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Fáilte! Welcome to The Musicians Guide to Féis

I’m excited that you’re interested in becoming a feis musician. It’s a challenging but rewarding experience.

Feiseanna are held all over the world, in Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, all over Europe, the USA and Canada.

Please note that the observations listed here are just a general guideline to get you started & they apply primarily to my experiences playing for feiseanna in the Mid-America Region. You should research the specific rules of your region, as some feis rules & tempos may vary.

Terms Related To Irish Dance Competitions

Féis – (pronounced “FESH”) an Irish word that means festival, but is more commonly used to describe a sanctioned Irish dance competition

Féiseanna – plural of feis, pronounced “FESH-nah”

Oireachtas – (pronounced “O-ROCK-tus”) an Irish word that means gathering, but within the context of Irish dance generally refers to the Regional Championships

Majors – championship events with entry restricted to dancers who have qualified for Open Champion level, and/or who have qualified from a prior championship event

North American Irish Dancing Championships (NAIDC) – one of the majors; sometimes referred to as “Nationals” or ”North American Nationals” (NANs)

Region – There are 7 regions in North America

Irish Dancing Teachers Association of Mid-America (IDTAMA) – Syllabus 2019-2020

Irish Dancing Teachers Association of North America (IDTANA)

North American Feis Commission (NAFC) – NAFC Handbook 2018

An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha (CLRG) – The Irish Dancing Commission; the oldest and largest governing body for competitive Irish step dancing globally