In Glasgow Ceilidh news this summer, we have been fortunate to secure a great run of events with Merchant Square. At the epicentre of Glasgow’s happening bar and night-life, Merchant Square also has another side to its events: the conference event takeover!

Glasgow Convention Bureau do a great job of attracting large conferences to the city. And by good job, I mean they have been named top conference bureau in the UK 12 years running by the Meeting and Incentive Travel Awards. 

Over the course of each summer, conference organisers are looking to find a venue that can easily accommodate a conference audience of up to 1500 people. 1500 people that descend at once, sit down for dinner, and then watch Scottish culture come alive through music and dancing, as a highlight of the conferences Social Program, which are often at the Scottish Event Campus.

Merchant Square’s range of dining establishments closes for the night to allow for the conference events. Black Box Pro Audio set up a stage, lighting and PA system.

The band who have been asked back time and time again are the rock-and-pop Ceilidh band Scraggly Cats. Their simple ceilidh dancing walk-throughs work well for uninitiated ceilidh clients. This is especially relevant with conference audiences, where the band deals with up to 1500 ceilidh rookies at the same time. 

To vary the entertainment and allow for a mix between Scottish cultural dancing and pure pop and rock, then band then plays a set of pop and rock classics. This is a specially curated mix of tunes that are recognised worldwide!

The 2019 conferences at Merchant Square are:

12th June – Offshore Mechanics & Arctic Engineering (OMAE), 1000 guests

10th July – CAP Partner – Federation of European Microbiologists (FEMS) 2019 Congress of European Microbiologists, 800 guests

18th July – International Society for Molecular Plant-Microbe (ISMPMI), 1300 guests

1st Aug – International Nuclear Physics Conference (INPC) 2019, 800 guests

4th Sept – European Conference on Applied Superconductivity (EUCAS) 2019, 1000 guests

8th Oct – The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)’s International Ultrasonics Symposium (IUS) 2019, 1000 guests

5900 people from 36 countries over 6 nights in Glasgow Ceilidh dancing. Strangers coming together in an embrace of Scottish culture across disciplines, nations, and languages. Resulting in 8 spectacular nights.

Thanks to Black Box Audio for the amazing sound and light for the events, and to Jenni and the Merchant Square Team for putting the conference events on.

 

We had a great time at ceilidh number 5, the EUCAS conference on the 4th September. The attendees were enthusiastic and great fun. Without much ceilidh dancing experience, they got stuck in and danced their lab coats off. Check out some of the fun from that night below:

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Leiths started proceeding, presenting an excellent buffet dinner.  The event space was left completely open, with no chairs, just a few poseur tables for eating.  This made for a really sociable atmosphere, and encouraged guests onto the dance floor, which was packed all evening.

Conference ceilidh dancers 

The band were accompanied by 8 Highland dancers who were able to lead the way and keep control on the dancefloor.  It was great to see international guests, from literally every corner of the globe, come together and ceilidh dance.  We stuck to the easier dances, with the faster dances proving most popular!

If you are in need of a great ceilidh band who can explain how to dance our Scottish dance to an international crowd, do get in touch for more detail.

The great thing about the Scraggly Cats is that as well as being a fantastic ceilidh band.  They are also able to keep the dance floor full with pop and rock classics.  This gives conference organisers the peace of mind that the cultural element will be fulfilled, at the same time as guests enjoying their favourite hits!

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Starting with a wedding at the mighty Dalmahoy, (a gorgeous hotel and country club near Edinburgh,) with an interesting mix of pop and ceilidh from our Scraggly Cats band.  The grooms daughter sang the first dance along with the band, which started the wedding reception off perfectly.  The guests were crammed onto the dance floor for a rocking ceilidh.  There was a great firework display just before the buffet, followed by pop and rock from through the decades.

Wednesday night saw the band at Edinburgh’s iconic 5 star hotel, the Balmoral.  We played as a 4 piece band, along with our Tartanium dancers.  We performed an accordion and guitar spot during the starter, followed by the folk band during the main course.  The guests were wowed by the Tartanium dancers before we put them through the paces on the ceilidh dance floor.  The highlight for the band was, without a doubt, the baked Alaska that appeared.  5 star!

Conference Ceilidh 

On Thursday night we entertained a conference ceilidh crowd in town for PRION 2017, a degenerative disease research conference.  There were 200 guests from all over the world mad keen to find out how to ceilidh dance, and they danced all night long!

We set up our large PA and lighting rig at the museum.

Whether it be wedding entertainment, Scottish conference dinner entertainment, or looking for a Scottish touch for your conference, then get in touch with one of the Reel Time team to discuss how we can help you to get your ceilidh on!

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The New Tracks

The band have recorded one Roddy’s favourite childhood tunes: Appropriate Dipstick.  Originally recorded by Wolfstone, this track is thought by many to be at the forefront of Celtic Rock.  Have a listen to the Reel Time Band’s recording of the track on Soundcloud.  They have also just finished recording the Congress Reel set which we would definitely recommend you have a listen to on Soundcloud too!

Performing the New Tracks

This week the Reel Time Ceilidh Band had a chance to perform their new tracks at The Hub, Edinburgh.  They were entertaining a group of microbiologists who were in Edinburgh for a conference at the EICC.  The international guests relished the opportunity to enjoy the cultural experience of Scottish ceilidh dancing with the band.

You can also hear the Reel Time Band’s version of Appropriate Dipstick on Reel Time’s Highland games video.

Interested in hearing more about the new album?

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to keep up to date with the band and hear the news about our new album!

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Burns Night Format:

Traditional Burns night etiquette was adhered to with the top table guests being piped in for dinner.  The Selkirk Grace was performed by one of the guests.  The haggis was piped in by Roddy the Piper, before Linda addressed it; firstly in Scots then with an English translation.

Following a delicious dinner, the Immortal Memory was delievered, followed by the Address to the Lassies and Reply to the Laddies.  Guests were then put through their paces on the dance floor.  For several of the guests it was their first ceilidh experience, so the Reel Time Ceilidh Band enjoyed introducing them to the Gay Gordon’s and Virginia Reel.  The evening finished with one of the guests joining the band to sing Ae Fond Kiss.

The Reel Time Ceilidh Band are looking forward to a busy couple of weeks, with plenty of guests to entertain as they celebrate the life and poetry of Robbie Burns.

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