World Fleadh

[Maggie]

If there was ever a reason for making a special trip to Ireland, apart from "Christmas in July", this is it:

www.theworldfleadh.com

This is an International Festival of Irish Music, a Fleadh Cheoil, pronounced Flaa Key-oal, held this year in the town of Portlaoise, which I know as it is on the way from Dublin to Tipperary. It is a good choice for a party on this scale.

For anybody who ever wondered what a céilí is like, what a séisiún is like, how it would feel to dance in the streets of an Irish town and not feel embarrassed because everybody is doing it, you could experience all that and more.

For the entire week, there will be impromptu sessions of music and dance breaking out on every street corner.
For the céilí dancing, if you didn't know the steps, you would be taken by the hand and taught. By the end of the dance, you would be laughing and dancing with the best of 'em.
Add to that an abundance of World-class musicians, dancers, singers........
Master classes of music, dance, theatre and song, workshops you would pay a fortune for anywhere else......
 
And don't get me started on the night life!
You would be spoiled for choice of what pub to go into.....and the entertainment will spill out into the streets anyway.

Then if you have any energy left, you could go on to this one, the National Fleadh Cheoil in Tullamore, County Offaly. It will be Offaly exciting! (forgive the pun - couldn't resist!) :

www.fleadh2007.com/Index.php?Page=Home

If you could only attend one party in your life, this should be the one.

It happens every year, so if you miss this one, there will be another in Ennis, County Clare in 2008.

[Wickster]

Maggie,

i think my Brother is Going to that..
hes excited!!

Wickiexx

[Meldy]

Maggie,

Wow this party really sounds fun!  So since I don't know the dance steps, they're kind enough to teach me? Wow 

Meldy

[Maggie]

Maggie,

Wow this party really sounds fun!  So since I don't know the dance steps, they're kind enough to teach me? Wow 
Meldy

Absolutely.....in fact, wherever there is céilí dancing, they will teach you.
We are always teaching people the steps at our Irish Club events.
And I even taught my dog O'Malley......we dance a jig together every day.

[Kimberly AJ]

What about practice? I thought we need to take a practice on this dance.

[zankoku]

Did I hear, Maggie, that youare transporting all of us to Ireland?
 
Jim

[Maggie]

Did I hear, Maggie, that youare transporting all of us to Ireland?
 
Jim

Sure......I'm taking names, when are we leaving?

I did give this some thought, as it's been mentioned before.

There would be three formats:
#1 - One week only. (Not long enough in my opinion!)
We go to Dublin to see the famous places + Newgrange + a castle or two. Then to County Kerry, Lakes of Killarney, Ring of Kerry, Dingle Peninsula. Cliffs of Moher? Medieval Banquet?

# 2 - Two weeks total. One week I would take you to some off-the-beaten-track places, not tourist places, then the other week you could take off on your own to wherever you want to go, while I visit my family.

# 3 - We would meet every other day, to give you chance to kiss the Blarney stone and all those tourist things, or you could just relax and sample the local hospitality.
On the alternate days I would show you around.
Hopefully you would see a country fair, music festival, or some local celebration.
Definitely a traditional music séisún and a céilí. You would see some historical sites as you wish, places you would drive by as a tourist without knowing they were there.
Maybe some local sports or even horse racing, which is totally different and much more fun in Ireland.
I would take you where the locals go!

This probably will never happen, but you never know.........

[KiernanKate]

Just out of curiousity, but didnt Orlagh win something in one of these music festivals awhile ago? I thought I read somewhere that she had....

[Kimberly AJ]

Hmm...I'm not sure. I did not see what was going on back then.

[Maggie]

Just out of curiousity, but didnt Orlagh win something in one of these music festivals awhile ago? I thought I read somewhere that she had....

I wouldn't be surprised if she had.

The competitions at Fleadh Cheoil set the standards by which Irish musicians are measured, and those standards are VERY high.
Most students of music go to Fleadh as they progress higher up the grades.
Only if they win can they advance to the next level.
That is how Máiréad became an All-Ireland Champion.
Most, if not all, of the ladies and musicians in CW will have been to local, regional, or National competitions at some stage of their studies.
Students of Irish dance go to Feisanna, which are local and regional dance competitions all over the World. There is sure to be a Feis in your State. (pronounced fesh, Feisanna is the plural, pronounced feshana)

Here is the website of the governing body in the USA, check out the strict competition rules:
www.northamericanfeiscommission.org

Our Irish Dance School here in Orlando send over their best students to the All-Ireland Competitions. They have to win the regionals here first.
Our Irish Club sponsors their trip to Ireland.

Some of our winners:


These competitions take place all over the USA and the World.
This is from the World Fleadh program:

Fleadh Competitions   
Over 2,000 competitors from all parts of Ireland, Britain and the USA who have qualified at their provincial and regional will compete for All Ireland titles in their chosen discipline in the various age categories - under 12 years, 12 to 15, 15 to 18 and senior. Get your official programme with detailed competition times and locations from the Fleadh office.


It goes without saying that the All-Ireland is the ultimate goal, you can go no higher.

http://comhaltas.ie/

[Kimberly AJ]

Wow! Looks like they've done a great job hitting the record.