The South Coast Celtic Fest is May 3, 2014 at the Hales Center at Southwestern Oregon Community College 1988 Newmark St. in Coos Bay. The event is a collaborative effort of the South Coast Folk Society, the Coastal Celtic Society, and Soroptimist International of the Coos Bay Area.
The festival starts at 10 a.m. and includes 24 hands-on workshops, vendors and two performance stages featuring shows by Hillcrest Kids, Steven McVay, John MacRae, Contra Swings, Mary Grace Brogdon, Wee Willie& the Auld Cuifs, Sharon Rodgers, Nick Metcalf & Candace Kreitlow, Ric Morrisonn, Stacy Rose, Joe Ross, and Oregon Coast Pipes & Drums. Enjoy music from 10:00 – 6:30 pm at no charge!
Music workshops include fiddle, Irish whistle, guitar, bagpipes, Ceili dancing, Irish Pub Songs, dissecting the concertina, waulking songs, bodhran, and Maypole dancing. Participants are encouraged to bring their instrument and recording device.
Cultural workshops include basic genealogy, intro to Irish language, Stories of The Sidhe, Carving a Welsh Love Spoon, Tales of Growing Up in Ireland, Making a Celtic Knot Journal, and more. A track of workshops will be available to kids aged 6 and above.
An Irish session for all acoustic musicians runs from 4 -6:30 p.m., and a bonny knees contest round out the afternoon activities.
Vendors of handcrafted jewelry, musical instruments, baked goods, and other merchandise will have booths displaying their goods.
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| Oregon Coast Culinary Institute |
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| Molly's Revenge |
The evening concert begins at 7 p.m. with a grand entry from the Oregon Coast Pipes& Drums Band. Then taking the stage will be Kitchen Ceilidh, a women’s a cappella group singing traditional and current songs in Scottish Gaelic, as well as sharing Scots Gaelic Cultural traditions. The headliner is Molly’s Revenge, a dynamic, acoustic Celtic band known for its unique and infectious enthusiasm. The classic combination of bagpipes, whistle, and fiddle, with a backdrop of guitar, mandola, and bodhran guarantees an enjoyable experience for all fans of Scottish and Irish music.
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| Kitchen Ceilidh |
Evening concert tickets are $20. An all-workshop day pass is $15. A discounted pass of $5 is available for children 12 and under, thanks to a generous grant from Coos County Cultural Coalition.
Tickets are available at Off the Record (2227B Newmark, North Bend), Books by the Bay (1875 Sherman, North Bend), Coos Bay Visitors’ Center (Hwy 101, Coos Bay), and Bandon Mercantile (535 S. 2nd St., Bandon).
The festival is generously sponsored by the following local businesses and organizations: Sol Coast Companies, Gold Coast Security, E.L. Edwards Realty, O’Bryan Advanced Dentistry, Edward Jones of Coos Bay & North Bend, Hough, MacAdam & Wartnik, Farr’s True Value Hardware, Kerbo Engineering, Oregon Garden Art, MacDuff Design, Coos County Cultural Coalition, The Mill Casino, and the Coastal Celtic Society. For additional information, contact Stacy Rose 541.808.1002 rosecontra@gmail.com
For a full description of all workshops, schedule and more, go to this festival link. For updates on Facebook, link here.
