{"id":24113,"date":"2025-05-27T09:54:43","date_gmt":"2025-05-27T08:54:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/?p=24113"},"modified":"2025-05-27T09:54:46","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T08:54:46","slug":"scotlands-folk-stars-return-to-school-for-highland-music-centres-25th-anniversary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/scotlands-folk-stars-return-to-school-for-highland-music-centres-25th-anniversary\/","title":{"rendered":"Scotland\u2019s folk stars return to school for Highland music centre\u2019s 25th anniversary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"828\" src=\"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3-1024x828.jpeg\" alt=\"Image of Plockton young people\" class=\"wp-image-24114\" srcset=\"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3-1024x828.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3-300x242.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3-768x621.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3-24x19.jpeg 24w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3-36x29.jpeg 36w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3-48x39.jpeg 48w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3-600x485.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2025\/05\/Plockton-Music-Dec-2024-3.jpeg 1189w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Some of Scotland\u2019s most acclaimed traditional musicians are heading back to school this June to mark a major milestone in Highland musical education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The National Centre of Excellence in Traditional Music in Plockton is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a special concert at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, on 19<sup class=\"\">th<\/sup>&nbsp;June and the event will bring together past and present students in a vibrant showcase of Scottish traditional music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Known in Gaelic as&nbsp;<em class=\"\">Sgoil Chi\u00f9il na G\u00e0idhealtachd<\/em>, the Centre has been a cornerstone in nurturing some of the country\u2019s most talented young musicians while preserving Scotland\u2019s rich musical heritage. This celebratory performance highlights the Centre\u2019s legacy as the only one of its kind in Scotland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The concert will feature a stellar line-up of alumni who have gone on to forge highly successful careers. Returning to perform alongside current students are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong class=\"\">Innes White (originally from Dingwall &amp; will be the Musical Director the event)<\/strong><strong>,<\/strong>\u00a0multi-instrumentalist known for collaborations with Julie Fowlis, Eddi Reader, Karen Matheson, Sian, Siobhan Miller and many others<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"\">Kim Carnie (Oban)<\/strong><strong>,<\/strong>\u00a0singer-songwriter, member of popular folk group, M\u00e0nran, and TV presenter<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"\">Ewan Robertson (Carrbridge)<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong class=\"\">Conal McDonagh (Poolewe)<\/strong>\u00a0of award-winning folk group, Breabach<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"\">Catriona Hawksworth (Perthshire)<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong class=\"\">Megan Macdonald (Lairg)<\/strong><strong>,<\/strong>\u00a0members of six-piece band, Heisk<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"\">Malin Lewis (Skye)<\/strong><strong>,<\/strong>\u00a0acclaimed piper and instrument maker<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"\">Mairearad Green<\/strong>, Achiltibuie musician, composer and artist<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"\">Charlie Grey (Fort Augustus) and Joseph Peach (Achiltibuie)<\/strong>, celebrated fiddle and piano duo<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"\">Deirdre Graham (Broadford, Skye)<\/strong><strong>,<\/strong>\u00a0Gaelic singer and tutor at the Centre, who will also act as\u00a0<em class=\"\">Bean an Taighe<\/em>\u00a0(host) for the evening<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>These musicians will be joining the current intake of talented young musicians back in Plockton for rehearsals prior to the event, where the future generation will learn from the alumni.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mike Vass, Centre Manager, said:&nbsp;\u201cIt\u2019s a real honour to celebrate 25 years of the Centre with so many of our talented alumni and current students. This event is not just a celebration of our past, but a testament to the strength and future of traditional music in Scotland. The fact that so many former students have gone on to successful careers &#8211; and are now returning to perform &#8211; is incredibly moving and a powerful reminder of what this Centre is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Centre opened in May 2000 with just nine students, including Breabach\u2019s Ewan Robertson, who returns as both tutor and performer, offering intensive training led by some of Scotland\u2019s foremost traditional musicians. Today, the Centre continues to offer exceptional musical education, with tuition from a team of renowned tutors such as fiddler Gordon Gunn; Gaelic singers Deirdre Graham and Rachel Walker; singer-songwriter Siobhan Miller; multi-instrumentalist Hamish Napier; fiddle player\/guitarist Innes Watson; harpist Ingrid Henderson; pianist Mhairi Hall; and composer\/producer Mike Vass, who also serves as Centre Manager.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The 25th anniversary celebration takes place at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, on 19<sup class=\"\">th<\/sup>&nbsp;June. Tickets are available now online. For more information about the Centre, visit&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.plocktonmusicschool.com\/\" class=\"\">www.plocktonmusicschool.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Some of Scotland\u2019s most acclaimed traditional musicians are heading back to school this June to mark a major milestone in Highland musical education. The National Centre of Excellence in Traditional Music in Plockton is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a special concert at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, on 19th&nbsp;June and the event will bring together [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9,37],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-24113","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-news","7":"category-newsletter","8":"entry","9":"has-post-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"simon","author_link":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/author\/simon\/"},"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcv15g-6gV","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24113"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24113\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24115,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24113\/revisions\/24115"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}