Ceilidh band

Staffin Island Ceilidh Band

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About Staffin Island Ceilidh Band

The Staffin Island Ceilidh Band is one of the best Ceilidh bands in East & Central Scotland! We specialise in Wedding Ceilidhs & Events.
Staffin Island Ceilidh Band's profile picture
Ceilidh band
Dundee
Public liability insurance of £10 million

The Staffin Island Ceilidh Band remains one of the best Ceilidh/Wedding event bands in the UK! Based in Central Scotland, we're blessed with a talented, dedicated caller who excels at getting people of all ages and abilities onto the dance floor. We can also offer a fantastic range of cover songs, as well as a comprehensive repertoire of traditional numbers, with a focus on lively, upbeat performances and an exhilarating, rocky style. We've performed around the UK and Ireland over the years, and most of our members are also experienced traditional musicians with their fingers on the pulse of contemporary traditional music - something we bring to the fore in our smaller lineups. We're active in our local music scene as well, promoting our love of Scottish music old and new, and supporting local charities and organisations with our work.

Staffin Island Ceilidh Band
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5 out of 5
19 verified reviews
Satisfaction
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5.0
Professionalism
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5.0
Communication
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5.0
Punctuality
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5.0

Staffin Island Ceilidh Band's Reviews

From Encore customers:

AT
Arina T
2 months ago
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5 out of 5

Staffin Island were truly wonderful at our gathering for about 20 friends. They brought in additional staff members to stand in for tired dancers so that we always had a sufficient number of people on the dancefloor. Our group was international, and the caller made an excellent job in explaining all the dances to complete novices, as well as dropping in a couple of interesting facts about Ceilidh dancing. The music was of top quality, the songs were well sequenced, and we really enjoyed their acoustic covers in the breaks. They also accommodated a small request for a fiddle cover for a pop song. We honestly couldn't be happier, as were our guests, some of whom asked for their contacts for their own celebrations.

JG
Jo G
3 months ago
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5 out of 5

Would highly recommend, the band really made the evening special, everyone was up and dancing and having a great time.

Reply from Staffin Island Ceilidh Band
3 months ago

Thanks so much for your kind words Jo - and thanks for having us! We had a great time and we're so glad you did too! - Meirion

KG
Katie G
7 months ago
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5 out of 5

Amazing band and fantastic caller! We had them for our wedding in August last year and they truly made the evening magical—everyone was complimenting them. They learnt our first dance song specially for us, kept everyone on track during the ceilidh dances, and played a great selection of popular songs in between. We couldn’t recommend them highly enough.

ZA
Zahir A
1 year ago
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5 out of 5

Fantastic. Dundee University reunion after 33 years. These guys rocked it. Thank you

Reply from Staffin Island Ceilidh Band
1 year ago

Thanks Zahir! We had a blast playing for you, we're delighted everyone enjoyed their night!

Read all 13 reviews

From other customers:

LS
Laura S
3 years ago, for a Wedding in United Kingdom
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5 out of 5

Helloooooo to the most incredible Staffin Island Celidh Band, THANK YOU SO MUCH for being the soundtrack of our wedding day! We knew you were amazing, but you were the absolute BEST EVER!!!! You blew us away and absolutely made our wedding party. We have had so many comments from our friends and family about how incredible you were - we feel so lucky to have had you be part of our special day. Thank you all SO SO MUCH. Our first dance was magical - thank you for learning the song and making it so special. We really can’t thank you enough. We hope we will get to see you at an event very soon so we can party with you again. We’ll be encouraging everyone we know to get in touch!!! If there is anywhere we can leave a public review or testimonial then please let us know. Thank you all so much - you are awesome! Laura & Alexander x

KS
Karyn S
6 years ago, for a Wedding in Dundee
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5 out of 5

We had Staffin Island play at our wedding on 7/9/19 and I might be biased but it was the best ceilidh I have ever been to. We had lots of people who had never ceilidh'd before and Chris did a fantastic job of bringing the room together. They played a great mix of dances and knew perfectly how to read the room. Our guests loved every minute of it and we couldn't be more grateful. Trust them, they know what they're doing! Thank you guys! Love Karyn and Tom x

Read all 6 reviews
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Staffin Island Ceilidh Band's Song list

