I just found out that I may be in Ireland from June 30th til July 10th.
Does anyone know when Willie Clancy Week is this year? Is it the week of July 5-9?
Whhhhooooo Hhhhhhhoooooo!!! (excuse me while I do a happy dance) 
Is it possible to only go to one or two days (or will my family have to drag me away kicking and screaming?)
-gary
The website has it as 3-11 july, you enrol for the week, you can’t get part-classes
I’m going to Ireland this summer, too, to take an Irish language course, and I thought I’d attend a music summer school, too.
This may be too big of a question…
but how does Willy Clancy Week compare to some of the other schools in terms of tuition for beginning pipers? I know it’s a really big school, so I was wondering if you might get more personal attention in the classes at one of the smaller schools. I guess the other one I’m thinking of attending in particular is the one in Leitrim.
Justine
Hi Justine,
I’d say that they are all very good and it’s true WCSS can have big classes. I’d suggest asking yourself whom you’d most like to take lessons from and try to get lessons from them, wherever they are teaching.
Have you been to a music school in Ireland before?
Patrick.
Hi Patrick,
I went to Willie Clancy Week once before, when I was not piping, and went to a whistle workshop. I had sort of a mixed experience, because I found the whistle class was too easy but most of the sessions were too fast and too crowded for me. I met some nice people and found a few sessions that were more at my speed, though. Of course, this will all be different now that I’m playing pipes, which I won’t be able to play in sessions at all. 
In terms of people I’d like to study with, I really enjoyed Brian McNamara’s class at your tionol, so he’d really be my first choice, or someone who plays in a similar style. I think he’s going to be at both Willie Week and Drumshambo (sp?).
BTW, I’m going to L.A. the first week in March so I may see you at that Santa Monica session (Don’t worry, I’ll leave the pipes at home.) 
Justine
We are having a pipers club meeting at Gabriels on March 7th so bare that in mind. If that’s the Sunday you are down it might be nice to come to the meeting and then up to the session afterwards!!! It’s a long ould hike though, even by LA standards… about 60 miles.
I’d suggest going to his class in Drumshanbo or Tubbercurry, whichever he is teaching at. At Drumshanbo last year the teachers were Mikie Smyth and Neillidh Mulligan, the website hasn’t been updated for this year. Same thing with the Tubber website. The teachers there last year were Brian Gallagher and Eamonn Walsh.
You should also consider Scoil Acla the last in July and the first week in August (or there abouts). They have great teachers too. Last years teachers were Kieran O’Malley, Brian Gallagher, Sorcha Ní Mhuiré, Robbie Hannan, John Butler and Tommy Keane.
There are loads of new schools popping up too that would be worth looking into. I’ll add the links below. Good luck!
PD.
Drumshanbo school:
http://homepages.iol.ie/~nwoods/index.html
Tubbercurry school:
http://www.sssschool.org/
Scoil Acla
http://www.scoilacla.com/
Scoil Éigse
http://www.comhaltas.com/education/scoil.htm
The Flowing Tide - Doonbeg, Co. Clare
http://www.clarenet.ie/theflowingtide/ (broken link when I just checked)
Wow, thanks for all the info, Patrick! That’s really helpful.
I’m actually going to be in LA from the 4th until the 7th, (attending the Celtic Studies conference at UCLA), but I’m not sure how much driving I’ll want to do. Thanks for the invite to the meeting, anyway, and we’ll see what I feel up to at that point.
J.
Do you have a link to further info on this? Is Lillis O’Laoire hosting it?
Gluck,
PD.
You can download the schedule at the UCLA Celtic Studies site:
http://www.humnet.ucla.edu/humnet/celtic/
J.
I was wondering if anyone has experienced Irish Week (sometime in July)in East Durham New York? If so, what did you think of it and do you have any lodging recommendations? Does anyone know who the Uping istructers are this year? I may take three of my four children, as they all play the fiddle (and beginning on the pipes as well) and I will go for the pipes. What is the nught time like? Is it at all family friendly? Tghanks for any insights and opinions.
Also there is a Comehaltis (sp sorry) weekend in New Jersey in April with David Powers teaching the pipes.
Neil
“but how does Willy Clancy Week compare to some of the other schools in terms of tuition for beginning pipers?” Justine
Shouldn’t be a problem if you’re thinking of taking piping classes. The piping classses at Willie Week are small, usually 5-6 people inclusive teacher conducted in the living rooms of locals that live up the Ballard Road, Miltown. So you’ll get a lot of individual attention. You have to register before hand for the pipes I believe, and you’ll be placed in a class, and then it’s up to you if you want to change to another class/teacher, no problem usually. Willie Week is a bit mad and hectic, but you can pace yourself, and for a piper it is the place to be I think. There are so many pipers gathered there, the afternoon piping recitals, and if you’re lucky the chance to hear, and meet other good pipers playing here and there at sessions, plus there’s the piper’s workshop which is a nice place to hang out and talk.
Tell us more about the piper’s workshop. I could not find anything about it on the School website.
Thanks,
Gary
"Tell us more about the piper’s workshop. I could not find anything about it on the School website. "
The pipers workshop is organised by the NPU and is on the Ballard Rd. on the left hand side going up. It’s usually open from 10 am to 6 pm, with a lunch break, Monday to Friday. It’s in the same yellowy building as the library. Same entrance, go in, then turn right, through a door then down towards the end of the corridor. There you’ll find Dave Hegarty, reed guru, and usually a pipemaker, (last year it was Dave Prenshaw), helping pipers with pipe maintenance. Everything from making reeds, tying on bags, fixing leaks etc. They also teach making chanter & drone reeds. If you’ve signed on for a class then the materials and help is included in the fee. There are often other pipemakers there, hanging out, and willing to help with problems, Michael Dooley, Finbar McLaughlin for instance. Last year the piping workshop seemed a calm place to be, there wasn’t the queues of pipers waiting for help. Instead there were folks quietly making reeds and chilling out to ambient dub music … well making reeds anyway. Prehaps there wasn’t so many pipers at Willie Week as usual, Since Sept 2001 there has been a noteable decrease in US citizens venturing forth, plus Ireland has the Euro now and is expensive, or maybe their pipes were in better working order.
As the piping classes are on Ballard Rd & the pipers have their tea break at the social center, which is next to the library, you have everything within reach. Even the afternoon piping recitals are held on Ballard Rd at the Mill, where the evening celidhs are held.
Martin, His name is Martin Preshaw. Dave Quinn was there last year, maybe a bit of a merger in he brain, that’s what the Willie week does to you.
"Martin, His name is Martin Preshaw. Dave Quinn was there last year, maybe a bit of a merger in he brain, that’s what the Willie week does to you. " Peter
No, not last year, Dave Quinn was there 2002 - but you’re right it was Martin Preshaw last year, 2003 - and Willie Week does become a blur I swear I saw Leo Rowsome making reeds 2001… too much piping, stay out of those bars
You’re right, I suppose the weeks all melt into one eventually.
Gulp!
Doh!
:roll:
I was just made aware of another music School that is worth checknig out.
O’Carolan Summer School
Keadue, County Roscommon, Ireland
Mon July 26th - Fri July 31st 2004
Classes daily from 10am to 1pm
http://www.harp.net/Keadue/KeadueClasses.htm
Patrick.
That sounds good…it’s so hard to decide!!! I guess I’ll keep thinking it over. Thanks for the explanation,
J.
Hi Justine! Just wanted to say “yeah!!!” that there’s another woman on the pipe board (and it’s about time too!). Not that these guys are ever anything but perfect gents… 