School Presentations

• – The Holly and The Ivy Winter Roadshow
• – Fiddles in Harmony with Sophy Ball
• – Winter Warmers with Laura Connolly

The Holly and The Ivy
– A Midwinter Roadshow for Schools

A concert lasting between 45 and 60 minutes, presenting songs, stories, dances and customs associated with Midwinter, Christmas and the New Year. It’s lively, informal, participative and highly professional. It includes both Christian and secular material – or rather it doesn’t distinguish between the two – all of it traditional in both content and style. There are some moments for quiet listening, and lots of opportunities for children to join in the singing, and to dance and/or join the band. As well as being a lively and enjoyable concert, the roadshow helps children and teachers to gain deeper insights into the significance of many of our midwinter customs and traditions. Schools receive a detailed preparatory letter and teachers’ notes, giving background information and words and music for some of the material. The schools roadshow is both highly entertaining and genuinely educational – lively, serious and fun. Though originally designed for upper primary or middle school age-groups, it has proven suitable for a wide range of ages, both Primary and Secondary, and is even performed to whole-school audiences. It is performed acoustically, and up to three performances per day can be given.

View and download the Promotional Flyer.

Fiddles in Harmony with Sophy Ball

• – A concert programme explaining the difference between violins and fiddles, with demonstrations of well known tunes and traditional fiddle tunes from the North East. Children are encouraged to listen for different styles of accompaniment, with harmony between the fiddles and counter melodies. Alternative ways to play the fiddle and their effects are also explored, including bowing techniques and pizzicato.
• – A workshop that introduces the children to ceilidh dancing with they learn carefully selected community dances from the folk repertoire. Succinct instructions encourage the children to participate and they quickly learn to listen to the music for each part of the dance. Boys and girls of all ages engage in the social and physical aspect of the dancing, which increases their self-esteem.

Winter Warmers with Laura Connolly

• – A concert features clog dances, tunes, songs and stories with a winter theme.
• – The workshop introduces the children to clog dancing from scratch (clogs provided).