Lake School Home Page

The Koroit Community Association Inc presents:-

The 12th Lake School of Celtic Music Song and Dance to held in Koroit Victoria

from Sunday January 2 to Friday January 7 2011

2011 program will be launched at Micky Bourke's Hotel on July 3 2010

when Ewen Baker will be inducted as a Legend of the Lake by Shane Howard

The Lake School 2009 photo below was provided by James Byron.

Reveiw of Lake School 11 January 2010

If its possible to say the weather was perfect - one might be inclined to say it was for Lake School Number Eleven in Koroit earlier this month. Cool and cloudy days, with patches of bright blue in the sky as you looked over Tower Hill to the Southern Ocean, or across the dairy and spud farms to Killarney and Port Fairy. And when the sun did come out in the late afternoon, raising the temperature to a mild mid twenties, the a blessed breeze from the south west blew just gently enough to lift the froth off the pints of Guinness that were beginning to flow outside Micky Bourke's Hotel.

In the evening the stars came out, but perhaps they didn't quite shine as brightly as the dancers and the players and at the Illowa Hall which was the featured venue for the Tuesday night Ceildhe. Marie Brouder, the dance tutor at her first Lake School, had fifty or sixty strong dancing the Seige of Ennis and The Walls of Limerick, to a band of thirty or forty lead by the legendary Paddy Fitzgerald on the accordion (impromptu Illowa Ceildhe Band below). It was the Lake School's first foray out to Illowa, and the locals voted with their feet and came out in force.

The Koroit Tower Hill Caravan park was the place to be during the week. A myriad of sessions, rehearsals and impromptu performances, while musicians in between classes strummed and relaxed in the shade of the exotic trees of the Koroit Botanical Gardens. For the seventeen strong Belfrage family, dinner was a show in itself. A line of tent shades, a collection of camp chairs, children sitting in a circle humming the tunes of the day and an impressive buffet of pastas, curries and salads...A brief respite and coming together before joining the throng to rush off to the next session, ceildhe or concert.

Mary Bourke has likened Koroit during Lake School to Vienna. Music coming form every shop and residence and hordes of people hurrying around with violin cases, guitars and flutes. In place of the trucks of Koroit driving a load of bellowing milkers down a deserted streetscape in winter, the summer brings music and musicians and a colourful energy to "the Stroit." Gary Rose's song "The Trucks of Koroit" has renamed Commercial Rd "the Stroit" and they were the most requested lyrics of the week.

An open day at Crossley Hall attracted about thirty people keen to be introduced to the irish Language, by Lake School tutor, Chris Mooney. Chris, also a first timer to Lake School - stepping in for Mossie Scanlon, noticed the energy and the youthful interest in the old language. Perhaps enough interest to drive regular local classes in Irish language and a weekend workshop schedule for July 2-4. The Youth Concert, later in the day at Crossley Hall attracted over a hundred people, and Teresa O'Brien reported "that we raised enough from donations to make our first mortgage payment on the St Brigids Church and Hall."
Further in to the evening fifteen poets competed in the Spud Poets Award. The Award was won by last year's winner Clare Milesi. Her poem "Bless Me Father" about a priest who dies while hearing a confession and the confusion his death causes, was judged unanimously a winner, and was clearly popular with the audience.

The new Lake School Art Exhibition featured the work of Brenda Grimshaw, who hung her very finely crafted copies of The Book of Kells at the Crater Gallery, and gave all a chance to mooch around, nibble on the cheese and drink the champagne on offer. New also this year were the harp, mandolin and banjo class that played at the Grand Ceildhe, along with the usual fiddles, whistles, pipes, guitars, flutes and bodhrans.

A somewhat warmer day on Friday, the last day, saw a Tutors Concert, the launching of yet another amazing Paddy O'Neill Award band - this year called Shanachie, and an epic Songwriters Concert to "finish us all off. "
Those who weren't quite finished off lounged around in directors chairs for another day before refreshing themselves, and cleaning out the effects of innumerable Guinness, in the waves of Eastern Beach or Potato Soup.

Record numbers came to the Lake School this year and they gloried in the beautiful music, the soulful singing, the energetic dancing, the congenial atmosphere and the warm friendships. Hopefully the weather will hold out for next year.

Photos from 2010 Lake School by Brenda Osborne (Illowa Ceilidhe and Lake School Choir above)

The photos below from the 10th Lake School provided by Brenda Osborne

Paddy Fitz and Nick Martin at Micky Bourke's Jim Lawrenson and Garry Rose at Songwriters Brigid Glaisher member of Paddy O'Neill

Pub session concert Award band - Dram!

