Seirm Gaelic Choir

New Seirm season begins September 28th!

The 2026 – 2027 Seirm season kicks off with choir rehearsals Monday, September 28th from 7pm – 9 pm at Maple Leaf Lutheran Church located at 10005 32nd Ave NE in Seattle. Seirm meets twice a month, usually on the first and third Mondays from September through May (dates listed below) to prepare for performances in the spring and summer.

Seirm will perform a waulking of the tweed demonstration at the Quilcene Fiber Festival Saturday, October 10th at Worthington Park, 151 E Columbia St in Quilcene on the Olympic Peninsula. The festival organizers provide a fresh, newly woven cloth for us to waulk, so we encourage everyone to join us at the table to experience the wonderful transformation of the cloth during the waulking process.

There will also be waulking demos in 2027 at the Shepherds’ Extravaganza in April and the Skagit Valley Highland Games in July.

Participation in the choir isn’t necessary for any of our waulking or song circle events, but please contact seirm.director@slighe.org if you’d like to come or would like more information.

Jim McKnight moved to Canada and we haven’t found a replacement to lead the band yet. However, if anyone is interested in playing tunes together, please let us know.

Upcoming Seirm & Music Events

Seirm’s Annual Concert is at 8 pm Saturday, September 19th at Maple Leaf Lutheran Church located at 10005 32nd Ave NE in Seattle. The concert features a nice variety of Gaelic songs and tunes. The instrumental ensemble Na Cailleachan joins Seirm to accompany a few songs and share some tunes. Tickets are $10 for Slighe nan Gaidheal Members, $12 for Non-Members available at the door [and online at https://www.slighe.org/store].

Online Song Fèis is 9 am – noon on Saturday, September 26th via Zoom

Seirm’s 30th Anniversary Celebration is November 7, 2026 at Slighe nan Gaidheal’s AGM or Annual General Meeting (see time and location elsewhere on the site). All members of Seirm past and present are invited to come share their favorite stories about Seirm.

Seirm Rehearsal Dates 2026-2027 Season:

Sept 28; Oct 5, 19; Nov 2, 16, 30;

Dec7; Jan 4, 18; Feb 1, 15;

Mar 1, 15; Apr 5, 19; May 3, 17

Upcoming Performances:

July 11, 2026 – Harp Tent: Na Cailleachan 9:45am, Seirm 11:15am Waulking for Skagit Spinners & Weavers Guild 1:30pm Skagit Valley Highland Games Skagit Valley Fairgrounds, 501 Taylor St., Mount Vernon, WA

July 25, 2026 – Sessions Tent: Na Cailleachan 11am Scottish Heritage Bldg: Choir 2pm Waulking 3pm PNW Highland Games, Enumclaw Expo Center, 45224 284 th Ave SE, Enumclaw, WA

September 19, 2026 - Annual Concert 8pm at Maple Leaf Lutheran Church, 10005 32nd Ave NE, Seattle, WA October 10, 2026 – Waulking at 5th Annual Quilcene Fiber Festival Worthington Park, 151 E. Columbia St., Quilcene, WA

April 2027 – Waulking at Shepherds’ Extravaganza Enumclaw Expo Center, 45224 284th Ave SE, Enumclaw, WA

About Seirm

Seirm is Slighe nan Gàidheal’s Gaelic choir that performs at various community events to promote interest and awareness of the Scottish Gaelic language, music and song tradition.

Originally formed as a 4-part a cappella choir in 1996 to participate in Mòd Vancouver, Seirm transitioned to the céilidh band format of singers and musicians following the conclusion of Mòd Vancouver in 2007.

Seirm participated in the Royal National Mòd in Scotland in October 2017. The group had plan to return in October 2020, but the Covid pandemic put a halt to that.

Seirm at the 2017 Royal National Mòd (The Oban Times)

Seirm continued to meet online throughout the pandemic, participating in Mary Ann Kennedy’s global online massed choir presentation on BBC Alba, performing online video concerts, competing in the virtual Royal Mòd and US Mòd, some live waulking performances starting in the fall of 2022, culminating in a live concert performance in 2023 after a season of hybrid rehearsals.

After a rebuilding season of song circles and several waulking opportunities, we have returned to in-person choir rehearsals since the 2024-2025 season.

Seirm welcomes people regardless of their musical experience or knowledge of Gaelic. There are no auditions, and no one will be asked to sing by themselves to join the group. No previous experience with Gaelic is necessary since we work on pronunciation as part of learning the songs and have recordings of each song for practicing at home. We learn about a dozen Gaelic songs each season. The only prerequisites to join are a willingness to learn Gaelic songs and have fun!

For more information, contact us.

Please contact Penny McLeod DeGraff if you would like to join or have any questions.

Upcoming Seirm & Music Events

Online Song Féis is 9 am – noon on Saturday, September 26th via Zoom Seirm’s 30th Anniversary Celebration is November 7, 2026 at Slighe nan Gaidheal’s AGM or Annual General Meeting (see time and location elsewhere on the site). All members of Seirm past and present are invited to come share their favorite stories about Seirm.

Seirm Rehearsal Dates 2026-2027 Season:

Sept 28; Oct 5, 19; Nov 2, 16, 30;

Dec7; Jan 4, 18; Feb 1, 15;

Mar 1, 15; Apr 5, 19; May 3, 17

Upcoming Performances:

July 11, 2026 – Harp Tent: Na Cailleachan 9:45am, Seirm 11:15am Waulking for Skagit Spinners & Weavers Guild 1:30pm Skagit Valley Highland Games Skagit Valley Fairgrounds, 501 Taylor St., Mount Vernon, WA

July 25, 2026 – Sessions Tent: Na Cailleachan 11am Scottish Heritage Bldg: Choir 2pm Waulking 3pm PNW Highland Games, Enumclaw Expo Center, 45224 284th Ave SE, Enumclaw, WA

September 19, 2026 - Annual Concert 8pm at Maple Leaf Lutheran Church, 10005 32 nd Ave NE, Seattle, WA October 10, 2026 – Waulking at 5th Annual Quilcene Fiber Festival Worthington Park, 151 E. Columbia St., Quilcene, WA

April 2027 – Waulking at Shepherds’ Extravaganza Enumclaw Expo Center, 45224 284th Ave SE, Enumclaw, WA

July 11, 2026 – Skagit Spinners & Weavers Guild Skagit Valley Highland Games Skagit Valley Fairgrounds, 501 Taylor St., Mount Vernon, WA