News

TRACS Traditional Arts Mentoring 2025

TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland) is delighted to be delivering another cycle of TRACS Traditional Arts Mentoring, with the support of Creative Scotland and partners.

This programme supports the professional and personal development of traditional arts practitioners in Scotland, reinforcing TRACS’ key work in enhancing the knowledge, practice, access and sustainability of music, song, storytelling, dance, crafts, customs and local languages. The cycle will run from March-September 2025 and is led by TRACS Traditional Arts Mentoring Co-ordinator, Jo Miller.

What is mentoring?

Mentoring is a process in which an experienced individual (‘mentor’) helps another person (‘mentee’) to develop goals and skills through a series of time-limited, confidential, one-to-one conversations. This process is known as mentorship.

Mentors also benefit through sharing their own learning, evolving their thinking, developing new relationships, and deepening their mentoring skills.

How does TRACS Traditional Arts Mentoring work?

Two mentorship opportunities for mentees will be offered in the following artforms:

  • Traditional Dance
  • Traditional Music
  • Traditional Song
  • Traditional Storytelling
  • Gaelic language (in combination with one of the above artforms)
  • Scots language (in combination with one of the above artforms)

 

Successful applicants will have the opportunity to work one-to-one over 6 months with an experienced mentor in their chosen artform. This will be a mutually supportive dialogue, responding to mentees’ individual priorities and respecting different backgrounds and learning styles. Conversations may deal with topics such as creative approaches, professional challenges, confidence, and identifying training needs.

Meetings are likely to be mostly online, but some in-person contact is strongly encouraged. There will also be gatherings involving all participants, providing opportunities for peer learning.

Mentees receive a bursary to cover expenses such as travel and materials.

Am I eligible?

Applicants should:

  • be based in Scotland
  • be early- or mid-career traditional arts practitioners
  • not be in full-time education
  • not be participating in the Scottish Storytelling Forum Apprenticeship Scheme

 

How do I apply?

To apply for TRACS Traditional Arts Mentoring, please do the following by Monday 3rd March 2025:

  1. Complete the application form
  2. Send a concise CV (no more than 2 x A4 pages) to Jo Miller [email protected]

If you have any questions, please contact the Mentoring Co-ordinator, Jo Miller [email protected]

News

By Creating We Think – Celebrating Patrick Geddes

To celebrate the life and learnings of revolutionary 19th and 20th century Scottish social thinker Patrick Geddes, the Scottish International Storytelling Festival in partnership with the Sir Patrick Geddes Trust is holding a day of workshops, screenings, talks and discussions as part of Edinburgh’s 900 programme on Saturday, 22 February.

The day looks to the future, structured around Geddes’ key sayings including ‘By Creating We Think’ and combining ideas with practical initiatives that can open pathways into ecology, culture and creativity to create a city rich in local, national and international identities.

Speakers include environmental artists Kenny Munro and Claudia Zeiske; Murdo MacDonald who is a leading writer and original interpreter of Patrick Geddes; environmentalist and nature writer Mandy Haggith; Bengali storyteller Neel Debdutt Paul; Samuel Gallacher who is Director of Sottish Historic Buildings Trust and has had close involvement with the ideas and legacy of Geddes; and many other writers, activists and thinkers.

Patrick Geddes was an ecologist and town planner who believed that our future lies in the merging of the natural world with human culture. He also championed the need for science and society to work together, citizen action, creative learning, and the need for green space.

Donald Smith, Director of the Scottish Storytelling Festival and Programmer of ‘By Creating We Think’ said: “Geddes would have loved to be at this event. His method was to bring people together and let the ideas and passions flow. Of course in a sense he will be there, and I can’t think of anyone more important to have at Edinburgh’s 900th celebrations.”

Samuel Gallacher, Director of Scottish Historic Buildings Trust said: “Geddes’ revolutionary thinking has influenced more than a century of practice, and yet still, his ideas and methods have still so much to offer to society today as we reflect, as Geddes did in his own time, on our rapidly changing world.”

‘By Creating We Think’ is supported by the City of Edinburgh Council as part of Edinburgh’s 900th year celebrations and The Sir Patrick Geddes Memorial Trust. It will be the final event in the Scottish International Storytelling Festival’s programme of over 40 community events across the city that have been attended by more than 1600 people.

By Creating We Think
Saturday 22 February from 10.30am to 5pm

Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street, Edinburgh EH1 1SR.

A day of talks, workshops, screenings and lively discussion to celebrate the life and learnings of revolutionary 19th century Scottish social thinker Patrick Geddes,

The event is ticketed on a ‘pay as you can’ basis.

For more information visit the Scottish Storytelling Centre’s event page.

Programme

By Leaves We Live

Introduction and hosting by Andrew Bachell, environmentalist and Chair, Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland.

Re-Naturing a Nation: Mandy Haggith, poet, novelist and nature writer. Greening the City: Bridgend Farmhouse with John Knox and Will Golding.