Are these your agile fingers Mary? Slow session lead by Mark McDonnell Ted Egan - one of Australia's National Living

Treasures

Sile Coleman at Singers Night Jenny McKechnie - Dram!! Ewen Baker - fiddle tutor

Mark McDonnell leading the Slow Session players at the Grand Ceilidhe January 6 2008

Photo courtesy Dale Hanson

Ticket prices for 2011

Adults $175 Children under 16 $100 Family ticket $485 (two adults and five children)

Prices include GST

Co-ordinator

Felix Meagher

Contact details: 03-98791654

0413-801294 (Mob)

or email felix@bushwahzee.com

alternative email bwz@alphalink.com.au

Correspondence for the Lake School can be addressed to Felix Meagher PO Box 22 Mitcham 3132

Cheques should be made out to the Lake School

NB Please note this is an event that welcomes families and children. However, with the exception of the Kids Program

which runs from 9.30am to 1pm every day, children under 16 may only attend programmed Lake School classes when

accompanied and supervised by one of their parents, or a nominated supervising adult.

For the Kids Program children need to be signed in and out, bring a drink and a snack, and refrain from leisure use of

mobile phones.

Welcome to our nw sponsor Tir-Na-Nog Skin and Body therapy- supporting the Youth Concert

Tir na nOg Skin and Body Therapy
75 Liebig Street
Warrnambool, Victoria, 3280
Telephone: 03 5562 9040
Fax: 03 5562 5126
Email: tirnanog@datafast.net.au
Website: www.tir-na-nog.com.au

Also thanks to our sponsors and supporters Port Fairy Folk Festival, Moyne Shire, Yelp Studios, Ausmed Publications, Ade Kelly, Bushwahzee,

Quinlan's Quality Meats, Emerald Travel, Upwey/Belgrave RSL and the estate of Maity Swallow, Embassy of Ireland, Daly's Koroit IGA, Dave Birch, Koroit and District Primary School, St Patrick's Primary School, The Quiet Man, Koroit Country Bakehouse, Bill Clohesy, National Celtic Festival

Lake School Honour Roll

Legends of the Lake

2003 Billy Moran inducted by Irish Ambassador Declan Kelly

2004 Fay and Morgan McAlinden inducted by Martha McEvoy (Embassy of Ireland)

2005 Dennis O'Keeffe inducted by Val Noone (Tain Magazine)

2006 Maria Forde inducted Marion O'Hagan (Irish Welfare Bureau)

2007 Vince Brophy inducted by Martha McEvoy

2008 Tommy Carty inducted by Ted Egan

2009 Paddy Fitzgerald indcuted by Mary Fiorini-Lowell (Mary Bourke)

Paddy O'Neill Band Award Winners

2007 Beltane

2008 Rant

2009 Dram

Spud Poet Awards Winners

2006 Chris Healy (Mas-cav-enger)

2007 Harry Reed (Spud Train)

2008 Francis Duggan (Old Casey)

2009 Clare Milesi (Soda Scones)

2010 Clare Milesi (Bless me Father...)

Maity Swallow Scholarship

2008 Mischa Herman

2009 Jenny Mckechnie

Life Members

2007 Eileen Moran

2009 Dennis Taberner, Margie Brophy, Christine Meagher

Foundation Award

Felix Meagher

Mogyum Award

(an ocassional award made for people whose help behind the scenes

may have gone unnoticed - named after Barb Argall's unique and yummy chocolate cookies)

2006 Vicki Thorpe and Georg Diegmann

2007 Lillian O'Donnell

2008 Ray Argall

2009 Alan Birchmore

2010 John "Ozzie" Osborne Vera Herman

PADDY O'NEILL AWARD - 2010

The Paddy O'Neill Award was first held by the Lake School in January 2007, and

resulted in the creation of the amazing young celtic band - Beltane. After working for a week in January

in Koroit under the guidance of tutors Ade Kelly and Geoff McArthur, Beltane went on to record a

demo CD "The First Summer," and to play at the Port Fairy Festival, the Koroit Irish Festival

and the National Celtic Festival in Portarlington. Their photo is featured on the 2008 Lake School

flyer/application form.

The program was repeated in January 2008 when the four piece band Rant was formed, and they have gone on

tohave similar success to Beltane (see photo of Rant below)

The Paddy O'Neill Award is being offered again at the Lake School in 2008 and applications for an

audition are open from June 14 (at the National celtic festival, Portarlington ). The Award is open to musicians aged 16-29

who are keen to play in a musically competent celtic style group/band.

Applicants are urged to think about the logistics of rehearsing and playing in a band, particularly if they are

under 18 and don't have a Driver's Licence.

The award was named after Paddy O'Neill, an Irish musician who lived in Melbourne and taught tunes

to young players for many years.

For further enquiries contact Felix Meagher email felix@bushwahzee.com or mob 0413-801294

or Ade Kelly 03-52413749 email adenmyra@bigpond.com.au

2010 Paddy O'Neill Award Winners - SHANACHIE

2010 Application form

Photos of 2009 Launch

Dram Paddy Fitz plays accompanied by Nicki and Geoff Life Members - Dennis, Christine, Margie

Jenny McKechnie - Maity Swallow Scholarship winner 2009