New Zealand Musicians’ Tea Dance 2020 | Johnsonville Scottish Country Dance Club

Fun to a variety of music!

A group of New Zealand Scottish Country Dance musicians gathered in Lower Hutt at Labour Weekend to share ideas and make music together. They invited us to come and dance to them at an informal Tea Dance on Sunday 25 October.

With musicians and bands from Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Wellington and Christchurch, the afternoon was a great opportunity for dancers to enjoy a variety of music played on a range of instruments.

The five bands/musicians were:

Bourach Mor from Hamilton – but with enough ring-ins they preferred to call themselves Borrowed Mor! Onstage were Lynne Hudson (accordion), Ruth Budden, Wayne McConnel, Glenice Saunders and Trish Henley on fiddles and Shelley McConnel on recorder.
Strings Attached: Lynne Scott on the fiddle and Sharlene Penman on piano, with technical wizardry from James Scott providing the double bass that usually accompanies this band.
Wild Heather: Sharlene Penman on piano, Lynne Scott on octave fiddle with Mary McDonald and Ann Goodbehere on fiddles.
Airs and Graces: Lynne Scott on piano with Mary McDonald and Glenice Saunders on fiddles.
Kiwi Kilties: Sharlene, Mary, and Duncan on drums.

All the musicians played for the five dances in the second half.

A great contingent of twenty-two Johnsonville dancers including MC Jeanette Watson enjoyed the afternoon of dancing. It was wonderful to see two of our new dancers doing so well and having a good time.

Twenty-two Johnsonville dancers took to the floor during the afternoon – spot some of them dancing A Jig to the Music

Organiser Lynne Scott, Convenor of the annual Scottish Country Dance Musicians’ Convention, says it was great fun and they really had a ball. As did we!

Thank you to Lynne and the musicians for all of their hard work over the weekend.

See more of Loralee Hyde’s photos below.