Think Global, Act Local

Cultures in Conversation: environmental artist Kenny Munro and storyteller/writer Neel Debdutt Paul explore a web of connections between Patrick Geddes and India.

Cultures in Conversation: Tom Hubbard writer and researcher; Claudia Zeiske, environmental artist, producer and community curator; and Iliyana Nedkova Curator of the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland, explore a web of connections between Geddes, France and Europe.

Place, Work, Folk

Remaking and restoring – a participative session led by Claudia Zeiske, environmental artist, producer and community curator.

By Living We Learn

Geddes, Tagore and Education – the work of Stewart A Robertson and Bashabi Fraser introduced by Donald Smith

The Making of Books: By Publishing We ThinkMurdo MacDonald, Art Historian and Essayist.

A Geddes Future in Edinburgh’s Old Town Sam Gallacher, Scottish Historic Buildings Trust

News

Music, Memory, and Meaning: David Francis’ Keynote from Trad Talk 2024

📷 Photo above by Becky Duncan

As David Francis marks his retirement as Director of the Traditional Music Forum this week, we are delighted to share his keynote speech from Trad Talk, held in October 2024. In this thoughtful address, Dave reflects on the origins of the Traditional Music Forum, the enduring value of traditional music, and its significance to Scotland’s cultural identity. Blending personal anecdotes with professional insights, the speech underscores the importance of public support for traditional music and highlights the TMF’s efforts to preserve and promote this vibrant art form. It offers a powerful perspective on how music connects memory, identity, and community, while charting a vision for the Traditional Music Forum’s future.

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I’m going to talk a bit about the origins of the Traditional Music Forum, muse a little bit on how traditional music is valued, why it should be supported by the public sector, and finish with a brief look at the TMF’s aims and pathway.

1999 was both an annus mirabilis and an annus horribilis for me. The year started well with the birth of my second daughter in January, but ended badly, first with the death of my mother-in-law from ovarian cancer at the age of only 64 in late October. Second with the demise of Edinburgh Folk Festival of which I was artistic director at the time. Latterly called Shoots and Roots, we’d celebrated Hamish Henderson’s 80th birthday in November. We’d started to turn the corner into profitability and were beginning to stem the tide of losses that had bedevilled the festival for years. That was the year when, at the beginning of December, my wife and musical partner, Mairi Campbell and I were invited out of the blue to perform at the Kennedy Center Awards in Washington DC in front of more celebs and stars than you could shake a stick at. Two days later I was back in Edinburgh in a back room in the Caledonian Hotel, present as the board of the Edinburgh Folk Festival decided that the prospect of clearing the accumulated losses was too remote, and formally wound up the organisation.

The summer of that year saw the opening of the Scottish Parliament while a few months earlier in the spring a report on traditional music which I’d worked on for the previous 18 months was published. It was the result of a major shift in focus within what was then the Scottish Arts Council, a shift that saw SAC taking seriously all forms of music and not just what, for want of a better term, we call classical music. The report was a comprehensive review of the sector at the time, and a collective proposal from all parts of the Scottish traditional music community, with its recommendations pointing to how the public sector could support the art form. Like any document of this kind some of its recommendations were taken up and others left for another, more appropriate moment.

The blow of losing a major folk event was softened somewhat by the positive reception to the report, including a hefty amount of additional money from the new Scottish Executive. The conjunction of the report and the new Parliament led to the setting up of a cross-party group on traditional music in the new Parliament. Unfortunately, its potential usefulness was derailed by flabby, directionless meetings and it eventually petered out.

So how to keep up the momentum and not waste the opportunity that the report had opened up? Could there be a more focused alternative? At first that alternative was a small group of active people – many of whom are still around –  that acted as a kind of advisory group to the Arts Council. It was first convened in 2003, comprising what I suppose you’d call ‘senior’ figures in the traditional music community, e.g. Arthur Cormack, Ian Green, Simon Thoumire, Brian McNeill, Sheena Wellington. It soon began to operate as a stand-alone group, with one of its first activities a contribution to the 2004 Culture Commission. Further activities followed, supported by funding from SAC, and the need arose to have a worker to monitor and support the projects that were emerging. I was appointed to do that on a very part-time basis in 2005.

The Forum continued with a loose structure and a closed membership until 2008 when it began to be clear that there was interest in opening up membership of the group.

So the Traditional Music Forum as a membership organisation was born with the intention that it should advocate for ‘traditional music as a vital and visible element of Scottish culture, valued by people, communities and the nation’. I’d done some work as secretary of the original group and was entrusted with the job of taking the new organisation forward. Yes, I was now a folk bureaucrat!

‘Valued by people, communities and the nation’. Let’s think about that question of how the music is valued.

When I was a lad at school, in our English class we had a small grey book that put the fear into everyone who was required to engage with it. The book was simply referred to as ‘Dubber’ after the sadistic soul who compiled it. It was a book of interpretation exercises where you were asked questions that seemed impossible (and in retrospect were actually excellent training for filling in Creative Scotland funding applications – nothing is wasted), where you were required to exercise essential life skills like identifying examples of metonymy and onomatopoeia.

