Kingussie, 12-14 November 2004

WE WERE promised a sensational weekend and it certainly lived up to it, and more. This was the second year of the “Strathspey Away with Dannsa” event in Kingussie, and managed to surpass most of the students expectations.

We were totally spoilt for choice, with new classes being added in fiddle, puirt-a-beul (mouth music) and mouthie, and a wealth of talented tutors for all of the classes. More than 120 students from Scotland and England enrolled in classes over the weekend.

The Festival got off to a brilliant start on Friday night with a packed dance floor, all trying to keep up with the very lively ceilidh music of the Incredible Fling Band. All ages took to the floor and enjoyed themselves whether they knew the dances or not, or indeed ,whether they were able or not.

After lunch on Saturday the group Amh gave a breathtaking performance in the Talla na Ros. No wonder they’ve been called the future of Gaelic singing, I feel sure we’re going to hear a lot more from this trio in the future.

Saturday evening’s concert with Dannsa was excellent yet again. They danced steps, moves and rhythms drawing on the whole spectrum of Scottish Traditional dance, stretching the limits the whole time. And when you don’t think you can be surprised by much more, on Sunday we were given a chance to see a contemporary piece of work performed by Caroline Reagh and Ian Hardie, which was stunning!

All in all an incredibly well organised Festival with a very personal touch from the organisers and tutors.  Thank you on behalf of all the students. Roll on Strathspey Away 2005 and give me another weekend in Heaven.

© Sheila McCutcheon, 2004