Iberian Gathering in Madrid

Some of the group after the night’s dancing in Mitchell’s brewery the ocean to join Kathy Fraser Collins, Fred Collins, Don Wood, Judi Nicolson and Etienne Ozorak to provide wonderful music for classes and for the evening events. With such a wealth of talent everyone attending had the opportunity to experience a truly wonderful week of dancing and music. In addition to all that, Ron Wallace guided thirteen aspiring teachers in a 3 day Basic Teaching Skills Course. Ron is, as all who have the pleasure of knowing him are well aware, a many–talented person and was the piper for the Grand March at both Balls. These were not the only summer schools held this year. Scottish Pinewoods 2015, held in the woods of Plymouth MA, had some excellent teachers including Graham Donald from Leeds, UK, Kathy Giacoletti, and Linda Henderson. Barbara McOwen was the director of music. Assisting her Dancers attending the TAC AGM weekend in providing the music were Anne Hooper, Tom Pixton, Terry Traub, Robert McOwen and Campbell Webster. Further South in the North Carolina mountains, Thistle School, founded and directed by Betty Lee Barnes, celebrated its thirty-fifth session. Jimmie Hill was the guest teacher from Scotland and was ably supported by Eilean Yates, Janet Lois Walker, Jeff Corrigan, J’Ina Middleton, Keith Bark, Deirdre Bark and, of course, Betty Lee herself. Luke and Adam Brady provided exciting music for the Ball, the evening dancing and for classes with Pete Campbell also playing for class work. With all these week long events coming so close to each other it is hardly surprising that many of the dancers are now taking a well earned rest and looking forward to gearing up again for the fall season. How fortunate we have been to have a summer so filled with joyous music and dance.

Iberian Gathering in Madrid Susana Page

The Iberian Gathering was held this year in Madrid in March. Once again it proved to be the perfect occasion to bring together not only dancers from the groups in Spain and Portugal, but also many dancers from ten other countries, including Abu Dhabi and Vancouver. The Gathering was organised this time by the Schiehallion Group of Madrid. The teacher and MC for the weekend was Jessie Stuart – a long-time friend of the group - and the Craigellachie band, well known at the Iberian Gathering, contributed once more with their great and lively music. Organizing the weekend seemed a huge task for a small group like Madrid, but as so often happens with SCD, enthusiasm, teamwork and a desire to do things the best possible way played a decisive role in the final outcome. Finding a hotel in Spain with a timberfloored ballroom big enough for a large number of participants is practically impossible. In the past the group decided to hold the event away from Madrid but even so, we always ended up dancing on marble or carpet, so you can imagine our joy when we found a hotel with a real wood dance floor, at an affordable price, and in Madrid of all places! The weekend started with a welcoming drink. The hotel had agreed to keep the bar open for an hour each night after the dances, which added to the atmosphere and helped to foster friendships. Lastly, the sun was kind enough to shine the whole weekend, which was the icing on the cake! Morning classes with Jessie were delightful, her lessons included, among other dances, Jacqui Watsons Strathspey, The Courage Reel

(with the Espagnole, how very appropriate!), The Reel of the Gordon Highlanders, The Dowry Bride (including photographs of the bride!) and Findlater Castle. Compiling the dance programs for both nights did not present too big a problem for the organizing committee, as this is always decided in part by consensus among the Iberian groups. Each year, the groups submit 3 jigs, 3 reels and 3 strathspeys each to the organizing committee and the final decision rests with them. The resulting programmes are quite balanced in the end although not many 5 couple dances are included as most Iberian groups have only a few members. The participants were pleased with a venue that was so close to the town centre; many of them took the opportunity to look around, have some tapas and enjoy the gorgeous weather after the morning classes. We would like to thank all the participants who came and helped to make this great weekend possible.