In March 1987, some people attending a St. Patrick's Day Pub Night (gone
wrong!) met each other for the first time at The Oakridge Community
Centre. They decided that the Oakridge Community Centre lent itself
to acoustic performances so Ron and Joanne Duffy, along with Sean and
Linda Buckley organised a follow-up event which took place about six
weeks later.
This event was attended by about 50 invited and appreciative guests. Amongst the performers that night were Larry Austin, Terry Atkinson, Liz Dorman, Anne and Martin Cowman, Dick Lofthouse, Maureen Hutchens, Jack and June Davidson, Dwight Blix, Rory Clancy, Mike Barnaville and Dave and Ellen Fisher. A poll of those in attendance suggested that a repeat or two would be in order. Celtic Folk as we know it began its formal life on October 24, 1987 with no notion of longevity and here we are, many years later, still going strong. The success of Celtic Folk is mainly due to some simple objectives which organizers hold dear. Unwavering commitment to " what's seldom is special", "a big kitchen party " and "introducing one new performer at every Club" have proven highly acceptable to our patrons. In addition, there are no sound systems to invoke competition between performers and audience, there is no raised stage - thereby keeping performers and audience equal. Performers and performances are respected and appreciated and all performers receive the same reward - a couple of free drinks/snacks, complimentary admission for a few friends and a superbly respectful audience. Every club features primarily Celtic entertainment but from time-to-time, non-Celtic performances are featured. Club line-ups are not normally advertised. This adds to the surprise aspect of each club and it helps foster a sense of spontaneity which is important to the success of each evening. Every performance has been captured on film (prints) and a complete history of performers and line-ups has been kept. Club profits,
over and above a small operating reserve, go towards promoting song,
music, dance, and storytelling in the Calgary area.
Over the years, the organizing committee grew to five couples,
including Sean and Linda Buckley, Ron and Joanne Duffy, Frank and Moira Talbot,
Jim and Maureen Hutchens, and Bruce and Vivian Smith.
In the summer of 2006, Frank and Moira Talbot moved to Vancouver. Early
in 2007, Sean and Linda Buckley and Ron and Joanne Duffy found they were no longer going
to be able to commit the time and energy to Celtic Folk that it deserved. As a result,
the committee decided that it was time to wind Celtic Folk down after the March 2007 club.
Quite a few people came forward and expressed their sadness about the
demise of Celtic Folk, and so Vivian Smith decided to see if there
was enough interest amongst regular attendees and performers to set up a new committee
and keep it going. A number of people volunteered to help in various capacities, and so a
new organizing committee has been set up.
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