However, one thing from Dubber that always stuck in my mind was a wonderful phrase which I’ve never forgotten – that ‘music is the mistress of memory’. I’ve googled the phrase on many occasions and have never been able to find who said it or where it came from. You all know what it means. I can’t hear a pipe band playing the Black Bear without being back on my dad’s shoulders in a seething crowd watching the Marymass parade in Irvine, and I’m sure you would all have your own examples; but less specifically than that and possibly more powerful than that is the ability that hearing a piece of music has to transport you immediately in your mind not necessarily to a specific incident but to a time, an atmosphere, a state of mind, a web of feelings. You’ll all have your own countless examples, all of which speak to the question of the value of music for us as individuals, the part it plays in our own life story, how it can stimulate emotions, shape our sense of well being – do all those things that language can’t convey, in short.

So part of the value that music has for us is the access it gives us to memory, an essential part of what makes us the person we are. A question arises – what about the value of music for us collectively? Many of you will be familiar with this passage:

The Highlandman McIvor tuned up his pipes and began to step slow round the stone circle by Blawearie loch, slow and quiet, folk watched him and the dark was near, it lifted your hair and was eerie and uncanny, The Flowers of the Forest, as he played it. It rose and rose and wept and cried, that crying for the men that fell in battle. And the young men stood with glum, white faces, they’d no understanding or caring, it was something that vexed and tore at them, it belonged to times they’d no knowing of. He fair could play, the piper, he tore at your heart marching there with the tune leaping up the moor and echoing across the loch.

I think Grassic Gibbon really put his finger on something here. What happens when the music is not the mistress of collective memory, when the past to which it refers has vanished in the minds of people. We in this room might find collective meaning in and value bothy ballads, for instance, as fragments of the lifeworld of people who came before us projected into the present every time they are performed, little pieces of artistic expression connecting us now with the people who shaped the land we live in. But if people dismiss it as belonging to times they’ve no knowing of or don’t understand or care, we’re kind of up against it.

📷 Photo by HES

The other name for traditional music is folk music. ‘Folk’, in other words, ‘the people’, the noun that gives rise to the adjective ‘popular’. The problem we have is that folk music, traditional music is not that popular. For all the Hoolies at the Hydro, Trad Awards, and World Pipe Band Championships, I don’t think it can be said to be truly popular. I think that is our biggest challenge.

My friend, Hamish Moore, whom many of you will know, is fond of saying you could go out in the street there and ask a thousand people if they knew what Scottish small pipes are, or who Rod Paterson was, you’d get a positive response of between zero and two. We’re still below the radar for the vast majority of people.

And yet the music of Grassic Gibbon’s piper vexed and tore at those uncomprehending young men. There was something there that went deeper than their lack of understanding, that went beyond memory. What gives me hope is that sense of tradition, the connecting thread – its interplay of survival and revival, its importance for the texture and meaning of our lives, its connection to the everyday and to the special occasion, all of that still lurks in the collective psyche. For the people who practise the traditional arts and enjoy them, it’s much more out in the open. For us, it’s maybe easier to appreciate and articulate that value might be found in the performance of emblematic material, a marker and reinforcer of identity, but equally their value might lie in the resilience of these arts, their persistence into the present, an insight into past lives rendered in their own terms, the convivial contexts within which performance takes place.

This is something that we have to hang on to, develop, and bring to the surface. Cultural memory is a kind of mental process that enables members of a group to bond by maintaining knowledge of the members’ past, the things that have contributed to their ways of life – things which can be lost if common knowledge disappears. Gibbon’s piper reached something in his hearers, but something buried deep. We have to work to give those inchoate feelings a shape, to give cultural memory staying power, to see that it reaches across generations. What gives it staying power is the forms that it takes, especially forms made by artists, and especially musicians, artists dealing in something that has a very particular access to the subconscious.

So while we, members of this network of traditional music educators, performers, enthusiasts work at the art form to give it staying power, studying it, practising it, expressing it, the network itself has to complement that work by doing the hard yards of arguing that traditional music deserves its place in the reckoning of public life. From cultural memory to cultural policy. Government policy now covers almost every aspect of our lives, a gradual process that has been going on for over two hundred years, as government has moved from being concerned mostly with influence abroad and the maintenance of a social order that enshrined wealth and privilege, to concern for the means of life for all its citizens – and yes, I’m as cynical about that as you. But if you think about it: health, industry, business regulation, education, transport, social work, housing, the environment, and at the fuzzier end of the scale, things like equalities and well-being – government has a hand in it through law, regulation, policy, covering everything from the sustainability of fish stocks, to pub licences, to local democracy, to the quality of water in reservoirs, and much more. Into that mix after the second world war came culture. Up until about thirty years ago that had a very narrow definition, a narrow definition that was prised open, in Scotland at any rate, by a report called the Charter for the Arts, written by the excellent Joyce McMillan, which made explicit the view that if a government was going to concern itself with culture then it had to be the culture of all its people, especially a culture – folk culture – that was seen as niche from some perspectives but from another was seen as fundamental to the identity of a country that was beginning to reassert itself as a nation, either a devolved one or an independent one, depending on your political preference.

