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MIKE VASS RELEASES TOUR DATES FOR HIS TRADITIONAL ARTS COMMISSION, \u2018IN THE WAKE OF NEIL GUNN\u2019<\/p>\nMIKE VASS RELEASES TOUR DATES FOR HIS TRADITIONAL ARTS COMMISSION, \u2018IN THE WAKE OF NEIL GUNN\u2019<\/p>\n
In 1937, Neil Gunn quit his job at the Customs Office in Inverness to pursue his writing career full time. The first thing he did was to sell his house and buy a boat in the North of Skye. He spent a summer sailing Scotland\u2019s beautiful West Coast, seeking inspiration for his writing. The following year his account of the trip, Off in a Boat, was published. In May 2014, after a time recovering in hospital from a life-threatening illness, composer and multi-instrumentalist Mike Vass set off on his own voyage inspired by Neil Gunn\u2019s adventures as part of a new traditional arts commission sponsored by Creative Scotland. This October will see the touring of this commission and release of a new album.<\/p>\n
Named Composer of the Year in the 2012 Scots Trad Music Awards, Vass\u2019s music has become known for its originality and inventive approach to the Scottish tradition. A long-term member of renowned Scottish band Malinky, Mike has also performed in the Paul McKenna Band, in a duo with sister Ali, with Gaelic singer Kathleen MacInnes, Scots singer Fiona Hunter and in the feted super group Fiddle Rendezvous.<\/p>\n
In 2013, he experienced a set-back when he was diagnosed with Lyme\u2019s disease and was obliged to spend a prolonged period of time in hospital. His father brought him Gunn\u2019s book Off in a Boat to read, and the idea for the project was sparked.<\/p>\n
Says Mike: \u201cI\u2019d suffered a life threatening illness called Neuroborreliosis \u2013 late stage Lyme\u2019s disease that affects the central nervous system. I found Gunn\u2019s book utterly inspirational and immediately started planning my own version of the trip.\u201d<\/p>\n
A lifelong passion for sailing fuelled the development of the project which enabled Vass to find his own creative inspiration in Gunn\u2019s coastal route. In May this year, having won the support of Enterprise Music Scotland, Creative Scotland, Calmac Ferries and Gunn\u2019s publishers House of Lochar, Mike and a small crew set off in his father\u2019s 35\u2019 sailing boat from Portree on the Isle of Skye voyaging to the Eigg, Arisaig, Mull, Iona, Oban, Kentallen, Fort William and back up the Caledonian Canal to his hometown Nairn. He revisited the same coastal communities as Gunn and performed a series of concerts with guest musicians, including one at Iona Abbey.<\/p>\n
He says: \u201cMaking music on board and watching the stunning coastline of Scotland slip by from one of the most privileged viewpoints on Earth is something I will never forget.\u201d Though intimately inspired by Gunn\u2019s voyage and writing Mike said: \u201cIt is inescapably the story of my own reflections. It is a journey of recovery and discovery\u201d.<\/p>\n
Since the voyage Mike has worked hard in the studio to compose and record a new suite of music inspired by the journey and featuring recorded samples collected on the way (from flapping flags to a diesel inboard). Says Mike: \u201cI used some quirky sounding objects from around the house \u2013 if you listen carefully you might hear a toilet seat lid, an office stapler and a paracetamol tub being used as a shaker!\u201d Mike will now tour the album, joined by some incredible musicians (The Cairn String Quartet, Euan Burton, Innes Watson, JenniferPort, and Hamish Napier) and featuring live sample triggers and film footage from the voyage recorded by Salmon Films.<\/p>\n
The tour will revisit some of the areas most important to Gunn: Inverness, where he had lived; Caithness, where he was born; and Skye and Oban which were landmarks on the original voyage. Mike himself spent a week moored in Oban where he worked with the local F\u00e8is and performed in nearby Kentallen. Mike is also looking forward to revisiting The Byre Theatre in St Andrews at the start of the tour. This is one of the first events to take place in the Byre since the reopening of the theatre under the management of the University of St Andrews, and demonstrates the University\u2019s commitment to using the Byre to promote music of all genres as well as professional, community and student drama.<\/p>\n
7th October, 7.30pm, The Byre Theatre, St Andrews
\n8th October, 8pm, Eden Court, Inverness
\n9th October, 7.30pm, St. John\u2019s Cathedral, Oban
\n10th October, 7.30pm, SEALL at Sabhal M\u00f2r Ostaig, Isle of Skye
\n11th October, 8pm, Lyth Arts Centre, Wick<\/p>\n
\u2018Mike Vass \u2013 In the Wake of Neil Gunn\u2019 will be released on the 20th October 2014 on Unroofed Records, and a preview track has been released as well as downloads of sheet music transcribed by Mike during a research period at the School of Scottish Studies before the May voyage.<\/p>\n
Follow the journey: www.inthewakeofneilgunn.com
\nListen: https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/mikevass\/01-settled-in-clay<\/p>\n