Fleadh Ibiza 2009
Article submitted by Joan Pollard Carew, leading journalist with Set Dancing News who attended the event on behalf of the magazine.
The Annual Fleadh Ibiza was hosted once more in the luxurious four star Seaview Country Club in Port d'es Torrent San Antoin on the beautiful Balearic island of Ibiza. This superb complex has been like home to the thousands of holidaymakers who have travelled to Fleadh Ibiza over the past ten years.
Gerry Flynn and his Enjoy Travel Team had once more organised two weeks of music dancing story-telling, seisiuns, craic and twenty four seven entertainment ensuring that everyone had a wonderful time. The festival ran from Thursday 16th April to Friday 1st May.
The first night got off to a flying start with a ceilidh in the main ballroom. Pat Walsh and Ger McCarthy provided the super music. Ger McCarthy played with Pat as Michael Sexton was unable to travel because of a health issue. Pat and Ger kept us dancing and the sounds of tapping feet on the specially constructed timber floor was a good indication that everyone was delighted with the first ceilidh of the festival. I got the job of mc for the night and enjoyed been on stage with the two musicians. The craic was mighty.
The social dancers enjoyed Catherine Darcy and Images followed by The Enjoy Travel Band.
Holidaymakers were arriving from Irish and British airports all through the evening. Friday morning, in brilliant sunshine, after mass was celebrated by Fr Fred, Mickey Kelly taught the first set dancing workshop by the pool. We danced The lovely Moycullen Set on the fabulous wooden floor that has been put in place by Enjoy Travel specially for this festival for the past eight years.
Gerry Flynn managing director of Enjoy travel addressed us at our welcome meeting. He listed all entertainers briefed us on the programme for the week and welcomed everyone. We were all invited to celebrate with complimentary glass of champagne, sangria or fruit juice
The poolside hosted Darragh Folk. For the early afternoon slot , the ballroom was packed when Kathleen McGlynn taught her first sean nōs workshop. Piret gave her ballroom dancing class in the Seaview lounge.
At 4pm by the pool set dancers revelled to the electric music of The Brian Boru Ceili Band. Teresa Hughes was joined by her lifelong friend Sheila Murray. Sheila played the concertina in the Brian Boru Band instead of Joseph Hughes who was unable to travel. The two girls caused excitement with male dancers with their beautiful looks and brilliant music.
The second ceilidh in the main ballroom was packed when The Annally Ceili Band strummed up. We had another delightful ceili with minimum calling by Frank Keenan we danced a nice selection of sets . The Aura Bar was a haven each afternoon of the two weeks for would be musicians who wanted to learn to play an instrument as well as more accomplished musicians who merely wanted to improve their technique. Geraldine McGlynn and Sean Gilsenan who are two very accomplished musicians and music teachers took the music classes.
The lounge area housed the social dancing with Catherine Darcy followed by J & K Country. The cellar bar was packed with late night party goers and Michael Cleary and Breege Kelly made sure they enjoyed their late night dancing. Mick Mackey and friends had a superb seisiun as usual in The Aura Bar. . I am told that some musicians and dancers held a seisiūn until 5am on the first night. The scene was obviously set for the remainder of the festival.
Saturday morning by the pool, Frank and Bobby Keenan taught their first workshop. I was delighted that they chose the lovely Fermanagh set. The large gathering enjoyed the class and it's a treat to listen to Frank as he has a lovely style of teaching with his unique banter. He takes great care with teaching the correct steps and style. The lounge area hosted Seamus Melvin with his jive tuition class. The ballroom had Kathleen McGlynn teaching sean nōs
Back by the pool Sean Wilson took the stage for early afternoon social dancers. By 3.30pm set dancers gathered to dance to Pat Walsh & Ger McCarthy. We danced a great selection of sets. Frank Keenan invited me to call the West Kerry and The Moycullen Set. The floor was nicely packed. Great dancing by some of the best dancers on the set dancing scene. Young and not so young had a ball. Age, size or creed never count in the set dancers world, especially in Ibiza.
With a superb buffet dinner menu of both hot and cold food, we had built up our energies for more dancing. The ballroom hosted Brian Boru Ceili Band for set dancing Mickey Kelly was in his usual fine form as mc. He invited Cyll Bell to call The Moycullen Set and myself to call The Sliabh Luachra. We had a mighty night. down in the Aura Ballroom. Fīor Ceili dancers enjoyed their night with the music of The Copperplate Ceili Band and Clement Gallagher as m.c. Social dancers enjoyed Curtis Magee followed by Michael Muldoon and The Enjoy Travel Band Mick Mackey had a huge crowd in his seisiun again and the craic went on until 1am. The cellar bar came alive then, to Dermot Hegarty and Pat Jordan.
