Bridge the Gap, a sheet music book which contains thirty-nine recently composed tunes by Scottish musician and composer Gordon Shand, is released this month. New compositions, which include reels, jigs, marches, strathspeys and waltzes, “Bridge the Gap” between Traditional Scottish Dance Music and Contemporary Folk Music, with several of the melodies being ideal for use by […]
Newsletter
Stonehaven Folk Festival 1988 – 2018 (30 years old)
On 23rd March Simon and Martin Forry headed up to Stonehaven to celebrate the folk festival’s 30th Anniversary. Stonehaven Folk Festival began in 1988 after a successful Stonehaven Folk Club was started in the wine bar in Allardice Street, Stonehaven. The original idea for the Festival came from Sandy Johnston and Bill McEwen after they […]
Hands Up for Trad’s Ignition Award awarded to Duncan Lyall
Hands Up for Trad’s Ignition Award is an award for musicians and bands who put the charge into the tradition. At Hands Up for Trad we like to celebrate innovation so we have brought forward this award to celebrate those musicians who take chances and in doing so make Scottish trad music an exciting place […]
Stars shine bright at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards
The winners of the Radio 2 Folk Awards 2018 have been announced in a ceremony broadcast live on BBC Radio 2 and Radio Ulster, from Belfast’s Waterfront Hall. The awards saw a host of musicians come together for an evening of recognition and show-stopping performances. The ceremony was presented by Radio 2 Folk Show host […]
Gaelic duo Whyte and Scots singer Gerda Stevenson to compete at Liet International 2018 XXL
In less than 2 months, at Wednesday 23 May 2018, the 12th edition of Liet International will take place in Leeuwarden-Ljouwert, in Friesland, in the north of the Netherlands. Home of the Frisian song festival Liet and birthplace of Liet International. We are very pleased Liet International 2018 XXL is part of the activities during […]
Small Pipes Workshop for intermediate / advanced pipers
Do you play the big pipes and would like a shot at the small pipes? Brighde Chaimbeul and Alana MacInnes are offering workshops on 28-29th April in Glasgow – £25 for two days. If you are interested email abspiping@gmail.com for find out more.
Battle of the Folk Bands 2018: Suas
Suas have reached the finals of Battle of The Folk Bands 2018. The competition will be held at TradFest on May 6th 2018 in Edinburgh. Why not come along and join in the fun? You can buy tickets here. Read about all the finalists here. We asked Robbie of Suas a few questions about the […]
New music videos to watch
Last October in Orkney we were lucky to make music videos of Eamonn Coyne, Saltfishforty, The Wrigley Sisters and Karen Tweed and I finally finished the videos yesterday! Watch them below. Eamonn Coyne Saltfishforty The Wrigley Sisters Karen Tweed Why not check out our Hands Up for Trad YouTube channel for loads of great music […]
Hands Up for Trad March Quiz – Singers vs Accompanists
Join Kathleen MacInnes, Joy Dunlop, Robert Robertson and Josie Duncan vs David Foley and Pablo Lafuente for this month’s quiz. Can you you beat the teams and answer all the questions. Watch it below! The answers are also below the video. Round 1 – Quickfire In which town in Scotland is the Mountain Bike World […]
Trad Music Spotlight: Kirsty Law
Hands Up for Trad’s Trad Music Spotlight is a monthly feature on a band or solo artist. It was first launched in February 2015 and features musicians who are working in the trad scene – both in Scotland and around the world. We asked Kirsty Law a few questions. What’s happening? I am currently releasing […]