Love at First Play — with Barleyshakes Duo

"It's not just about being in a band. It's about community building and getting out there." — Alan Kelly, Barleyshakes Duo

Kristin Kelly grew up in Brisbane, heard Martin Hayes play fiddle at the National Folk Festival in Canberra in the early 90s, quit her teaching job, sent a cheque to the other side of the world, and went to his summer school in Miltown Malbay, Ireland. Alan Kelly grew up in Dublin, spending every Sunday at his grandmother's house — 24 cousins, a banjo, an accordion, and an uncle who yodeled through the whole afternoon, undeterred by protests, pleas, or a stick in the ribs. They met in Prague in the mid-90s and have been making music together ever since.

Harley Breen sits down with Kristin and Alan — Barleyshakes Duo — fresh off their first Festival of Small Halls tour, the 50th tour in the programme's history, representing over 800 gigs across 12 years. They talk about what it means to take live music into towns where people drive two hours just to get to the shops, and what happens when a tough MC from out near Chinchilla quietly starts crying because a fiddle tune reached his Irish heritage. About the Emu Creek hall that hadn't had a new roof since 1937 and was very excited about this, and the ladies who knitted beanies for $10.

They talk about Trad School — the monthly traditional music school at Woodfordia that grew from conversations with Chloe Goodyear and now brings together fiddle, guitar, whistle, and bodhrán students every month. 

They also talk about Barleyshakes — the full band behind the duo, with deep family and community roots woven through its lineup. Two of their children are now full band members, one of whom started at seven on spoons, has a spoon tattoo, and now refuses to play them. And mandolin player Steve Cook has played every single Woodford Folk Festival since it began — he keeps saying he's done, and he keeps coming back.

And they talk about what's at stake for live music right now — screens replacing communal experience, and what it means when a programme simply asks people to show up and trust it. At every Small Halls show, not a single person was on a screen. Everyone was present.

Dive in to hear about:

• How Kristin went from teaching strings in Far North Queensland to studying fiddle in Ireland — and the cheque she sent to the other side of the world to make it happen
• The Prague band that brought Kristin and Alan together — and their brief period of fame in Switzerland before they moved to Australia
• The Festival of Small Halls tour — 800 gigs, 12 years, and what it feels like to play to a sold-out hall in a town that's never heard of you
• How Trad School started, what it gives students, and who has a spoon tattoo but won't play them
• DADGAD tuning, the drone, and why Queenslanders love a jig
• The blokes who wandered into a bush dance, put their cans down, and held hands

Key topics: Barleyshakes Duo, Kristin Kelly, Alan Kelly, Irish folk music, Festival of Small Halls, Woodfordia Traditional Music School, Trad School, Woodford Folk Festival, community music, regional Australia, folk tradition, bush dance, Irish Australian

To come to the Woodford Folk Festival this year visit: https://woodfordfolkfestival.com/

FOR MORE:

Harley Breen: https://www.harleybreen.com.au

Barleyshakes: https://www.barleyshakes.com

Woodfordia: https://woodfordia.org/                                                                                      Festival of Small Halls: https://festivalofsmallhalls.com/                                                 

Woodfordia Traditional Music School: https://woodfordia.org/traditional-music-school/

CREDITS: Host: Harley Breen | Guests: Kristin and Alan Kelly of the Barleyshakes Duo | Executive Producer: Bree Hickson-Jamieson | Producer: Josh Weier | Video Editing: Nick Haddow | Music by: The East Pointers | Recorded on Jinibara Country | Recorded June 2026

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Credits:

Host: Harley Breen

Executive Producers: Bree Hickson-Jamieson, Josh Weier, Benny Wallington

Audio mastering: Kieron Atkinson

Music by: The East Pointers

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