Sunday morning, it seemed that the rain had followed us from home. The festival continued full steam ahead. Spirits were not dampened in anyway. The sean nōs workshop was held as scheduled in the ballroom and the lounge had Piret with her ballroom class. The foyer had a huge gathering of seisiūn musicians having an impromptu seisiun. The early afternoon saw Mickey Kelly give a lovely two hand dance workshop in the ballroom. I had a very enjoyable chat with Michael Commins from Co Mayo. Michael is a well known journalist and song writer. Amongst his many achievements in the song writing world are
Maria Is Heading Out to California - recorded by Foster and Allen and Mick Flavin;
Big Tom Is Still The King - recorded by Susan McCann;
Blue Kilkenny Eyes - recorded by Eddie Lee;
Tubbercurry My Old Friend - recorded by Big Tom;
My Old Home in Mayo -recorded by Big Tom, Mick Flavin and Kevin Prendergast;
The Beautiful Western Waltz - recorded by Damien Bowe;
Galway and You - recorded by Larry Cunningham and Kevin Prendergast
Michael works with Mid West Radio and has a weekly column in the Mayo News. Michael and myself share an interest in the works of poets Patrick Kavanagh and Seamus Heeney. It was also wonderful to share theories of the middle child syndrome with Michael.
The lounge area took care of social dancers for the late afternoon with the superb twosome Limelight. The magic music of The Annally Ceili Band with Mickey Kelly as m.c., danced the feet off the set dancers. The Fīor Ceili dancers danced to Pat Walsh and Ger McCarthy.
Sunday night we had The Copperplate Ceili Band for our ceilidh and Frank Keenan as m.c. The night just flew by. The music and dancing was to die for. We had a lovely selection of sets including Labasheeda, Moycullen, Fermanagh, Claddagh and Ballyduff. On Sunday night Michael Commins (Mid West Radio) was presented by Gerry Flynn of Enjoy Travel with a specially commissioned engraved mirror to celebrate his achievement as favourite Sunday night late – show host of all regional radio stations in Ireland. This initiative was arranged by Noel Ryan from Ballina who felt that Michael’s achievements warranted recognition and so it came to pass. Noel is also responsible for the installation of the ‘Memories Wall’ where he has on display hundreds of photographs of showbands and other great entertainers from yesteryear. Many a tear has been shed here as the pictures rekindle great memories of the past.
The lounge tonight revelled to TR Dallas followed by The Galway Bay Jazz band. The Cellar bar had Showband Sounds led by Frankie McDonald, to while away the small hours of the morning.
Monday morning and the brilliant sunshine had returned. We danced our workshop by the pool. Mickey Kelly was our tutor and the set he selected was his own composition. The Ibiza Set. This is a fabulous set with unusual moves. Mickey took his usual great care in explaining each move and only continued with the class when everyone was comfortable. Mickey has wonderful patience and encouragement for beginners. The workshop concluded with Mickey teaching a selection of two hand dances, including Charleston, Margaret's Waltz and The Sweetheart Waltz.
The Aura Ballroom had a Fīor Ceili workshop with Raymond Carroll. Seamus Melvin gave Jive tuition in the Seaview lounge.
The poolside was then taken over for social dancing with Tom and Irene on stage. Inside in the ballroom, Frank Keenan gave an advance class in The Clare Orange and Green Set. Frank told us that this was the first set he learned and remembers the late Connie Ryan teaching it in Dublin. Frank said it took all day to learn it but that it is still one of his own favourite sets.
By the pool in the blazing sunshine Fīor Ceili dancers had gathered for their first outdoor session. The Copperplate Ceili band were on stage and Clement Gallagher was m.c., with Raymond Carroll as guest caller. Many set dancers joined in the dances. I was delighted to dance The Sweets of May and the Rakes of Mallow. The Morris Reel and Gates of Derry were a bit too ambitious for me. It was wonderful to sit and enjoy this discipline of dancing, with good friends great coffee and superb music.