Traditional music is of course not one thing. It covers a multitude of elements from Gaelic song in all its variety, to Scottish dance music and strathspey and reel societies, to pipe bands, to the contemporary sounds of Trailtidemanskippivore, to bothy ballads. You can all fill in your own examples.

French President Charles de Gaulle once asked, “How can you govern a country which has two hundred and forty-six varieties of cheese?” The answer to that is that you don’t worry about the number and diversity of varieties but rejoice instead in the fact that you all love cheese. Similarly, what the Traditional Music Forum tries to do is support and promulgate the diversity of traditions within what we call traditional music. The beauty of a network is that it is not hierarchical. Each part of the network is of equal value. Different nodes of the network can come to prominence depending on the demands of the time and the component parts can be as loosely or as tightly connected to each other as a situation demands. Becoming part of a network like the TMF means that the goals of the individual parts and the goals of the network reflect each other in a holonic relationship – a holon (the word was coined by Arthur Koestler in the ‘Ghost in the Machine’) is something that is simultaneously a whole in and of itself, as well as a part of a larger whole.

Ideally the Traditional Music Forum would be a system of reciprocal assistance, new ideas and fresh perspectives would hum along the lines of the network; we’d be raising the profile of traditional music, so that it is at least visible even if it’s not universally popular; we’d make partnership working easier for developing projects, share knowledge, foster personal relationships. We would be gathering energies, enabling reconfigurations of the network into clusters and hubs where necessary, and depending on the work in hand. These are all things I and the board of the TMF have tried to work towards. There’s still lots to do and I would hope that my successor would be able to take on aspects of the work I haven’t been able to get to satisfactorily – in particular building relationships with new communities in Scotland.

It’s been a privilege to serve this organisation and this community, and in the words of PG Wodehouse’s great servant, Jeeves, ‘I hope I have given satisfaction.’ Thank you.📷 Photo by Simon Baker

News

Registration Now Open for the North Atlantic Song Convention (NASC) 2025

The North Atlantic Song Convention (NASC) is delighted to announce that registration is now open for this year’s celebration of traditional song, taking place from 11-13 April 2025 at the Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh.

Bringing together singers, educators, industry professionals, and traditional song enthusiasts from across the North Atlantic region, NASC 2025 offers a rich programme of concerts, workshops, talks, panels, and song circles. This year’s keynote address will be delivered by Professor Susanne Rosenberg, a pioneering folk singer, educator, and researcher from Sweden’s Royal College of Music in Stockholm.

Brian Ó hEadhra, NASC Co-convenor and Director of the Traditional Music Forum, said:

“We’re thrilled to welcome participants from Scotland, Ireland, Sweden, Canada, the USA, and beyond to Edinburgh for this year’s North Atlantic Song Convention. NASC 2025 is a unique opportunity to celebrate our shared song traditions, exchange knowledge, and build connections that will strengthen our singing communities for years to come. We encourage everyone — from seasoned singers to those new to traditional song — to join us for this inspiring weekend.”

Emma Björling, NASC Co-convenor and member of the Swedish vocal group Kongero, added:

“The diversity and richness of traditional song across the North Atlantic region are truly remarkable. NASC 2025 is a space where we can come together to share songs, stories, and ideas, while also fostering a sense of community and collaboration. We hope to see singers from all walks of life — whether you’re a performer, educator, or simply someone who loves folk song — join us for what promises to be an unforgettable event.”

The programme includes a wide range of events:

  • Workshops on Scots song, Swedish mouth music, and Scottish Gaelic song.
  • Panels exploring topics like community singing, songwriting and tradition, and curating spaces for folk singing.
  • Open song circles, including themes such as Songs of the Sea.
  • Concert performances featuring internationally acclaimed singers Robyn Stapleton, Ruth Keggin, Nuala Kennedy, and Emma Björling.
  • Informal networking and discussions.

 

For more information on the programme and to register for tickets, visit the Scottish Storytelling Centre website. Full weekend passes, tickets for individual events, and concession prices are available.

NASC 2025 is made possible with the generous support of Creative Scotland Heritage Lottery Fund, and in partnership with Traditional Music Forum (TMF), Traditional Arts & Culture Scotland (TRACS), Access Folk, Bagaduce Music, and the Scottish Storytelling Centre.

For further enquiries, please contact:
Brian Ó hEadhra, Co-convenor of NASC and Director of the Traditional Music Forum: [email protected]

www.northatlanticsong.com/events/convention-2025

📷 Photo above by Eamon Ward
Nuala Kennedy will be a panellist on the topic “Curating a Place to Sing – From Kitchen to Stadium” and will also sing at the Saturday night concert “The North Atlantic Song Connection” on 12 April 2025 at the Scottish Storytelling Centre.

