Neil McFadyen

One of this year’s most significant and far reaching commissions at Celtic Connections was ‘The Atlantic Corridor’ curated by Carlos Núñez. Along with a fine list of special guests it was an unforgettable evening.

With the great success of The Elizabethan Session those all-star sessions are revived and brought north to Celtic Connections for a final performance at The Mitchell Theatre.

The unscheduled Dreamer’s Circus performance at Celtic Connections was one of the highlights of this year’s festival, a performance that will surely secure their return next year with a more prominent billing.

In celebration of Burns Night and, more importantly, to raise funds for Marie Curie Cancer Care, Adam Holmes & The Embers have recorded Burns’ finest love song, Ae Fond Kiss.

With the release of her first solo album ‘Night Touches Day’, Gerda Stevenson talks to FRUK about the different paths along which her career has taken her, and where they might lead in the future.

On Night Touches Day each of Gerda’s songs stands proudly on its own merits and each contributes to the album’s irresistible eclecticism. She charms and delights throughout this debut.

Stephen Gerrard, the kind of singer-songwriter who’s the backbone of our folk clubs, provides a second collection of self-penned songs with ‘Broken Shells’.

On Tuesday 9th December 2014 Sheila Stewart MBE; singer, storyteller and author, passed away. Neil looks back at her life, plus we have a special short film courtesy of the Scottish Documentary Institute.

On Mike’s latest work Island imagery and the pull of the ocean are written large across the score sheet; the swell of the tide lifts and drops the senses, the musical vision intrigues.

Daire and Lorcán discuss their new album ‘Preabmeadar’, the wealth of musical connections and the excitement of finding new horizons in ancient traditions.

Daire Ó Breacáin and Lorcán Mac Mathúna have created far more than a recording; it’s a contemporary window on the work of the earliest bards, on the origins of poetry itself.

Gareth and Annie’s debut EP is a statement of intent, a laying of cards on the table. It says ‘this is who we are, this is where we’re going’. Honest and open, it invites you to take what you will from it.