Back in the ballroom the Monday night ceilidh had The Brian Boru Ceili band on stage and the two girls Teresa and Sheila had their fan club present. The music was marvellous as usual for this gifted band. Mickey Kelly and Frank Keenan shared m.c. duties. The Aura ballroom was packed too, as I called over to hear Michael Muldoon in concert. This young man has a magical voice and stage presence. He visits Ireland several times a year and appears with Daniel O'Donnell. The second half of the show was something different as we had Dave Rawson a Hypnotist on stage. This young man is originally from Yorkshire England but has lived in Ibiza for many years. The show was hilariously funny and the participants were all ladies. Nothing untoward or embarrassing happened it was all just good clean fun.
Back at the Seaview lounge Michael and Breege entertained the social dancers. The first heat of the waltzing competition took place. Tony Stevens and his band closed the show with their usual superb performance. J & K Country kept the cellar bar crowd happy. Mick Mackey and the seisiún musicians had a late start with the concert next door, but when they got going they made up for lost time with their music, storytelling and singing.
The pool area came alive at 11am on Tuesday morning with Frank Keenan's workshop. I had been chatting with Frank and Bobby about a set suitable for beginners and recommended The Lispole Set. Frank decided to go with that this morning. I gave an introduction to the set and its history. The class really enjoyed this simple set especially the less experienced dancers. Frank thanked me for highlighting it.
The ballroom had Kathleen McGlynn with her Sean Nós class. The lounge had Seamus Melvin with Jive tuition followed by Piret with a Ballroom dancing class.
At 2pm Catherine Darcy and Images gave their last performance at this years festival by the pool. It was good to do some social dancing and catch up with my social dancing friends. At 4pm we had our afternoon ceilidh with Brian Boru Ceili Band and Frank Keenan . I was delighted when Frank decided to include the Mazurka Set amongst his list. The Aura ballroom had Fior Ceili classes with Clement Gallagher and a fīor ceilidh at night
The main ballroom packed with eager set dancers to dance the night away to The Annally Ceili Band. Frank and Mickey shared mc duties. Included in our list of sets was The Moycullen , Clare Orange and Green. Mickey called The East Mayo I called The Sliabh Luachra
The lounge saw social dancers enjoying Limelight followed by Pat Jordan and Dermot Hegarty. The second round of the waltzing competition also took place here. Sean Wilson & Tony Mac provided the music for the cellar bar.
Wednesday morning by the pool Frank Keenan gave his final workshop of the festival. We danced The South Galway Set and finished with a little East Galway Set. The latter I saw for the first time last year in Ibiza when Frank introduced it to us. The step in this is the Connemara reel step. The class was well attended and everyone enjoyed the sets selected. Today was also County Colours Day, fancy dress and talent show. This is a phenomenal day and as the group parades through the Seaview Country Club to the outdoor stage the place becomes an absolute mass of colour as the counties attempt to outdo each other. T.R Dalas entertained us from 2pm to 4pm and set dancers social and fior ceilidh dancers enjoyed the sunshine and social dancing. The talent show was the usual variety of singing dancing and storytelling. The standard was extremely high and very, very entertaining. It was marvellous to sit in the warm sunshine and see many friends on stage. I felt so proud to be Irish and part of this wonderful festival.
The fancy dress and County shirt parade was superb. Tremendous effort by everyone. I stood on stage to get good photographs and my eyes filled with tears of happiness to see the wonderful display of county colours. The winner of the talent show was Aidan Kelly for a very amusing recitation on how to get a wife. Aidan is from Co Mayo and is a fine set dancer also. The fancy dress winning theme was Death of the Celtic Tiger and the winning ladies were Noeleen Doyle and Abigail O'Callaghan. The ballroom saw the final ceilidh for dancers who had to return home after the first week. The mood was a bit low until the music of The Copperplate lifted everyone to enjoy the night.
I had a few duties to attend to. The final of the waltzing competition was taking place in the lounge with Curtis Magee on stage. The winners were Bernie Sturdy and Michael O'Donoghue from Co Meath. I knew Bernie as a wonderful set dancer. I then took myself down to the Aura bar for Mick Mackeys Seisiūn. I promised to take a few photographs of Geraldine and Sean's instrumental class. I just made it in time to line up the music pupils before their performance. It was difficult to believe that some of these pupils had only began music classes here in Ibiza. Testament to the brilliant teachers and the dedication of the pupils.
Frank Baxter and Austin Nevin celebrated their birthdays. No cake available but two apples with candles in them sufficed. As usual the seisiún was fantastic full of fun and variety. Mick Mackey is a wonderful coordinator leader and musician. I sat beside a lady who was getting ready to do a brush dance and I learned that she was Siobhan Casey from Clifden Connemara Co Galway. Siobhan told me that she had come with seven of her friends and that this was their first trip to this festival. “I will be back next year I can assure you she said and I will bring more of my friends. I never knew that a week like this was possible. It's just amazing, so much music and dancing not enough hours in the day or night. I scarcely go to bed at all. Don't want to miss something” Siobhan then did her party piece of brush dancing. I could see the Connemarra style of influence I love so much. We danced a few figures of different sets. I was told this happened every night. Like Siobhan I too would love more hours on the clock.
