Teachers
Helen McGinley
A passionate Scot, Helen has been dancing since her teens and has been a member of the Dublin club since moving to Ireland in 1998. She began teaching Scottish dancing around 1993 and has written a number of Scottish dances. She is very involved with the RSCDS. You can learn more about Helen and read all about her Scottish dancing adventures in her blog: Helen’s Blog
John Gibson
John hails from Musselburgh (near Edinburgh) but only took up Scottish country dancing when living and working in Surrey in south-east England. He moved to Dublin in 1987 and immediately became involved with the Dublin SCD club, teaching the group from 1989 to the mid-1990s. He studied Scottish dancing in Edinburgh from 2000 to 2004, and joined the Dublin club teaching rota following his return. He teaches Step and Formation Practice most Thursdays at 7.30. Please see our News & Events page for updates on the Step Practice timetable.
Hazel Convery
Hazel was born and raised in Scotland and moved to Ireland in 1967 when she married an Irishman. She started dancing as a small girl but started teaching Scottish country dancing several years ago. Hazel uses her many years of dancing experience to make the evenings challenging and enjoyable for everyone. Hazel is also the caller for our annual ceilidh and does an amazing job keeping everyone dancing and having fun!
Musicians
John and Judy Barnes
John (accordion) and Judy (fiddle) have been playing and writing traditional music together for many years. They moved to Dublin in the late 80s and have been playing regularly for the club for over 30 years. John has written several original tunes, such as the music for Wunderbar!, a dance that was written by our teacher Helen. We are so fortunate to have the amazingly talented John and Judy providing live music for us every week and at our social events! Check out the video below of them playing the popular tune ‘Mairi’s Wedding’.