Trad For All brings beginner workshops to Doolin this November

Featured archive photograph: musicians at Gus O’Connor’s Pub in Doolin, 15 May 2012. Photograph by Gtapp (Gérald Tapp), via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized; any displayed crop remains under the same licence. This is not a photograph of Trad For All 2026.

Trad For All, a new festival for beginners and improvers, comes to Doolin, County Clare, from 27 to 29 November 2026. Its programme combines instrument workshops, slow sessions, dancing and concerts, with options for children, teenagers and adults.

Find a way into the session

The organiser’s programme includes tin whistle, repertoire, accompaniment, bodhrán, singing and set dancing, with separate options for children, teenagers and adults. Choose by instrument and experience level rather than assuming every workshop starts from scratch. There are also one-day and two-day options.

Slow and open sessions give players another way to take part. The Clare Herald’s festival preview reports that slow, open and listening sessions will be free. That makes the weekend worth considering even if you do not want a full workshop package. Check the final timetable before choosing where to go.

Concerts in The Attic and The Barn

For a close-up acoustic performance, The Attic Sessions brings concertina player Mary MacNamara, fiddler Sorcha Costello and pianist Geraldine Cotter to The Attic at Hotel Doolin on Saturday 28 November at 8pm. The official ticket listing describes a small audience and no amplification.

Earlier that afternoon, a free concert for families with young children starts in the same venue at 3pm. No advance booking is required, and children must be supervised by an adult.

Sunday’s James Cullinan Tribute Concert turns towards Doolin’s own musical community. Diarmuid Ó Meachair, Tony Linnane and Jack Talty open the evening, followed by Moher & Friends. It marks the launch of Tír na Gréine, a duet album recorded by Cullinan and Ó Meachair. The concert begins at 7pm in The Barn at Hotel Doolin.

Leave room for dancing

Louise O’Connor leads the Community Céilí in The Barn on Sunday 29 November at 2.30pm. Dances will be explained, and no previous experience is needed. You can come alone or with friends or family; children need adult supervision.

The organiser sells individual tickets as well as day and weekend passes. No single pass includes every festival event. Check the inclusions before booking. Hotel Doolin says weekend-pass booking fees are covered, while individual workshop and event tickets carry fees. Check the final total and availability for your chosen event.

Workshops have limited places, and the organiser recommends advance booking. Check the workshop’s age range and experience level before booking.

From the archive: Niamh Parsons on learning songs and newcomers’ place in Irish traditional music.