News

Visitor Services Officer, Scottish Storytelling Centre

An exciting opportunity to join our Visitor Services team at a vibrant visitor attraction and arts venue in central Edinburgh. In the role you will provide an excellent standard of customer service as the first point of contact for all visitors to the Scottish Storytelling Centre. You will work with colleagues and partners to provide a warm welcome and high standard of customer care to all visitors to John Knox House and the Scottish Storytelling Centre.

As well as having the ability to provide a high standard of customer service, you must also be able to demonstrate excellent communication and interpersonal skills will have the ability to manage a variety of tasks under pressure.

You will work 35 hours per week on a flexible rota which will include evenings and weekends.

The Scottish Storytelling Centre is a partnership between The Church of Scotland and TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland). The SSC is a vibrant arts venue with a seasonal programme of live storytelling, theatre, music, exhibitions, workshops, family events, and festivals.

  • Title: Visitor Services Officer, Scottish Storytelling Centre
  • Salary: £25,400 – £27,983 per annum
  • Location: Edinburgh
  • Hours: Full time, 35 hours per week on a rota
  • Closing date: Friday 24 January, 12:00pm

Full details on how to apply, a job description and a personal information form, can be found on the Church of Scotland website.

Apply Now

News

Brian Ó hEadhra Appointed as New Director of the Traditional Music Forum

The Traditional Music Forum (TMF) is delighted to announce the appointment of Brian Ó hEadhra as their new Director. An accomplished professional with decades of experience as a musician, educator, project manager and publisher, Brian will take up his appointment from January 2025, continuing the work of the TMF which aims to maximise the potential of traditional music in Scotland.

Ó hEadhra was raised in Newfoundland, Canada and then Dublin, Ireland, and comes from a very musical family. Now based in Inverness in the Highlands of Scotland, he is an acclaimed musician and singer-songwriter, performing solo, as a session musician, and with acts Brian Ó hEadhra and Fionnag NicChoinnich, and McKerron Brechin Ó hEadhra. Brian performs traditional and contemporary music and song predominantly in Gaelic and English, and was nominated as Gaelic Singer of the Year at the prestigious MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards in 2019.

Ó hEadhra’s previous organisational roles span the arts, heritage, and Gaelic language sectors. For 14 years he worked as the Partnerships and Development Manager for Bòrd na Gàidhlig, the principal public body in Scotland for promoting Gaelic development. Prior to this, Brian was Scotland’s first Gaelic Arts and Culture Officer with Creative Scotland and Bòrd na Gàidhlig. In both roles Ó hEadhra has been pivotal in championing Gaelic arts and culture at local, national and international levels.

The Traditional Music Forum was founded as a membership organisation in 2008 with the intention that it should advocate for traditional music as a vital and visible element of Scottish culture, valued by people, communities and the nation. 2012 saw the formation of TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland), a co-operative network which champions Scotland’s shared traditions of music, song, storytelling, dance, crafts, customs and local languages, bringing together the Traditional Music Forum, the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland, and the Scottish Storytelling Forum.

With headquarters at the Scottish Storytelling Centre on Edinburgh’s iconic Royal Mile, the Traditional Music Forum and TRACS embrace flexible working. This approach has enabled Brian Ó hEadhra to join the team from his base in Inverness, underscoring the organisations’ commitment to inclusivity and accessibility.

New Director of the Traditional Music Forum, Brian Ó hEadhra said:

“I am honoured to take on the role of Director of the Traditional Music Forum. Scotland’s traditional music is a vital part of our cultural identity, and I look forward to working with our members and fellow TRACS forums to ensure it thrives in communities, schools, and stages across the country and beyond.”

Dr Jo Miller, Chair of the TMF commented:

“In Brian Ó hEadhra, the Traditional Music Forum has found a new Director who is passionate about traditional music, language and culture in Scotland. His appointment is key to ensuring traditional arts continue to inspire and engage people of all ages.”

Retiring Director of the Traditional Music Forum, David Francis said:

“I am delighted to be handing over the reins to Brian Ó hEadhra. He has a wealth of knowledge and experience of Scotland’s traditional music and the arts, and is committed to supporting the development of the diverse and culturally significant traditional music community.”

To find out more about the Traditional music forum, visit: www.traditionalmusicforum.org
Instagram: @tradmusicforum | Facebook: @tradmusicforum | Newsletter

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Brian Ó hEadhra air a chur an dreuchd mar stiùiriche ùr Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta

Tha Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta fìor thoilichte ainmeachadh gun deach Brian Ó hEadhra fhastadh mar an Stiùiriche ùr aca. Tha Brian na phroifeiseantach sgileil a tha air deicheadan a chur seachad mar neach-ciùil, neach-foghlaim, manaidsear pròiseict agus foillsichear. Bidh e a’ tòiseachadh san dreuchd bhon Fhaoilleach 2025, a’ toirt air adhart obair Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta a tha ag amas cur ri comas ceòl traidiseanta na h-Alba.

