Reviews

This evening in the Concert Hall was dedicated to Scottish and Scandinavian folk, with three contemporary bands taking to the stage to showcase their Scandi-Celtic connections. First up were Finnish outfit Frigg, four violinists with guitar, double bass and mandolin/cittern completing their bluegrass-influenced collective – or, as they call it, “Nordgrass”. Their set ebbed and […]

Four days into a UK tour saw Colin Hay performing at The Old Fruitmarket for Celtic Connections. The Grammy-winning songwriter – well known as ex- frontman of Australian band Men at Work – had spent the past two evenings playing sell-out shows in Irvine, close to his hometown of Saltcoats on the Ayrshire coast. Tonight […]

This evening saw musician & composer Phil Cunningham take to the stage of the Concert Hall, to perform a suite of music written for the 2021 BBC TV documentary, The Narrow Sea The Farther Shore. The music took inspiration from the sights, stories and sounds of the coastlines of Ulster and Scotland, and ‘The Narrow […]

The Mackintosh Church is a stunning venue, with friendly staff and an atmosphere very much suited to this evening’s two acts, Ida Mae and Stephen Wilson Jr. The night begins with Wilson, a singer/songwriter from Southern Indiana, who two days earlier performed at the UK AmericanaFest in London. A self-taught guitarist (he plays an unusual […]

It’s a year of anniversaries at Celtic Connections, and as the festival itself turns 30, the Roaming Roots Revue celebrates its 10th year. From relatively small beginnings, the annual event now manages to fill the main auditorium of the Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow year after year. Every time, a star-studded array of musicians from […]

As Dean Owens pointed out when he came on stage, this event ended up being an album launch for both him and Kirsten Adamson, who kicked off the evening. Owens’ new album Sinner’s Shrine was due to be launched at last year’s Celtic Connections, but in the end had to be postponed. And so it […]

It was great to head to The Drygate, on Friday 20th January to see The Madeleine Stewart Trio and Ian Carr and the Various Artists.  First on was The Madeleine Stewart Trio who were playing tracks from their new album (due out April https://madeleinefiddle.bandcamp.com/). The trio have obviously been playing together for a long time […]

Having missed the opening concert for Celtic Connections on the 19th of January meant that Lewis McLaughlin, supported by NANI was the first gig I attended during the Festival. In short it was a most enjoyable couple of performances and a great way to kick off the festival. The theatre of the CCA was a […]

I gid tae see Sierra Hull supported by Awkward Family Portraits at I’ New Auditorium in Glesca Royal Concert Hall as pairt o yon winter festival ca’d Celtic Connections. Awkward Farmily Portraits are a five-piece outfit based in Glesca wi’ Julen Santamaria , Timmy Allan, Andrew Herrington, Chris Dickie an’ Roo Geddes. They’ve aa hid […]

The High Rolling Sessions are a relatively new entity, but the Edinburgh-based band are full of musicians with a wealth of experience. Born out of the capital’s session scene, as Toby Shippey (Salsa Celtica drummer & trumpeter) says, they’d played together so long they thought they “might as well make a band out of it!”.  […]

On Thursday 30th January, I gid tae see Anais Mitchell’s Campfire at Saint Luke’s in Glesca as pairt o’ Celtic Connections. The hale performance wis billed as Anais Mitchell’s Canpfife wi’ Kris Drever and Sam Amidon. The audience wis actually treated tae a muckle bill wi Roxy Plain and Bonnie Light Horsman. I hae tae […]

Westward The Light are the incredible blend of Joseph Peach on piano, Charlie Grey on fiddle, Sally Simpson on viola and fiddle, and Owen Sinclair on guitar, and together they were the spectacular opener to the sensational Kinnaris Quintet. Westward The Light opened with a March played by unison fiddle and viola, which evolved through […]

The pianist Mhairi Hall is no stranger to innovative ideas – her last album launch took place atop Cairngorm mountain, with an upright piano brought up specially for the occasion.  Over ten years later, this evening saw her launching Airs in the (slightly more accessible!) Recital Room of the City Halls.  The perfect setting to […]

The Oran Mor was packed for this Celtic Connections show, with tickets sold out, and a crowd of all ages waiting to hear the acts.  Zoe Graham was first up.  As I walked down the stairs to the venue, I could hear an impressively full sound emanating from the stage, and I thought Graham had […]

The Main Auditorium of the Concert Hall was already packed as I arrived – this show had sold out so fast that the festival put on a second date the following night.  I could hear whispers from those around me, people wondering if the Roaming Roots Revue (a regular event at Celtic Connections) could pull […]

Rick Taylor was a man with a big sound, and a big heart who left behind a big legacy. A trombonist who touched audiences and musicians alike with his generosity, genius, kindness and huge musical knowledge, this sentiment was ever present at Celtic Connections’ recent tribute to him ‘Skye in his Heart’ on the 25th of […]

The City Halls was the perfect room to hear the American Bluebrass sounds of Jacob Jolliff and his Band sharing a stage with Anglo-Irish instrumental band Flook – An evening of virtuoso improvisation! Mandolinist Jolliff, who studied at Berkley College of Music, confidently owned the spotlight on stage, giving a flawless evening of intricate improvised […]

