How we got to here....

We decided that the ceilidhs would take place on the second Friday of the month to ensure that they didn't clash with our other local events - mainly Unicorn Ceilidhs in Hitchin. We also chose Fridays in order to keep Saturdays clear for the more profitable function bookings that professional musicians rely on.

In the beginning...

The series started out in 2000 with an early line-up of MoonDance and Bob Adams calling, as part of the first Dunstable Folk and Roots Music Festival. Right from the start it was thought of as an opportunity for callers and bands to try out ideas such as new and/or different dances and techniques such as 'rolling starts'. The venue was a local social club near the town centre, with adjacent parking and a bar run by the club; more recently a hall in the next block has proved to have many advantages, with a bigger stage and dance floor, enthusiastic manager and - at last - space for guest dance sides to change into kit!

The series had some notable successes and featured a mix of well-known and up-and-coming bands. The main problem was that lack of a dedicated organising team meant that the series never really built up a large enough audience to ensure a consistent number of dancers. However the regulars begged us not to scrap the ceilidhs, saying they were really friendly events! After Brian Heywood attended the SEFAN Regional Strategic Conference in 2009, the series was revitalised. A key discussion at the conference was how to involve younger people in the organisation and promotion of folk events. Immediately after the conference Brian approached his daughter Lisa and colleague Tom Fairbairn to take over the management of the ceilidhs. The idea was that they would call on the assistance of the original team as required but take responsibility for the everyday running of the dances.

Turning over a new leaf...

In September 2009 the series was handed over to a new youth team and the ceilidhs were relaunched to take place on the second Friday of every month (with a break for the summer). The most important decision made was to run every month (regardless of audience turnout) for at least four months, up to Christmas. Steps were taken by the organising team to advertise as widely as possible, much more thoroughly than before - starting with 2500 glossy flyers which were strategically placed in shop windows around the town and available to pick up from as many locations as possible.

Deciding to have a resident caller and house band is very different to the constant change that most ceilidh series seek. Although it may seem old fashioned to have our own 'house band', it's not a static entity. There have been three core musicians (Sam McEvoy, Tom Fairbairn and Brian Heywood) who are all professional musicians. To add to their sound, guest musicians are invited, generally for a block of three consecutive events, which matches the tenure of the resident caller. The caller can expand the repertoire from month to month, and at the May 2010 dance, regulars were invited to vote for their favourite dances for Ali Heywood to call in June to end the season.

Community involvement is a large part of the ceilidhs, and one way that we tried to promote this is to invite local groups to perform in the interval. So far we've had local singer / songwriters, a well-established youngsters' folk dance group, a drama group and a rock choir - who have not only provided great performances, but have jumped in for the dancing too! We have also tried to get involved in other outreach events, such as promoting the dances at an outdoor festival ceilidh in Luton.

The series management team tried a number of things to help promote the event locally including offering special ticket deals to local clubs and charities, providing hot snacks in the interval at cost. Unfortunately, with a few notable exceptions, the series never managed to attract enough of a local audience to make the events viable over the year. This is complicated by the fact that the active members of the Chiltern Ceilidh team have moved away from the area and not enough local volunteers have been forthcoming to fill the gaps.

The Future...

From the start of 2012, the series will be reverting to quarterly, using local musicians and callers who are prepared to donate their services for expenses. Whether this a permanent arrangement will depend on both audiences and the availability of volunteers to help out on the night. So it's over to you!