Bay Balfolk with Helianthus

Name: Bay Balfolk with Helianthus
Start: 2025-06-15T13:30:00+01:00
End: 2025-06-15T18:00:00+01:00
Location: Hest Bank Memorial Hall

Schedule

Sun Jun 15 2025 at 01:30 pm to 06:00 pm

UTC+01:00

Location

Hest Bank Memorial Hall | Lancaster, EN

Join us for the first of a series of monthly Sunday afternoon BalFolk music and dance events on the picturesque Morecambe Bay coast. The session is inclusive and caters for musicians and dancers who are new to BalFolk dances (folk dances from France and further afield) as well as those with more experience.
We are joined for our first event by guest band Helianthus who will lead a music workshop and play for the bal. Their music features their own arrangements of traditional and contemporary dance tunes weaving in their eclectic range of instruments to create a compelling sound. Formed in 2022, the band comprises: Helen Armstrong on cello and fiddle; Ian Jones on melodeon and flute; and Helen de Lemos on saxophone, bagpipes and recorder. They had already been playing together for over 20 years as part of established concert and ceilidh bands: The Time Bandits and Full House. Helen Armstrong runs the popular Chester based French dance and music group, Rondez Vous?. It was encouragement from friends in the Chester and North Wales Bal scene that inspired the trio to indulge their love of this vibrant genre by forming Helianthus. Oh and if you were wondering – Helianthus is not only the Latin name for a Sunflower but also neatly combines the bands first names.
Cost £7 (£5 concessions)
Programme for the afternoon
1.30-2.45pm: Music workshop, all abilities and instruments welcome. Learn some tunes from the rich bal folk repertoire.
2.45pm-3.45pm: Balfolk dance workshop and an opportunity for all musicians to play for dancing or to dance! All abilities and experience welcome, no need to bring a partner.
Dances taught by Lancaster Eurodance tutors
3.45-4.30: Shared buffet
Bring some food to share and enjoy. No bar, please your own drinks.
4.30-6pm: Bal
with contributions from the Bay Balfolk musicians and Helianthus
Brought to you by Lancaster Eurodance