Ireland is the envy of many countries when it comes to keeping its folk tradition alive and increasingly people are availing of the opportunity not just to learn traditional Irish music but to gain a qualification in performing it too.
There are plenty of people happy to make a song and dance about the glories of traditional music - and there are fans in the unlikeliest of places, even China.
Now 12 Midland-based musicians are collecting certificates proving they do it rather well after completing a course run by South Birmingham College.
Michael McGlynn, Michael Jackson, Brendan Timmons, Ruth Chase, Bridget Kane, Owen Mullen and Micky Keane have all achieved an Intermediate qualification on instruments ranging from the violin and whistle to the piano accordion.
Olive Pinfield, Tom Reidy, John Lyons, Maurice Howe and Brendan Grogan have completed a Foun-dation course in Traditional Irish Music.
The popularity of traditional Irish music is on the increase, according to South Birmingham Collegeís tutor of the NCFE course in Performance Skills in Traditional Irish Music, Vince Jordan.
“The beauty of Irish music is it captures emotions like no other and when you learn to play, you can join in with any group, anywhere. It’s 100 per cent participation, expression and fun,” said Vince.
Vince, who lives in Olton, Solihull, is an accomplished accordionist who played for Ireland's president, Mary McAleese, at the Irish Presidential Palace in Dublin, earlier this year.
The NCFE course is designed to give students an insight into the entertainment industry, equip them to prepare and rehearse for performance and then to stand on stage and perform. The course has an element of research and two elements of music preparation and performance delivered in three different assignments.
It is an experience that all the students involved seemed to enjoy. One, Olive Pinfield said: “It’s been hard work but such a lot of fun. We’ve ended up becoming much more accomplished musi-cians and getting a qualification when one of the greatest things about the course is the enjoyment it gives.”
Anyone interested in signing up for the next NCFE courses
in Performance Skills – at either foundation or intermediate level – should contact Vince on
0121 743 6958 or email him at vince_irishmusic@hotmail.com.
The course involves attending South Birmingham’s Digbeth Centre two evenings a week starting January next year.