May is a magical month and therefore this month we have not one, but two offerings for you! You already know about the Norwegians at Victoria Works on Thursday 2nd May, right?
It’ll be difficult to follow that, but we don’t want to miss our usual Thursday 9th back at our familiar Shakespeare’s.
So Susannah and Jo will be upstairs in Shakespeares from 8pm for a troubleshooting dance workshop. Bring any queries, complexities, half-remembered ghosts of dances, and we’ll try and resolve the mysteries, or just polish up your style. If any musicians are keen to try out your workshop-playing skills, then come and join us, and otherwise, we’ll see you at 9pm.
To be followed at 9pm by our usual open Eurossession. All welcome, with or without a donation of £5.
Sheffield Eurosession is very happy to welcome Vegar and Mette Vardal for a niche Norwegian dance workshop and concert event this on 2nd May at Victoria Works. Vegar and Mette are on their way from Norway to teach Valdesspringar at Scandimoot (the lovely Scandinavian music and dance event in the Yorkshire Dales), but are kindly stopping to give us an exciting taster in Sheffield.
7:00-9:00 pm dance workshop 9.00-9.30 pm concert 9:30 pm onwards: More dancing and informal session with Vegar! Bring your instruments!
We might not achieve the full Valdesspringar in an hour’s workshop, but if you’ve a working pair of legs, and a sound pair of shoes with a smooth sole, then you can probably experience a good bit of fun and freedom, Scandinavian style – imagine striding across springy bogs, skiing effortlessly down hillsides, and freeing up to respond creatively to the music.
If dancing isn’t your thing, then sit at your ease and drink in the music in the concert, and join in the session yourself – The music is other-worldly, complex and driving and you may just get hooked for evermore.
We will be at the amazing Victoria Works venue this time, a historic factory building in the Kelham Island area with a great dance floor, about 10 minutes walk from our usual Shakespeare’s. We’ll be upstairs; come on up ! No bar, so please bring your own drinks (NB there may be an honesty bar).
Vegar is an expert dancer, teacher and musician. He won the national Norwegian dance competition in 2014 and is also an energetic and playful hardanger and fiddle player. He plays with several different groups, including Snowflake Trio and World Music Central.
Mette is an expert dancer and teacher, and also judge of the Landkappleik dance contest.
Eurosession is excited to be hosting 2 members of Julivert for a packed evening on Thursday 18th April. Julivert are a lively traditional Catalan band. Our 2 guest musicians are Jordi Suñé (vocals and guitar) and Gerard Torres (diatonic accordion and vocals), with the addition of Anna who will help with teaching the dances.
7pm – 8pm: Dance workshop This will include a range of dances such as a gentle bal pla promenade, an iconic sardana circle, and a more energetic jota. These dances all provide a sense of shared community and enjoyment, and, in combination, are a great way to develop graceful poise, nimble footwork, and a charismatic confidence. Bring well-sprung shoes and plenty of laughter.
8.15pm – 9.15pm: Music workshop This will focus on how to transmit dance rhythm in a Catalan tune, with harmonic accompaniment; this requires both energy and precision from the musicians. All instruments welcome; Gerard plays a diatonic G/C but will accommodate D/G melodeons!
Later in the evening from 9.15pm we’ll move to an open Eurosession format for offerings and requests, interspersed with some further songs and dances from our Catalan guests.
Usual request of £5 donation, around £7-10 if you participate in both workshops. If you’re skint, whatever you can afford, your company and participation is the most important.
NB. Because we are so keen to catch the Catalans on their travels, we are postponing our April Eurosession; we’ll be upstairs in Shakespeare’s pub one week later than usual.
Soveuen amics – come on friends, let’s festa! xx Eurosesh
Sheffield Eurosession is open to all. Anyone who wants to play can lead a tune or join in at their own level and the musicians are always happy to take requests for dances. The session is run by a small group of volunteers. If you’d like to offer help or make suggestions, please do so! Sheffield Eurosession is aligned with both traditional and balfolk styles and we are willing to explore any kind of dance originating within Europe, without being too fussy about how to define this. Sessions so far have been influenced by Breton, French, Portuguese, Scandinavian, Klezmer, Basque and Bulgarian traditions.
Sessions are normally monthly, starting at 8pm if there’s a themed pre-session workshop, or 8:30pm if not, and the evenings continue to 11pm and beyond. (Note that there is normally a pre-booked musician for the workshop). We also hold extra occasional gigs with bands and teachers from other places. Here are the next few dates:
