55 f M
uch of my festival listening was shaped by being in the city as a delegate at Show- case Scotland, the well-oiled five-day long
showcase/trade fair platform offering both global exposure to Scottish artists but also a spotlight on international part- ners. This year being the year that Glas- gow hosts the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the partnership for this fifteenth edition of the event featured two Com- monwealth partners: India and Australia.
It meant attending a whirlwind of receptions, moving with the delegate shoal, being offered a whistlestop tour of many of the festival artists. Last year’s partner England staged a winning set from Bella Hardy and Anna Massie. The Gaelic and Scots showcase, in which the enthusiasm and volume of delegates was exponentially linked to the volume of Highland Park consumed, saw an hearten- ing range of young and emerging artists, from the straightforwardly classy Ewan McLennan to charming Lewis-bred singer and clarsach player Mischa MacPherson’s Trio (winners of this year’s BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award), the virtuoso pairing of Marit & Rona (to be heard on this issue’s fRoots 48) and a rock-solid set from Fiona Hunter and band with a stirring version of Bleacher Lassie O Kelvinhaugh.
Showcases for the international part- ners offered up some welcome new finds.
The traditional end of the Indian artists was high-calibre, from the whole- some folk singing of Saurav Moni who travels among the boatmen and min- strels of West Bengal and Bangladesh col- lecting songs, to the stunning voice of 21-year old Parveen Sabrina Khan, previ- ously mentioned, whose vocal dexterity is mesmeric. Her voice is deep and reso- nant, meditative and improvisatory, flu- ent and flexible in range and technique, and moving beyond words. Born to an Indian father (Hameed Khan, leader of Jaipur Kawa Brass Band) and a French mother, Parveen was the first female in her family to receive formal Indian classi- cal training. Accompanied by her father on tabla and a wonderfully sinuous bowed kamancha player, Parveen provid- ed a real high point of the festival.
Charming in a different way, Mel-
bourne’s The Mae Trio offer a fresh breeze with their left-field string-band sound. Vocally led by siblings Maggie and Elsie Rigby, and benefitting from that blood harmony fit, their own songs offer a mature, often poignant, lyrical flair, underpinned by choppy, expressive stringed instrumentation (banjo, ukulele, guitar, fiddle) alongside Anita Hillman’s fine cello playing. Reminiscent of some of the strong North American all-women string bands, their joyful Australian vowels offer a quirky edge. Their gig at beautiful St Andrew’s In The Square saw them joined by percussion’s ‘most wanted’ James Mackintosh, whose Shooglenifty collaborator Luke Plumb produced their latest album Housewarming.
As is the nature of such things, most evenings/early mornings ended in the slightly less focused hubbub of the Festival Club or late night bar sessions – with an endless stream of crowd-pleasing shows from festival guests such Breabach or The Treacherous Orchestra whipping crowds to a frenzy in a slightly blurred experience. I was happy to catch the soaring flights of driving pan-Celtic duo Calum Stewart and
Salt House
Heikki Bourgault at the Piping Centre (where more conscientious listening car- ries through to the early hours.)
Whilst it may be difficult to get an overall sense of Celtic Connections in a five-day visit, the spirit of the event is quite tangible. In its energy and enthusi- asm, its open-eared collaborative spirit, its youthful potential, its experience and pro- fessionalism, there is a sense of great hope. The awareness of the vital impor- tance of indigenous culture, the sense of
Parveen Sabrina Khan
investment in the future and the support underpinning the event (notably attended and supported by Scottish government representatives) is an inspiring model. And, of course, a fantastic affirmation of the power of indigenous culture to boost the local economy and to reinvigorate the tourist industry.
So, we’ll look forward to seeing Maria Miller at Sidmouth Folk Week this sum- mer? No? I thought not.
www.celticconnections.com F
Photo: Sean Purser
Photo: Sean Purser
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