COVER SONGS:
Galway Girl ~ Steve Earle
The Gambler ~ Kenny Rogers
Take Me Home Country Roads ~ John Denver
Ho Hey ~ Lumineers
I'm a Believer ~ The Monkees
Wagon Wheel ~ Old Crow Medicine Show
Stuck In The Middle ~ Stealers Wheel
Brown Eyed Girl ~ Van Morrison
Sit Down ~ James
Green Green Grass ~ George Ezra
I Saw Her Standing There ~ The Beatles
500 Miles ~ The Proclaimers
I’ll be there for you - The Rembrandts
Shut Up And Dance ~ Walk the Moon
Heather On The Hill ~ Nathan Evan’s
Can’t Help Falling In Love ~ Elvis Presley
Carry You Home ~ Alex Warren
Wake Me Up ~ Aviici
Walking On The Waves ~ Skipinnish
Shotgun ~ George Ezra
Better Together ~ Jack Johnson
Caledonia ~ Dougie MacLean
Dancing In The Dark ~ Bruce Springsteen
Proud Mary ~ Tina Turner
Walk of Life ~ Dire Straits
Wild Mountain Thyme ~ Traditional
Loch Lomond ~ Runrig
DANCES:
Borrowdale Exchange
Britannia Two-Step
Circassian Circle
Circle Waltz
Cumberland Square Eight
Dashing White Sergeant
Eightsome Reel
Flying Scotsman
Gay Gordons
Hamilton House
Hooligan’s Jig
Military Two-Step
Patacake Polka
Reel of the 51st
Riverside
Sausage Machine
Strip The Willow {Traditional and Orcadian}
Witches Reel
The traditional ceilidh tunes (both ancient and modern) we use in our dance sets are too numerous to name, but here's a few classics you might recognise:
MUSIC:
The Atholl Highlanders
The Jig of Slurs
Scotland the Brave
The Dashing White Sergeant
The Flowers of Edinburgh
Jig Runrig
The Hut on Staffin Island
The Road to Errogie
A Hundred Pipers
The Gael

Staffin Island Ceilidh Band's Prices

Note: prices may vary based on travel distance. For an exact quote, click “Check availability”.

Standard Prices
DurationPrice
Up to 1 hour£1200
Up to 2 hours£1500
Up to 3 hours£1850
Customer questions

Can you perform covers?

Yes, no problem. We have a range of modern covers we're happy to perform in addition to traditional Ceilidh music - normally these fit into the breaks between dances, but if there's anything you'd like to hear, feel free to ask us about it!

Do you have different line-up options?

Our line-up is comprised of the following: Lead and Backing Vocals, 2 Fiddles, Guitar, Keyboard, Bass, Drums. We can configure this line-up in a number of ways to suit your requirements and budget.

What if my timings change after I've booked you?

We always try our best to be flexible to help ensure your event runs as smoothly as possible. If timings change slightly in the run up to the event just let us know.

Can you provide an iPod/DJ service before and between your sets?

We can run a playlist through our PA stystem, and we do this for free in any breaks between sets.

How much time do you need to set up?

We usually set up about 1.5 hours before the performance time, but in venues with good access arrangements or for smaller line-ups we can sometimes reduce this time. As soon as our PA is set up we can provide a free playlist service to help set the atmosphere and get your guests ready for our live performance!

Do you provide a caller?

Yes we do! We have a fantastic caller, Chris, as part of our Ceilidh band, who is included as standard in all of our line-up options.

Can I pick the songs you play from the set list?

Our set lists have been tailored through countless performances and learning what gives us a full dance floor, and an amazing time for your guests. However, we're definitely happy to talk things through and make sure we find what works for your event.

Is all of the equipment (e.g. PA) included in your quote?

Yes, all our equipment is included. We usually require a minimum of 8 meters by 3 meters space to perform.

Can you learn song requests before the event?

If a song isn't included in our song list there may still be a chance we already know it. For weddings, we will normally consider all reasonable requests for First Dances at no additional cost. However, for further requests we normally ask £40 for this service to take into account rehearsal times etc.
Musicianship
Genres:
Ceilidh, Folk, Country, Traditional Scottish folk, Traditional Irish folk, Traditional English folk, Asian music
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Event types:
Wedding, Hotel / Restaurant event, Virtual event, Birthday party, Wedding proposal, Funeral / Memorial service, Church service, Bar / Club / Venue event, Private event, Corporate event, Charity event, Concert, Recording session, Theatre / Show, Cruise, Burns night, Christmas party, New Year's Eve
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