He began with Classical violin at the age of three, his early studies and successes led him to explore various ethnic and international musical genres. Aryeh taught himself to play a variety of instruments bowed and plucked and most recently the rarely seen Swedish Nyckelharpa. His uncommon approach to the Celtic harp and folk harp repertoire, his numerous critically and commercially successful albums have earned him credit as a musician, recording and performance artist of extraordinary talents and abilities. www.Lionharp.com 

Penk, Pinney & Lindsay

George Penk is a well-known fiddle player across the USA, especially in the Pacific Northwest. He lives in Portland where he currently plays with the bands Joyride and Jigsaw. George collaborates with many musicians in various musical adventures, including being part of the Portland Collection project through his playing on the Portland Selection CD’s. His spirited and rich fiddle style is a delight to listen to. George is widely appreciated as a consummate dance fiddler working with callers to make sure the music is in-tune with the spirit of the dances. The Penk, Pinney, Lindsay trio, which includes Heather Pinney on piano and fiddle (also a member of Jigsaw) and Deborah Lindsay (from Corvallis) on percussion, works most often with the caller Erik Weberg, who also lends his expertise on wind instruments to the tune medleys.

Erik Weberg

I danced my first contra dance in Moscow Idaho in the Fall of 1986.  Several excursions to the dance hall were necessary for me to find the courage to actually dance, but once I, tried it caught hold quickly and I became a regular dancer. Christian Petrich encouraged me to try calling for the first time in 1990 and soon after that I started regularly attending the first Wednesday open mic in Spokane Washington. I called dances around Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho for a few years before moving west of the Cascades in 1993. I was soon asked to call dances in Portland and up the Willamette Valley. Since then I’ve been calling dances, festivals and weekends around the country from Seattle to Boston, from Fairbanks to Tuscon and most places between. I am able to enjoy this craft because of the good folks who encouraged and taught me to call dances years ago, the booking agents and local dance committees who have given me wonderful opportunities to practice in their communities, and the thousands of dancers and musicians who forgive me my mistakes and make it all worthwhile. If you’re reading this you’re probably one of them; so, thank you!

Note the changed location:

First United Methodist Church  2nd floor
1165 NW Monroe

Beginners lesson starts at 7:30pm (experienced dancers welcome) dance starts at 8:00pm

Each dance is taught.  No partner necessary (it’s traditional to dance each dance with a different partner)

First and Third Saturdays of the month except July, August. Occasional special dances.

First and Third Sundays

We will mix Balkan, Israeli and other folk dances each week, with occasional live music from Balkan, Israeli and other traditions.  Watch the calendar for announcements about special dances, but just come to each dance and learn all sorts of dances.

The Trail Band

Christmas With The Trail Band features your favorite holiday songs and some original holiday tunes arranged in the versatile, energetic style that has become the band’s trademark. Songs include Joy To The World, The First Noel, and many many more.

The Trail Band has been selected numerous times to represent the state of Oregon for regional, national and international events. Representing The Oregon Economic Development Department at the prestigious American Festival in Tokyo, the band performed for thousands and received enthusiastic ovations. They also received The Oregon-California Trails Associations Meritorious Award for their contributions to American history.

Song Circle

Share a song, lead a song, request a song, or listen as we go round the circle. Song Circle is free and open to all who wish to participate.  Bring your own instrument, borrow one, or just sing.