Thogadh Ó hEadhra ann an Talamh an Èisg, Canada agus an uair sin ann am Baile Àtha Cliath, ann an Èirinn, agus chaidh a thogail ann an teaghlach gu math ceòlmhor. Stèidhichte a-nis ann an Inbhir Nis air Gàidhealtachd na h-Alba, tha e na neach-ciùil agus seinneadair-sgrìobhair òrain cliùiteach a bhios a’ cluich leis fhèin, mar neach-ciùil seisean agus mar phàirt de Bhrian Ó hEadhra is Fionnag NicChoinnich, agus de McKerron Brechin Ó hEadhra. Bidh Brian a’ cluich ceòl is òrain thraidiseanta is an latha an-diugh, a’ mhòr-chuid ann an Gàidhlig agus Beurla, agus bha e air a’ gheàrr-liosta airson Seinneadair Gàidhlig na Bliadhna aig Duaisean cliùiteach MG ALBA airson ceòl traidiseanta na h-Alba ann an 2019.

Tha obair air a bhith aig Ó hEadhra roimhe ann am buidhnean co-cheangailte ris na h-ealainean, dualchas agus ris a’ Ghàidhlig. Bha e ag obair mar Mhanaidsear Com-pàirteachais is Leasachaidh aig Bòrd na Gàidhlig, a’ phrìomh bhuidheann phoblach ann an Alba airson leasachadh na Gàidhlig fad 14 bliadhna. Roimhe seo, bha obair aig Brian mar a’ chiad Oifigear Ealain is Cultair le Alba Chruthachail agus Bòrd na Gàidhlig. Tha Ó hEadhra air a bhith air leth cudromach anns gach dreuchd ann a bhith a’ brosnachadh ealainean is cultar na Gàidhlig aig ìrean ionadail, nàiseanta agus eadar-nàiseanta.

Chaidh Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta a stèidheachadh mar bhuidheann ballrachd ann an 2008 leis an rùn a bhith a’ tagradh airson ceòl traidiseanta mar eileamaid dheatamach is fhaicsinneach de chultar na h-Alba, anns a bheil daoine, coimhearsnachdan agus an dùthaich a’ cur luach. Chaidh TRACS (Ealainean is Cultar Traidiseanta na h-Alba) a stèidheachadh ann an 2012, lìonra co-obrachail a tha a’ cur taic ri traidiseanan ciùil, òrain, seanachais, dannsa, ceàird, cleachdaidhean agus cànanan ionadail na h-Alba, a’ toirt còmhla Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta, Fòram Dannsa Traidiseanta na h-Alba agus Fòram Seanachais na h-Alba.

Tha prìomh oifisean aig Fòram Ciùil Traidiseanta agus TRACS ann an Ionad Sgeulachdan na h-Alba air Mìle Rìoghail shuaicheanta Dhùn Èideann, agus tha iad a’ gabhail ri obair shùbailte. Tha an dòigh-obrach seo air cothrom a thoirt do Bhrian Ó hEadhra a thighinn dhan sgioba agus a bhith stèidhichte ann an Inbhir Nis, a’ daingneachadh dealas nam buidhnean a thaobh in-ghabhail agus ruigsinneachd.

Thuirt Stiùiriche ùr Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta, Brian Ó hEadhra:

“Tha e na urram dhomh gabhail ris an dreuchd mar Stiùiriche Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta. Tha ceòl traidiseanta na h-Alba na phàirt ro-chudromach den dearbh-aithne chultarach againn, agus tha mi a’ dèanamh fiughair ri bhith ag obair leis na buill againn agus le fòraman TRACS eile gus dèanamh cinnteach gun soirbhich e ann an coimhearsnachdan, sgoiltean, agus àrd-ùrlaran air feadh na dùthcha agus nas fhaide air falbh.”

Thuirt an Dr Jo Miller, Cathraiche Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta:

“Le bhith a’ fastadh Brian Ó hEadhra, tha Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta air Stiùiriche ùr a lorg a tha dealasach a thaobh ceòl traidiseanta agus cànanan agus cultar na h-Alba. Tha am fastadh seo ro-chudromach gus dèanamh cinnteach gum bi ealainean traidiseanta fhathast a’ brosnachadh agus a’ glacadh aire dhaoine aig gach aois san àm ri teachd.”

Thuirt Stiùiriche Làithreach Fòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta, David Francis:

Tha mi ro thoilichte gum bi Brian Ó hEadhra a’ gabhail thairis na h-obrach seo bhuam. Tha pailteas de dh’eòlas aige air ceòl agus ealainean traidiseanta na h-Alba, agus tha e dealasach mu bhith a’ cumail taic ri coimhearsnachd a’ chiùil thraidiseanta a tha farsaing agus cudromach gu cultarach.”