Thursday morning those on one week holidays were returning home and as usual I felt lonely to see close friends like the Galmoy group depart. Later in the day new arrivals would fill the empty spaces.
The second week was more or less a carbon copy of the first. We had some different artists, performers and set dancing teachers also. Mickey Kelly began the first set dancing class by the pool and decided to concentrate on a beginners class. He taught the Connemara, Antrim Square and Baile Bhuirne Set. Mickey stressed the importance of tradition in style and steps for each set.
Bronagh Murphy from Co Waterford joined Mickey Kelly as our set dancing teacher for the second week. Classes were alternated each day between these two wonderful teachers. Each with their own unique style and panache. The duties of m.c. were also shared for the ceilidh each night. Mickey Kelly included The Moycullen and East Mayo sets in his classes and also ran a fabulous two hand dance class. Bronagh Murphy did the Mazurka and Borlin Jenny Set concluding with The Peeler and the Goat, a lively little two hand fun dance. Bronagh has a superb personality and is an excellent teacher.
Mass on the second week was held by the pool in brilliant sunshine. The Atha Caoire Set dancers with Leader Joe Mannix gave a demonstration of The Borlin Set after mass. This group had won their holiday in Ibiza (curtesy of Enjoy Travel) as winners for the second year of The Senior Competition in set dancing at The Sean Dempsey festival in Manchester in November 2008. Kelly Anne McGuire, granddaughter of the late Sean Dempsey was on the Atha Caoire team. I spoke to Joe Mannix and asked him how this young Manchester lass came to be in his team of dancers. Joe told me that Kelly Anne travels over regularly to Ireland and is a member of The Atha Caoire Comhaltas club. Joe Mannix as guest tutor on Tuesday morning and gave a class in The Borlin Set and also two classes in Sean nos.
Swallows Tail Ceili Band arrived to support The Copperplate for the second weeks set dancing. Numbers had reduced slightly but with between seven and ten sets by the pool for classes and on average twelve sets at ceilidh's the atmosphere and dancing was just magic. This year, set dancing continued in the main ballroom on that wonderful wooden floor. Our ceilidh finished each night by 11.30 which left lots of time to join in social dancing. Extra bands had also arrived for social dancing including that marvellous Co Antrim artist Liam McLoughlin. Nicky James, Nathan Carter Declan Aungier, Bros. Walsh and Lovely Leitrim man himself, Larry Cunningham. We had guest appearances of the winner of Tg 4 Glòr Tire, competition sponsored by Enjoy Travel. The talented Co Roscommon lady is Carmel McLoughlin from French Park in Roscommon.
The concert on the second week was pure magic with Declan Aungier taking us on a musical trip around the world with his accordion. Tears came to my eyes as he played one of the late Dermot O'Brien's numbers Alpine Slopes. Declan gave a brief history of each tune. He is one seriously talented musician and an absolute joy to listen to. The second half of the concert was fun and games once more with hypnotist Dave Rawson back on stage.
The second weeks festival concluded with the same protocol as the first. We had our talent show followed by the fancy dress and the Count Shirt Day with the parade.
Effort and style was superb. The winner of the talent show was Co Cork Atha Caoire set dancer Timmy Crowley. He sang in a fantastic traditional style. The fancy dress winner was Tony Kearney with his depiction of Molly Malone, Tony from Worthing England. Donated his prize to charity.
The winners of the waltzing competition on the second week were Mari and Paul Conaghtan from Abbeyleix Co Laois.
Fleadh Ibiza 2009 had come to an end. Patrons have already begun booking for next year. If you wish to secure your place and retain the same room at the best music and dancing festival in the world, then contact Enjoy Travel immediately. Even though the precise travel dates have not yet been finalised, I can confirm that it will once again be the last two weeks in April.
This year due to new security legislation in Spain, the fireworks display had to be dispensed with. Apparently you now must have an explosives licence and arrange special transport to the island.
We had no need for any fireworks as we had created our own with excellent music, mighty dancing, singing, fantastic storytelling and great Craic! The sparks of our enjoyment are still glowing on the beautiful Balearic island of Ibiza.