Tricia

Tricia Matthews has been involved in running ceilidh and old time classes in the Glasgow area for almost ten years. Her current dance group - The Reel Revellers - has been meeting in the Debates Chamber of the original Men's Union of Glasgow University for the last five years and more recently Tricia has taken over the dance class at St Andrew's In The Square, at 1 St Andrew's Square. The aim of the classes is to teach dancers (from beginners to the more experienced) well-known old time, ceilidh and country dances, but also some unusual ceilidh dances, many created in recent times (and a few devised by Tricia herself).

She has always been a firm believer that if you wish to teach dancing successfully you really need to have live music. With that in mind she approached Davie Morrison of "Last Tram Tae Auchinshuggle" to see if he would be interested in playing accordion for the Tuesday class and to her delight he agreed. Davie is still with them five years later and is more than willing to join in with fancy dress and party games at Hallowe'en and Easter. Says Tricia, "He looks great in a short skirt - he's got legs most of us girls are envious of!"

When Tricia took over the classes on a Wednesday evening at St Andrew's In the Square, and as Davie already had other commitments on a Wednesday and would not be available for every class, Tricia asked John Carmichael if he would be interested in playing. John has always been a familiar face in the dance music scene and Tricia could not ask for better to aid a new venue and class than a real music veteran?

Tricia is not only an excellent teacher; her bubbly personality and expertise make her a popular choice when dance bands require a caller. She has worked with bands such as those of Colin Dewar, Jim Johnstone and Kevin Clark. She also choreographed the wedding dancing for the film "The Debt Collector", starring Billy Connolly and Francesca Annis. However one of the greatest challenges to her teaching skills was keeping a kilted Ainslie Harriot under control on a Burns' Day edition of "Good Morning Britain" a few years ago!

Anyone who is interested in either of the classes is more than welcome to go along on a Tuesday or Wednesday evening.

Tuesday class starts at 8pm although the doors open at 7.30pm. The class runs throughout the year except for a break at Christmas. Since they meet in a University Union, hot and cold food is available to buy at the café during the normal university year, as are hot and cold soft drinks. The bar is always open!!

Wednesday class starts at 7.30pm. The class runs throughout the year with a break for Christmas. St Andrew's In the Square has it's own café and licensed bar - food is available to buy at Café Source, as are hot and soft drinks. After the class why not stay awhile in Café Source and enjoy the open session of folk music and song!

Tricia says about herself - I am a freelance dance caller working in the British Isles. Freelance means I am not attached to any one band, I can be booked as a caller by the organiser/host of an event or by a band. Alternatively if someone has a problem getting a band I may be able to organise this too. There are many types of band to choose from so if you have an idea of what type of band you would like for your dance all the better. I have been a dance calling now for over 10 years so the dances can be as simple or as complicated as you like, I'm sure I can find something for everyone from beginners to the more experiences dancers. I can call the traditional ceilidh dances like the Gary Gordon's but can also introduce you to simply but not so often seen Old Time Dances. I have worked with various Dance Bands from the most traditional musicians as John Carmichael and Jim Johnstone to the more contemporary dance bands such as Big Squeeze and Annasach. Recently I have also started singing and am at present putting together a band which will cover anyone's tastes.