{"id":28149,"date":"2026-06-16T10:59:31","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T09:59:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/?p=28149"},"modified":"2026-06-16T10:59:35","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T09:59:35","slug":"rumbo-north-isles-brings-orkney-shetland-and-argentina-together-for-new-cross-cultural-festival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/rumbo-north-isles-brings-orkney-shetland-and-argentina-together-for-new-cross-cultural-festival\/","title":{"rendered":"Rumbo North Isles brings Orkney, Shetland and Argentina together for new cross-cultural festival"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Routes to Roots, an artist-led organisation focused on international collaboration, announces Rumbo North Isles, a new festival bringing musicians from Orkney and Shetland together with artists from Argentina for a series of live performances and creative exchanges this August. 
 
The project builds on the organisation\u2019s first festival, Rumbo Oaxaca, which took place in Mexico earlier in 2026 and brought together musicians from different global backgrounds to collaborate and perform. With Rumbo North Isles, Routes to Roots continues that work in a new setting, connecting island communities in the north of Scotland with artists from Latin America \u2013 led by Founder and Artistic Director Catriona Price<\/strong>, Creative Director Joni Strugo<\/strong>, and Musical Director Juan Grabina<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two headline events form the centre of the programme. The first takes place on\u00a0Saturday 1 August at Mareel in Lerwick<\/strong>, followed by a second on\u00a0Sunday 9 August at the Marquee at Picky in Kirkwall.<\/strong>\u00a0Each event brings together artists from the Northern Isles and Argentina, with performances shaped around shared sets as well as individual appearances.\u00a0
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Argentinian duo\u00a0Lohd\u00f3h<\/strong>\u00a0explore songcraft through a contemporary urban aeshetic, blending rich vocal textures, electronic influences and poetic storytelling. Fellow Argentinian group\u00a0El Guapo<\/strong>\u00a0draw on Latin American musical traditions alongside rock, funk and jazz to create an expansive, genre-crossing sound.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They are joined by a range of artists rooted in the musical life of Orkney, Shetland and Scotland more widely.\u00a0Kris Drever<\/strong>, known for his distinctive voice and guitar work, is one of the leading figures in contemporary Scottish folk. Orcadian fiddler, singer and composer\u00a0Catriona Price\u00a0<\/strong>is known for her work with Fara and Twelfth Day, blending contemporary influences with traditional styles in a fresh, fiddle-led, full band sound.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Shetland event also features\u00a0Amy Laurenson and Norman Wilmore<\/strong>, who bring together piano and saxophone in a vibrant partnership that draws on folk, jazz and contemporary musical traditions, and\u00a0Skelpit<\/strong>, an exciting new Shetland band celebrating the islands\u2019 rich traditional folk heritage through fresh arrangements, dynamic musicianship and infectious energy.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Orkney programme includes\u00a0The Chair<\/strong>, long established as one of the islands\u2019 most well-known live acts with their distinctive rhythmic style, and\u00a0Auskerry<\/strong>, one of Orkney\u2019s most exciting emerging folk bands, bringing together five exceptional young musicians to create a fresh, energetic sound rooted in the rich traditions of the islands.\u00a0\u00a0
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Across the festival, artists will also work together in mixed line-ups, creating opportunities to explore connections between their different musical backgrounds in front of live audiences.\u00a0
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Catriona Price, Founder and Artistic Director of Routes to Roots said:\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019re incredibly excited to be launching a Routes to Roots festival in Orkney and Shetland. Rumbo North Isles will be a celebration of Latin and local collaboration, and we can\u2019t wait to experience the joy, colour and creative energy that will emerge when our fantastic line-up comes together.<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Routes to Roots is an initiative I\u2019ve been developing for many years, inspired by a desire to connect and collaborate with musicians from folk traditions around the world. 2026 \u2013 our first official year as an organisation \u2013 is shaping up to be a huge one. We presented our first ever festival, Rumbo Oaxaca, in Mexico earlier this year, curated a Routes to Roots showcase at Celtic Connections in January, and will present a night of intercultural collaboration at the Edinburgh International Festival later this summer. Rumbo North Isles is an exciting new chapter in our journey.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As someone whose music is rooted in my Orcadian upbringing, bringing the project home to the islands feels particularly special. After performing across Orkney and Shetland with my Routes to Roots colleagues Joni and Juan over the past two summers, it felt like a natural next step to create a Scottish edition of the festival in the North Isles. We hope Rumbo North Isles will not only create unforgettable performances this summer, but also lay the foundations for lasting artistic relationships, future international exchange, and new opportunities for artists and audiences alike.\u201d<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joni Strugo, Creative Director of Routes to Roots said:\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019re thrilled with the line-up we\u2019ve brought together for the first edition of Rumbo North Isles. It\u2019s a real privilege to be welcoming Lohd\u00f3h \u2013 the incredible Argentine musicians Noelia Recalde and Jonatan Szer \u2013 to Scotland for the very first time. Alongside them, we have some of the finest musical exports from the North Isles, including Kris Drever, The Chair, Amy Laurenson & Norman Wilmore, and exciting emerging acts such as Auskerry and Skelpit, alongside the Routes to Roots team Catriona Price and my band from Argentina, El Guapo.<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m so happy to be returning to Scotland. Since beginning to work with Catriona, I\u2019ve spent a lot of time here, and it has become a very special place for both me and my El Guapo partner Juan. The North Isles in particular have a unique creative spirit and sense of community that we\u2019ve fallen in love with.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a pleasure to share our Latin American-rooted original music with audiences here, and even more exciting to bring artists together through Routes to Roots. We believe that when people from different cultures make music together, something truly special happens, and Rumbo North Isles is all about creating those moments of connection.\u201d<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Routes to Roots was founded by musicians with a focus on creating projects that prioritise exchange, collaboration and long-term relationships between artists. Alongside Rumbo Oaxaca, the organisation has previously worked with partners including Celtic Connections and Edinburgh International Festival.\u00a0
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Rumbo North Isles marks the next stage in that work, with a focus on Scotland\u2019s island communities and their place within a wider international network of artists and traditions. Alongside the two main events, Rumbo North Isles includes workshops and community activity across Orkney and Shetland, giving audiences and participants opportunities to engage directly with the visiting artists. By placing different musical traditions side by side, the festival highlights how collaboration can create common ground between communities that might not otherwise meet.\u00a0
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Tickets for Rumbo North Isles are on sale now at\u00a0https:\/\/routestorootsmusic.org<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Routes to Roots, an artist-led organisation focused on international collaboration, announces Rumbo North Isles, a new festival bringing musicians from Orkney and Shetland together with artists from Argentina for a series of live performances and creative exchanges this August.  The project builds on the organisation\u2019s first festival, Rumbo Oaxaca, which took place in Mexico earlier in […]<\/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_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},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[9,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28149","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-news","category-newsletter","entry","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-7k1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28149","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=28149"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28149\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28151,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28149\/revisions\/28151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28149"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28149"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28149"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}