One of my most anticipated gigs of Celtic Connections 2020 was The Big Fling – a night of musicians from the Scottish Dance Band scene. First on was Robert Black who. Next up was Manus Maguire’s Copperplate Road featuring the fiddling of Manus Maguire, Marie Fielding, Gemma Donald and Brian Gear. This was a great […]

Padruig Morrison’s New Voices project was themed on his reflections and experiences of the near loss of the Gaelic language and culture, which he described as being of huge importance to himself, and he now feels are at “a critical level”. Known from Beinn Lee, the folk and ceilidh band from Uist, Morrison has used […]

Eabhal formed while the members were based in The Outer Hebrides and provide a charming mix of Gaelic and Scottish tunes and songs on pipes and whistle (Hamish Hepburn), fiddle (Jamie MacDonald), voice (Kaitlin Ross), accordion (Megan MacDonald) and guitar (Nicky Kirk). They were joined by Charlie Stewart on bass who played with them on […]

After a busy day yesterday I headed to Celtic Connections at The Mitchell Theatre to hear Sarah-Jane Summers and Hamish Napier perform their compositions. First Up was Sarah-Jane Summers’ Owerset – a reprisal of her 2018 New Voices commission. It featured 6 musicians – 2 fiddles, trumpet, accordion, double bass and guitar. I didn’t know […]

Greg Lawson and The GRIT orchestra were and are mesmerising! This years’ grand opening of Glasgow’s Celtic Connections festival was an explosion of sound, cultures, identity, tolerance, inclusivity, hope, and freedom in what Lawson described as a “diverse orchestral landscape” with a “kaleidoscopic landscape of sound”. The positive themes, which drew their inspiration from the […]

I had been looking forward to this gig all Celtic Connections festival. I enjoyed Ross and Ali’s CD – Symbiosis II and I was interested to see how it would be performed live. The first thing that was great about the gig was the lighting! Lighting engineer Gary Ebdy is a genius and from minute […]

Malinky celebrated twenty years as a band, with a programme of new songs and an all-star line-up of special guests at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. The performance presented a wealth of opportunity for the audience to join in on choruses and refrains, and despite the sit-down concert environment, which may put off the audience […]

When I arrived at this sold out gig it was lovely to see an array of BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician Award finalists from many years on the stage – so many memories! Performing were Graham Mackenzie (2013), Paddy Callaghan (2013), David Shedden (2018), Amy Papiransky (2018), Charlie Stewart (2017) and Luc McNally (2019). […]

Ok first a disclaimer. I’m married to the fiddler in Deaf Shepherd. I married Clare 1. because she’s beautiful and talented and 2. because she was in Deaf Shepherd! I mean what a band. Three fabulous albums of fiddle, bagpipes and Scots song. Last night was the band’s first gig in 9 years but you […]

I went up to the Tolbooth last night to hear Aidan O’Rourke’s latest project with with renowned organist and piano player Kit Downes and author James Robertson. I wasn’t really sure what I was going to be listening to but what an amazing night! Aidan’s music was inspired by James Robertson’s book of 365 Stories […]

Firmly resettled into their founding four-piece, Scottish instrumental powerhouse RURA continue to evolve and refine their traditionally-rooted but potently progressive sound, now adding piano to their line-up of bagpipes, fiddle, guitar and bodhran. On their seventh Celtic Connections appearance since forming in 2010, they’ll be firing up new material for 2018’s third album, before heading […]

In 1998, Bruce MacGregor assembled a selection of Highland and island fiddlers, spotlighting distinctive regional styles, for a one-off two-week tour, named to reflect the fiery young talents involved. Twenty years on, Blazin’ Fiddles rank securely among Scotland’s foremost folk acts, sought-after headliners across the Celtic scene. Today’s line-up – MacGregor, still, with Jenna Reid, […]

Bothy Culture & Beyond; a music-vision-dance-bike spectacular featuring The GRIT Orchestra & guests with special appearance by Danny MacAskill. Following its unforgettable debut at the opening concert of Celtic Connections 2015, the groundbreaking GRIT Orchestra presents another spectacular world première – a grand-scale live version of Bothy Culture, the late Martyn Bennett’s second album. Bennett’s […]

Sam Kelly and The Lost Boys didna need ony introduction an’ rippit intae the first sang, Greenland Whale wi’ rare vigour. I’ powerhouse o’ a band commandit attention fae I’ first nummer and fit impressed me, wis a’ the loons singin’ an takin’ different harmonies fae I’ ward go – mair lads need tae sing, […]

Approaching their 30th year, Swedish trio Väsen continue to win rapturous acclaim throughout the folk world and beyond. Matching consummate virtuosity with joyous ensemble synergy, deep traditional roots with dazzling original tunes, they’ve worked with acts as diverse as the Danish String Quartet and Snarky Puppy, and excelled themselves once more with their recent 17th […]

One of Scotland’s most popular progressive folk acts as the 21st century dawned, Croft No. Five introduced a swathe of then-upstart talents, forging a highly influential fusion of trad, funk, world and EDM elements. Two decades after they formed, John and Misha Somerville, Barry Reid, Somhairle Macdonald, Paul Jennings, Adam Sutherland, Duncan Lyall and Innes […]