Airson barrachd fiosrachaidh mu Fhòram a’ Chiùil Thraidiseanta, tadhail air: www.traditionalmusicforum.org
Instagram: @tradmusicforum | Facebook: @tradmusicforum | Cuairtlitir

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Scottish Music Playlist (43) – New Releases

Give your ears a treat! Enjoy the latest Scottish music releases with our December playlist.

With new tracks from Julie Fowlis | Éamon Doorley | Zoë Conway | John Mc IntyreJenn ButterworthValtos & Peatbog Faeries, Grace Morton & Lewis McLaughlin, Face the West & Alice Macmillan, Siobhan Miller, Mary Chapin Carpenter Julie Fowlis | Karine Polwart, Mànran, Ross AinslieAstro Bloc, Simon Thoumire & Rory Matheson, and The New Netherwitton Boys.

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New podcasts highlight shared traditions of Gaelic Scotland and Gaelic Ireland

Pod-craolaidhean ùra mu phròiseact òrain is sgeulachdan na Fèinne eadar Alba is Èirinn

Tha TRACS (Ealain Traidiseanta is Cultar na h-Alba) air a bhith a’ toirt taic do phròiseact cruthachail, trì-chànanach bho 2022 a tha ag amas air beul-aithris is laoidhean Fhinn ‘ic Cumhaill agus gaisgich eile a thoirt air ais don t-sluagh ann an cruthan ùra.

Since 2022, TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland) has been supporting an interdisciplinary, trilingual project to re-interpret the songs and stories of Fionn MacCumhaill and his warrior band, the Fianna, and to present them in an accessible way to a modern day audience.

Fad iomadach linn, bha sgeulachdan is laoidhean Fhinn ’ic Cumhnaill is na Fèinne gan innse ann an Alba is Èirinn is iad aig cridhe dualchas nan Gàidheal.  Chan eil iad cho cumanta san latha an-diugh a chleachd iad a bhith.

The tales and songs of Fionn MacCumhnaill and the Fianna stretch back to the 3rd century AD and reached the height of their popularity in Gaelic Scotland and Gaelic Ireland in the Middle Ages. They were an important part of the folklore and culture of both countries for hundreds of years but knowledge of these stories and songs has waned over the past few decades and they are not as commonplace as they once were.

Chaidh aig sàr luchd-ciùil is aithris Mhàiri Hall, Màiri Nic ille Mhaoil, Gráinne Holland, Éamon Doorley agus Màrtainn Mac an t-Saor measgachadh de làmh-sgrìobhainnean is beul-aithris nan Gàidheal à Alba is Èirinn a chleachdadh gus dreachdan ùra de na sgeulachdan is laoidhean a chur ri chèile, a’ toirt sealladh ùr de na sgeulachdan is laoidhean tro mheadhan na Gàidhlig is na Gaeilge.

Leading musicians, singers and storytellers Mhairi Hall, Mary MacMillan, Grainne Holland, Eamon Doorley and Martin MacIntyre, have used a variety of sources from the oral and written traditions of Gaelic Scotland and Gaelic Ireland to create ambitious new pieces together, showcasing these songs and stories through their original mediums of Scottish Gaelic and Irish.

Chaidh taisbeanadh de chuid de na sgeulachdan is laoidhean a chumail leis a’ bhuidheann anns na tachartasan, An Ceòl air Feadh na Fèinne, aig Fèis Sgeulachdan Eadar-nàiseanta na h-Alba (SISF) ann an 2023 is aig Celtic Connections ann an 2024.  Tha a’ bhuidheann a-nis a’ cur dreach den sgeulachd, An t-Amadan Mòr, air loidhne gus an cluinnear blasad den obair aca.  Thèid leabhar-èisteachd trì-chànanach a chur air bhog le sgeulachdan is laoidhean eile  ann an 2025.

The group premiered this work with live performances of their collaborative show, An Ceòl air Feadh na Fèinne, at the Scottish International Storytelling Festival in 2023 and at Celtic Connections in 2024. The group are now releasing a preview recording of the story of An t-Amadan Mòr / The Great Fool, as a preview of a new audio book to be released in 2025, aiming to make all of the songs and stories they have been working on accessible to a trilingual audience.

Cluinnear An t-Amadan Mòr air a’ phod-craoladh sgeulachdan Ghàidhlig aig Fòram Sgeulachdan na h-Alba, Sgeul is Seanchas, agus cuideachd air a’ phod-craoladh sgeulachdan Ghaeilge aig Gráinne Holland, Scéalta Thuatha Dé Danann.  Rinn Fiona NicDhùghaill bho TRACS agallamh tro mheadhan na Beurla leis a’ bhuidheann a bheireas barrachd fiosrachaidh dhuibh mun phròiseact Òrain is Sgeulachdan na Fèinne gu ruige seo.

