Edinburgh Tradfest have released a brand new recording and video of the popular Scottish/Irish song Wild Mountain Thyme. The video was first revealed on 1 May 2020 – the day when the festival would have kicked off this year.
The 36 folk music artists (full list below) on the recording include acclaimed folk musician and this year’s festival headliner Eliza Carthy; Fiona Hunter ( Malinky), Rachel Newton ( The Shee), James Mackintosh ( Shooglenifty), five leading Shetland fiddlers including Catriona Macdonald and Chris Stout, accordion player Phil Alexander (Moishe’s Bagel), and Irish folk-singer Daoirí Farrell among others.
The artists hail from Scotland, Ireland, England, California, Nova Scotia and Norway and recorded and videoed themselves at home for the project, under the expert guidance of Traditional Artist in Residence (University of Edinburgh) Mike Vass, who arranged and produced the recording.
Taking on the enormous task of editing all the videos into a well-synced whole is Edinburgh videomaker Ruth Barrie from Waltzer Films.
The song was selected by Jane-Ann Purdy, Producer of Edinburgh Tradfest and one of the founders of The Soundhouse Organisation, and Dr Lori Watson from the Department of Celtic and Scottish Studies at the University of Edinburgh; a key partner of the Festival.
Jane-Ann Purdy of Edinburgh Tradfest said:
“We were looking for an uplifting Scottish folk song with a summer vibe, no easy task! Wild Mountain Thyme is very popular and, like many other traditional tunes and songs, is claimed by both Scotland and Ireland. It’s also well known in North America and around the globe with many, many versions recorded over the years. However, ours is the first to include a mass band from Scotland, Ireland, England, California, Nova Scotia and Norway! We are hugely grateful to everyone who has united to create this new recording and hope that it will bring some joy to music fans worldwide, during these difficult times.”
Mike Vass (Traditional Artist in Residence at University of Edinburgh) said:
“This was quite an unusual but amazing project to work on. Like everyone else, I was gutted to have my Tradfest performances cancelled, but this has been a really positive thing to put my energy into whilst confined to my Glasgow flat.
“Last week, I watched in awe as the emails with vocals and instrumental parts came flooding in from around the world. I ended up with 72 tracks to mix, by far the biggest thing I’ve ever produced. It’s a behemoth!
“One of the main challenges was that not everyone has state of the art equipment to work with, so recording was handled on everything from smartphones in front rooms to professional quality kit in sound-proofed booths. Making everyone’s recordings sound like they belong together took some work, but I’m really happy with how it turned out. It’s a big sound and very joyful.”
The release of the recording also kickstarted the festival’s fundraising for 2021 via https://www.givey.com/edinburghtradfest2021
The Festival is currently supported by the Edinburgh Tattoo Fund, City of Edinburgh Council, the William Grant Foundation and receives open funding from Creative Scotland.
The dates planned for Edinburgh Tradfest 2021 are 30 April to 10 May.
The full list of artists appearing on Edinburgh Tradfest’s Wild Mountain Thyme is:
On lead vocals:
Eliza Carthy
Fiona Hunter (Malinky)
Steve Byrne (Malinky)
Mike Vass (Malinky)
Daoirí Farrell
Nuala Kennedy
A J Roach
Olivia Ross (The Shee)
Kaela Rowan (Shooglenifty)
J P Cormier
Ciorstaidh Chaimbeul (Fèis Rois Ceilidh Trail)
Fiddles:
Holli Scott (Fèis Rois Ceilidh Trail)
Fiona MacAskill (Kinnaris Quintet)
Aileen Reid (Kinnaris Quintet)
Laura Wilkie (Kinnaris Quintet)
Eilidh Shaw (Shooglenifty)
Sam Sweeney
Catriona Macdonald (Shetland Springs)
Chris Stout (Shetland Springs)
Kevin Henderson (Shetland Springs)
Ross Couper (Shetland Springs)
Margaret Robertson (Shetland Springs)
Mike Vass (Malinky)
Accordion:
Phil Alexander (Moishe’s Bagel)
Clarsàch:
Rachel Newton (The Shee)
Whistle/flute:
Ali Hutton (Old Blind Dogs)
Mark Dunlop (Malinky)
Pipes:
Malin Lewis
Mandolin:
Laura-Beth Salter (Kinnaris Quintet)
Guitar:
Kaela Rowan (Shooglenifty)
Jenn Butterworth (Kinnaris Quintet)
Pedal steel:
Ross Martin (Dàimh)
Banjo:
Evie Ladin
Bass:
Keith Terry
Cittern:
Aaron Jones (Old Blind Dogs)
Bouzouki:
Steve Byrne
Drums/percussion:
James Mackintosh (Shooglenifty)
Donald Hay (Old Blind Dogs)
Signy Jakobsdóttir (The Shee)