The full week of classes and evening events will now take place from July 9-13.

The school is not available again due to on-going maintenance, which means An Talla, a popular choice for many, will again be the all-day festival site. Evening highlights include a Gaelic/English play ‘Angus – Weaver of grass ’ by the Horse and Bamboo Theatre Company and a talk by Iona Brown from Crossapol on what makes Tiree Gaelic special. Another standout is the ‘Muse Cruise’ to Barra on the Thursday – the Minch’s first floating session!

“We were struggling, but the response was heart-warming,” Fèis chair Dr John Holiday told An Tirisdeach. “Now we’ve got some great tutors lined up, plenty of variety and real quality. I can feel a good Fèis coming on!”

Ar ceòl, ar cànan ’s ar dualchas – our music, our language and our culture. Pride in the rich traditions of Tiree is the theme of Fèis Thiriodh 2011 which starts this week.

Stand out evenings are the night of traditional baking on a busy Thursday, which also brings us a shinty game and a music session, and a talk on the amazing guga hunt in the stormy waters of the Atlantic off the north coast of Lewis. But during the day there are also great classes in singing, Gaelic, guitar, pipes, flute and whistle, accordion and fiddle for young and old – if you want to sign up ring Paper.works at 220055.

• Monday 11th 7.30pm, Adults’ Ceilidh Dancing Class with Jessie Gray, An Talla
  Come and learn the steps to old favourites and less usual dances and share a glass of wine.
• Tuesday 12th 7pm to register, Car Treasure Hunt, An Talla
  How many wind turbines are there on Tiree? What are otter droppings called? Follow the fiendish clues around the island in teams.
• Wednesday 13th 7-9pm, Children’s Dance, An Talla
  Children of all ages welcome to the best knees-up of the week.
• Thursday 14th 7.30pm, Traditional Baking Demonstration, An Talla, Large Hall
  Ever wondered how to make the perfect scone or prizewinning dumpling? This year we have the answers, with demonstrations of how to make scones, oatcakes, pancakes, shortbread and dumpling the traditional way.
• Shinty game, Reef pitch 7.30pm
  14 years and over, men and women, boys and girls, all levels of experience welcome! Equipment provided. Or come and watch the action.
• Session, An Talla, Small Hall, 9pm
  If you play, sing, dance, tell ghost stories or enjoy a good old-fashioned ceilidh where everyone does something, come along to this informal session. All levels welcome.
• Friday 15th 7.30pm till late, Fèis Ceilidh Dance
  The evening includes another performance by the West End Players of the hilarious short play An Dileab in Gaelic and English written and directed by Mabel MacArthur. Visiting and local musicians and singers combine with the house dance band to provide an intoxicating blend of song, dance, music and stories. By popular request Donald Iain Brown will again be fear an taighe.
• Saturday 17th 7.30pm, Feis Illustrated Talk: The Guga Hunters with Donald Murray, Ringside Theatre, Rural Centre, Crossapol
  Every year ten men from Ness in Lewis make the 40 mile trip north to the uninhabited rock Sula Sgeir. There they follow the steps of their ancestors over two weeks in killing and salting 2,000 young gannets, known to the Lewismen as guga. The dark, strong flesh of these birds is an acquired taste! Donald Murray is from Lewis but has strong Tiree connections. He currently teaches in Shetland. His 2008 book The Guga Hunters is required reading for anyone wanting to know about this amazing tradition. The same techniques may have been used on the cliffs of Kenavara in days gone by.

Tirisdeachs will be given a unique chance to experiment with video technology during the Fèis Thiriodh, turning their creative ideas into reality thanks to BBC Scotland’s digital media workshop – the L.A.B (Learn at BBC Scotland).

As part of the Feis’ 20th anniversary celebrations, BBC Scotland’s L.A.B travels to Tiree from Monday 12th to Thursday 15th July, giving students of preschool to adult age the chance to develop their digital media skills. The inspiration behind BBC Scotland’s L.A.B visit is to highlight Tiree’s unique musical heritage on film.

The first workshop (Monday 12 & Tuesday 13 July) will focus on young people aged 10 and upwards whilst the second workshop (Wednesday 14 & Thursday 15 July) will offer intergenerational experience for a variety of ages.

Amongst the skills on offer, Tirisdeachs will be given an introduction into moving images and how they work, basic camera techniques and storyboarding. Participants will also be taught how to use a dv (digital video) camera, given an introduction to editing skills and shown how to add music and sound effects to their movie.

The forthcoming Tiree visit is part of BBC Scotland’s Seaside Stories project run by the L.A.B (Learn at BBC Scotland) which will see the digital media workshop make movies with groups in Tiree, Dunoon and Millport. Johanna Hall, Project Leader at the L.A.B, BBC Scotland, whose family originally hail from the east end of Tiree, says:
“The L.A.B is delighted to be doing two workshops in Tiree. The whole idea behind the L.A.B is helping people improve or learn new skills working with digital media. In Tiree we will be encouraging people to develop interviewing skills, get behind the camera and, of course, have fun. We look forward to all the stories that the two groups will have to share. Having been to the island many times before in my youth I will be advising our team to pack both wellies and factor 50 sunscreen for the Tiree summer weather! “

Dr John Holliday, the island’s GP and chair of Fèis Thiriodh, adds:
“The BBC Scotland L.A.B workshops at this summer’s Tiree Fèis are an exciting development for young and old on the island. For several years our video classes in Gaelic and English have been some of the most popular at the Fèis and having this professional equipment and training will give our young people a real insight into the world of broadcasting. The wider island community will also get their chance to tell the story of life on the island – their story. It promises to be quite a week!”

Following the L.A.B visit, the Tirisdeachs video creations can be sampled at bbc.co.uk/thelab.

For further information on the L.A.B contact labscotland@bbc.co.uk or write to:
The L.A.B, BBC Scotland, 40 Pacific Quay, Glasgow G51 1DA, Tel: 0141 422 7896.

Tiree pupils attend the 2009 Mòd in Oban

21 pupils and 5 members of staff from Tiree High School attended the Royal National Mòd in Oban last week.

Ian Smith and Eilidh MacFadyen started the ball rolling when they competed in the Accordion competition on Saturday. This was a popular spectator event and the venue proved to be too small for all those wanting to get in to hear the competitors. Gordon Connell, the pupils’ tutor said the standard of playing was very high but he was very pleased with Eilidh & Ian’s performances.
Ian came away with a silver medal and although not in the top three, Eilidh gave a very creditable performance. This was her first experience of competing at the Mòd and will be better armed to compete next year.

The rest of the group competed over Monday & Tuesday in Solo singing, Conversation, Poetry recitation, Choral, Action Song and Folk group competition and although none were placed in the top three, the youngsters performed extremely well and did themselves proud.
It was a great experience for them and interesting for them to see how other competitors interpreted the pieces.

Some parents and friends came to Oban to support and this was much appreciated by the young people and the staff. Siusaidh NicNeill, who had been the driving force behind fundraising for the trip, said she was pleased and delighted with the performances and as she leaves Tiree to take up a new teaching post in Plockton she goes with very happy memories of the Oban Mòd.

Tiree adult choir – Oban Mod 199?

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If you can supply any information about who, where and when, please contact An Tirisdeach and we will be happy to print the relevant details in a future issue.