Aberdeen, S.D., to host Celtic fair this weekend

A weekend of sports, entertainment and workshops is slated for the Fifth Annual Northeast South Dakota Celtic Faire and Games at the Brown County Fairgrounds Saturday and Sunday.

Two dance performance groups from the Twin Cities area will be at the fair giving performances along with a number of workshops. Rince na Chroi (pronounced Rink-a na Cree), which is Gaelic for “dance of the heart,” will give Fairegoers a taste of traditional Irish step-dancing, while The Guthrie School of Highland Dance will feature traditional Scottish Highland dance.

Rince na Chroi will conduct both soft shoe and hard shoe Irish dance workshops, while the Guthrie School will conduct Highland Dance workshops.

Other dance performances/demonstrations will include demonstrations of the Celtic influence on traditional American music and dance featuring the ARCC Cloggers.

Also performing throughout the weekend will be the Twin Cities Metro Pipe Band, a top- ranked, Grade 4 competing pipe and drum band. The Twin Cities Metro Pipe Band was founded in 1999 by pipers and drummers with a desire to develop a band devoted to the music of the bagpipe and Highland snare.

The band wears the ancient Clark Tartan, uses Pearl Pipe band snares and Hosbilt bass and mid drums. More traditional Celtic music will be played by the Two Tap Trio, a trio of musicians consisting of Young Tradition-Bearer Award winner and lead singer Norah Rendell, internationally acclaimed guitarist Brain Miller, and fiddler Nathan Gourley.

Formed in 2007 and based in the Twin Cities, the Two Tap Trio mixes fiddle and flute duets with Norah’s voice, underpinned by guitar and bouzouki backing.

The trio performs at festivals and concert halls throughout the Midwest including the Milwaukee Irish Fest and Thunder Bay’s Canadian Celtic Celebration. Along with teachers from Rince na Chroi, Two Tap Trio will host an hour-long family-event Saturday, from 12:45 to 1:45 p.m. on the main stage that will teach faire goers some of the history behind the traditional tunes they play, as well as some traditional social dances. They will also perform on Sunday.

Saturday, on the green east of the Holum Expo building will be the Scottish Heavy Games. This competition includes the events caber toss, putting of the stone, Braemer stone throw, weights for height and distance, Sheaf toss and hammer throw.

Any and all athletes are welcome to enter and try their hand at these events. The sporting events registration form and times can be found on www.nesdcelticfaire.com.

To celebrate the fifth anniversary of the event, there will be a concert on Saturday night by the Wild Colonial Bhoys, starting at 6 p.m. The Wild Colonial Bhoys are a Minneapolis-based Celtic rock band that weaves rock with traditional Irish music, and have played all over the Midwest as well as in Ireland.

Adam Coolong started playing guitar while still a child, but he soon learned he loved the art. He founded the WCB in 2005 with the love of playing live to an energetic crowd. Coolong was joined by fellow guitarist Geno Carlson, bassist and singer/song writer Cody McKinney and violinist Tony Comeau.

For more information on the Faire and a full schedule of events, log onto www.nesdcelticFaire.com or call 605-216-3403.

Tags: other events, diversions, entertainment, dance, music