Compass Rose Ceilidh Band
We are a Darlington based band who play for dancing throughout County Durham, Teesside and North Yorks, with occasional excursions further afield. We can provide a complete evenings entertainment for you, at events as varied as: church, village hall, and scout socials; fundraising evenings; 13th, 18th and 60th birthday parties, and weddings. We have featured at local folk festivals and are regularly booked for the monthly Tees Valley Ceilidhs held in Yarm.
Contact Terry Wisker for details or bookings, at terry.wisker@googlemail.com, or tel. 01325 245692
Scroll down for information about the band, some recordings we have made, and details about our future bookings.
We are a Darlington based band who play for dancing throughout County Durham, Teesside and North Yorks, with occasional excursions further afield. We can provide a complete evenings entertainment for you, at events as varied as: church, village hall, and scout socials; fundraising evenings; 13th, 18th and 60th birthday parties, and weddings. We have featured at local folk festivals and are regularly booked for the monthly Tees Valley Ceilidhs held in Yarm.
Reflecting the band members own musical backgrounds we play a variety of great music from around the British Isles and beyond, both traditional and some more recent tunes, but always chosen with the dancer in mind.
With its two vocalists the band can easily be encouraged to sing a song or two and are pleased to accept bookings for concerts/folk clubs.
We hope you will find in these pages, most of the information you need to know about the band; including its members, contact details and any public events we are playing in the near future. Please ring or email Terry Wisker with any further questions you might have, and to check out cost.
Contact and Booking
To arrange a booking with Compass Rose, or for any other inquiries about the band, contact Terry Wisker by email: terry.wisker@googlemail.com, or tel. 01325 245692
It will be necessary to consult the band members diaries before confirming a booking. If we are not available for your booking we'll always try to put you in touch with another ceilidh band.
A £50 deposit is required for any booking.
PA. System
The band has a top of the range, German designed and built AER active speaker system and Behringer and Yamaha mixing desks, we use Shure, AKG and Behringer microphones, all looked after by our own sound engineer. The bands electrical equipment is P.A.T. tested annually. We also have two par 56 LED lighting cans to add a bit of colour to the band.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do we get if we book the Compass Rose Ceilidh Band?
A 4/5 piece ceilidh band that offers a youthful and talented melody section and a mature! and experienced rhythm section (kept in line by our youngest member, Sinead) to drive the band along.
A very experienced Caller, quality instruments, a full Public Address (PA.) system, and, perhaps most importantly, a band that enjoys what it does and wants to be there.
Whats the difference between a ceilidh and a barn dance?
Quite simply these terms and also 'folk dance' are now pretty much interchangeable, with ceilidh now in more frequent use.
Do we have to have experience of ceilidh/barn dancing?
No, our Caller will talk, and walk the dancers through each dance before the music starts and will continue to give help as needed, in an easy going and often humorous style.
Will the dances be too difficult?
Each of our callers has a large repertoire of dances allowing them to tailor the choice of dances to the experience/ability of the dancers. Their choice of dances for the event is never fixed beforehand and wherever possible allows for special requests, such as one from a kilted 3 year old page boy who wanted to do the "spinning dance" again, from which the other guests were only just recovering! we did it again!
How much time will the band need to set up?
One hour will give sufficient time to set up and do sound checks, and about 30mins at the end of the evening to clear away.
Will the band need a stage from which to play?
A stage does have advantages, however we are very experienced at playing from the floor. Please remember to leave sufficient space for 5 musicians standing in line and speakers on stands at either end. We'll also require access to a power socket, a small table and chairs.
How long will a typical evening last?
For us there isn't really a typical evening, however in our experience a birthday party/social event might begin at 7.30pm and go on to 11.00/11.30pm with a 30 min break at 9.00pm. An evening wedding reception might have similar timings except that it might go on until midnight, unless as is often the case a disco finishes the evening from perhaps 11.00pm.
However, it's your event and timings and requirements are flexible, we'll always do our best to give you the evening that you want. On the night, the bands Caller also takes on the role of liaising with the hosts to help ensure that the evening goes without a hitch.
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