One of our most popular Focus Areas is Celtic, so we list anything here that has to do with: Ireland, Scotland, Isle of Man, Brittany, Wales. You'll find a cross-over with workshops that also cover Historical Harps, of course! Our Sunday Add-on, Festival of Early Irish Harp, sponsored by the Historical Harp Society of Ireland has all its workshops marked HHSI, for further clarification.
On this list we've marked how the workshop is presented: whether it's Live on Zoom during festival weekend or whether it's a Video (from 2021) on in our Archive (2020). We'll have about 50 "Live" workshops and events during festival weekend so don't worry if you miss one or there are 2 workshops on at the same time that you want to go to. We're recording them and will post them on the workshop pages on Somerset Online, soon after the festival. All of the "live" workshops will be held on Zoom. All times are noted in Eastern Time. Adjust for your time zone. If the workshop is marked as "Archive" you have to have bought access to this content. You can add Archive access anytime before or even after the festival.
| Day/Time (ET zone) | Workshop | Presenter | Level | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Video | Accompaniment for Irish Sessions | Laoise Kelly | Int. | |
| Archive | Ancient Harp of Scotland | William Jackson | Int. | |
| Video | Arranging Basics for Traditional Melodies | Mairi Chaimbeul | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/23/21 3-4:30pm | Arranging Tips & Tricks, Next Level | William Jackson | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/22/21 10-11:30am | Beautiful Breton melodies | Tristan LeGovic | Beg-Int | |
| Zoom 07/24/21 10-11:30am | Beyond Carolan: Ireland’s Other Harper/Composers | Grainne Hambly | Int. | |
| Video | Beyond Jigs and Reels | Grainne Hambly | Int. | |
| Video | Breton Music Introduction | Tristan LeGovic | Beg-Int | |
| Video | Breton Music's New Influences | Tristan LeGovic | Int-Adv | |
| Video | Can we recreate the music of the old Irish harpers? | Siobhan Armstrong | Any | |
| Archive | Carolan: His Life and Music | Grainne Hambly | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/25/21 10:30-11:45am | Carolan’s rhythm: music of an earlier time | Andrew Lawrence-King | HHSI | |
| Zoom 07/24/21 3-4:30pm | Celtic Circle Play-Along | Christina Tourin | Any | |
| Archive | Celtic Connections | Rachel Hair | Any | |
| Video | Celtic Music for Therapeutic Applications | Christina Tourin | Any | |
| Video | Celtic Service | Debbie Brewin-Wilson | Any | |
| Archive | Composing in a Traditional Style | William Jackson | Int. | |
| Archive | Contemporary Carolan | Kim Robertson | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/23/21 10-11:30am | Crossing to Ireland | William Jackson | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/24/21 3-4:30pm | Early Irish harp intro & demo | Karen Loomis | Any | |
| Video | Echoes from Antiquity | Ann Heymann | Any | |
| Zoom 07/25/21 10:30-11:45am | Eibhlín a Rún: learn to sing an 18th-century Irish harp song | Eibhlís Ní Ríordáin | HHSI | |
| Zoom 07/23/21 1-2:30pm | Feminist Harpists & Domestic Rebellion in 19th Century Ireland | Nancy Hurrell | Any | |
| Video | Fiddle on Harp | Rachel Hair | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/25/21 10:30-11:45am | Fixing the left hand fingers– Learning the first tune, Mailí Bhán | Sylvia Crawford | HHSI | |
| Archive | French Flavor in Québécois Music | Ailie Robertson | Int. | |
| Video | Gaelic Harps & Artistic Research | Ann Heymann | Any | |
| Zoom 07/23/21 3-4:30pm | Gaelic Song & Harp Together | Ann Heymann | Any | |
| Zoom 07/25/21 10am-5pm | Harpers' Escape at Somerset (intermediate): Sunday Add-on | William Jackson | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/25/21 10am-5pm | Harpers' Escape at Somerset (advanced level): Sunday Add-on | Grainne Hambly | Adv. | |
| Zoom 07/25/21 10am-5pm | Harpers' Escape at Somerset (beginner group): Sunday Add-on | Debbie Brewin-Wilson | Beg. | |
| Video | Historical Accompaniment: What did the lower hand play? | Siobhan Armstrong | Any | |
| Archive | Irish dance music: Intro to Ornamentation & Arranging | Grainne Hambly | Int-Adv | |
| Zoom 07/24/21 1-2:30pm | Irish Dance Tunes for Beginners | Laoise Kelly | Beg. | |
| Video | Irish Slow Airs | Laoise Kelly | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/23/21 10-11:30am | Jazzy Accompaniment for Traditional Music | Tristan LeGovic | Int-Adv | |
| Zoom 07/22/21 3-4:30pm | Mann Up Your Repertoire | Rachel Hair | Int. | |
| Archive | Manx Music 101 | Rachel Hair | Beg. | |
| Video | Manx Music Starter Kit | Rachel Hair | Beg. | |
| Archive | Manx to the Max | Rachel Hair | Int. | |
| Video | Old Irish and Scottish harp traditions: general introduction | Simon Chadwick | HHSI | |
| Zoom 07/25/21 12:15-1:15pm | Old Irish harp repertory--how do we find it? | Simon Chadwick | Any | HHSI |
| Video | Putting the Lilt in Scottish and Irish dance tunes | Mairi Chaimbeul | Int. | |
| Video | Queen of Music: Early Irish Harp | Karen Loomis | Any | HHSI |
| Zoom 07/22/21 1-2:30pm | Reel Time in Ireland | Laoise Kelly | Int. | |
| Archive | Rhythm and Groove Workout | Mairi Chaimbeul | Int | |
| Zoom 07/23/21 1-2:30pm | Scottish Gaelic Song Airs | Mairi Chaimbeul | Any | |
| Archive | Shetland to Scandinavia Connections | Ailie Robertson | Int. | |
| Zoom 07/24/21 1-2:30pm | Song Groove Patterns | Mairi Chaimbeul | Int. | |
| Video | Touching History: the harpers’ marks on the early Irish harps | Karen Loomis | Any | HHSI |
| Zoom 07/25/21 9am-10am | Tradition Bearer Session | Jimmy O'Brien Moran | HHSI | |
| Video | Understanding old Irish harp fingering | Sylvia Crawford | Any | HHSI |
| Zoom 07/24/21 1-2:30pm | Wire-strung Harp Essentials | Ann Heymann | Any | |
| Zoom 07/23/21 10-11:30am | Wistful Waltzes | Rachel Hair | Beg-Int | |
| Zoom 07/25/21 10:30-11:45am | Would the real Danny Boy please stand up? | Siobhan Armstrong | Any | HHSI |
Updated 3/4/21
Workshop descriptions and schedules are subject to change. Refresh your browser to make sure you have the latest version of this page.
