Ruishton Play Day
4th January 2026
What a lively day we had! Nearly 30 members attended our first Playday of the year.
Vanessa Archer began the day with a talk on the wassail tradition, leading us in several tunes from different region. This prepared us for the later, raucous invasion by her very own border morris side, Bootstrap Morris. They danced four of the tunes that we had prepared. This was congenially followed by cider and apple cake.
The theme of the day was light/dark, new/old and all things generally ‘turn of the year’. Individuals and groups entertained us with songs and tunes such as the Year End Two-Step, The Wren, Slow Broke the Light, The Wedding at Riding Mill, Abendlied by Rheinberger (in 6 parts!), Penny for the Ploughboy, Indian Queen, a wassail song from Bath, Old Towler and a song about Santa’s whiskers!
The next meeting is on St David’s Day, 1st March 2026 so you can expect a Welsh feel to the theme as well as a masterclass from Rob Harbron, the renowned player of the English concertina. See you there!
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