An t-Amadan Mòr/The Great Fool will be released simultaneously on the Scottish Storytelling Forum’s Gaelic storytelling podcast, Sgeul is Seanchas, and on Gráinne Holland’s Irish Gaelic storytelling podcast, Tales of Tuath Dé Danann/ Scéalta Thuatha Dé Danann.  The track is accompanied by an English medium interview with the group by Fiona MacDougall of TRACS which provides an overview of the Songs and Stories of the Fianna project to date.

Ceanglaichean gu na pod-craolaidhean an seo/links to the podcasts here:

Sgeul is Seanchas – https://bit.ly/3ZJc8dN

Scéalta Tuath Dé Danann/Tales of Tuath Dé Danann – https://bit.ly/49ADsOU

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Le taic bho Bhòrd na Gàidhlig tron Sgeama Cholmcille aca a bhios a’ toirt taic do phròiseactan a tha togail ceanglaichean eadar luchd-labhairt na Gàidhlig is Gaeilge.

The project is supported by Bòrd na Gàidhlig through their Colmcille scheme, which fosters cultural links between Scotland and Ireland.

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Scottish Music Playlist (41 & 42) – New Releases

The latest Scottish Music playlists by the Traditional Music Forum each feature 10 tracks of fantastic new releases.

Playlist 42 has new music from Tarran, Mairi McGillivray, Capstan Quartet, Falasgair, Jenn Butterworth, MAL, Afro Celt Sound System, Chloe Matharu, Ned Bigham | Mairi MacMillan | Edinburgh Quartet, and An Dannsa Dub.

Playlist 41 has new music from Iona Reid, Next To You, LÉDA, Ross Ainslie, Beth Malcolm, Malachy Tallack, Astro Bloc, Mairearad Green & Rachel Newton, Anna Cassidy, and Jennifer Wrigley.

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TRACS to attend UNESCO’s 19th ICH Intergovernmental Committee meeting in Paraguay

TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland) has been invited by the UK Government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to represent Scotland as part of the UK delegation at this year’s 19th UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee meeting on Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) in Paraguay (2nd-7th December 2024). 

The UK ratified the 2003 UNESCO Convention on ICH on 7th March 2024, and it officially came into force on 7th June 2024. In the same year, TRACS received official international accreditation as a Non-Governmental-Organisation (NGO) Advisor to UNESCO on ICH, recognising their work and expertise in the field. TRACS and Museums Galleries Scotland are the only two organisations with UNESCO ICH NGO accreditation in Scotland. Both organisations, along with the England-based NGO Heritage Crafts, are joining the UK delegation to represent NGOs and the important role they play in implementing the Convention and safeguarding ICH in local communities around the world. 

The 19th Intergovernmental Committee meeting is preceded by the annual ICH NGO Forum Symposium on 1 December 2024, which creates an opportunity to meet fellow accredited NGOs from across the globe. The ICH NGO Forum provides a space for sharing experiences on the participation of cultural and heritage communities, non-governmental groups and individuals in decisions and actions for safeguarding intangible heritage.

TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland), Chief Executive, Steve Byrne says:

We are delighted to accept the invitation to join the UK delegation in this first year of our  ratification of the Convention, which underpins TRACS’ work in helping to look after the local traditions that matter to communities across the country. We are looking forward to learning from likeminded organisations from all parts of the world on the approaches they have adopted, to help shape our own efforts in Scotland as we support our collective traditions into the future.” 

DCMS will be publishing the results of its initial public consultation in January 2025, as well as the next milestones in the UK implementation of the UNESCO Convention on ICH, with an inclusive, community-led, ‘bottom up’ approach. TRACS will be liaising with DCMS to support efforts in raising awareness amongst ICH communities, practitioners, fieldworkers and networks to safeguard our living traditions and local heritage.

Intangible Cultural Heritage is a tradition, practice, or living expression of a group or community. This can include oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, customs, festive events, and traditional crafts.  Examples of ICH in Scotland are wide reaching and include practices such as Shetland’s Up Helly Aa Festival or the Glasgow Mela, cultural traditions such as bothy ballads, bagpiping, and clootie wells, traditional games such as shinty, the making of food such as haggis, and traditional crafts such as thatching and Fair Isle knitting. 

TRACS has put together a Wee Guide on ICH, to start a public campaign in raising awareness around ICH and its importance. Last year marked the 20th anniversary of the 2003 UNESCO Convention on ICH and TRACS Chief Executive Steve Byrne, together with Traditional Music Forum Director David Francis, wrote and performed a special celebratory song, offering a flavour of what we mean by “Intangible Cultural Heritage”.

 

The ICH Scotland Partnership is a collaboration between Museums Galleries Scotland, Creative Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland, and TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland). Since 2020, the partnership has produced a report mapping the current state of ICH in Scotland and has produced events helping communities to engage with and share their own ICH, while encouraging the ratification of the 2003 UNESCO Convention for the safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage alongside the Scottish Government. In May 2023 and November 2024, the ICH Scotland Partnership hosted the first national ICH conference at Birnam Arts, featuring keynote speakers in the field, offering a day of discussion, sharing, and coming together.