Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, 30 January 2004

THE ANNUAL CONCERT produced by Comunn Gàidhlig Inbhir Nis (Gaelic Society of Inverness) always takes a particular theme for its gathering of singers, musicians, story-tellers and dancers. This year that theme was fairies, the supernatural, and all the other odd and often horrific unworldly goings-on recorded in the rich Gaelic tradition.

Dòchas

As ever, proceedings are carried on almost entirely in Gaelic (Bill Innes was Fear an Taighe again this year), but producer Cailean Maclean had catered for the non-Gaelic speakers in the audience with sur-titles, attractively projected onto a large screen behind the artists. These were the best yet devised for this event, and added a bit of comic by-play more associated with the panto when piper Fred Morrison kept sneaking a look at what he was to play next, only to find himself missing the information and catching the linking image screen. It was behind you, Fred, honest.

As usual the long bill featured a variety of art forms. Solo singers always have a prominent place, and this year’s trio of featured tradition bearers were Catriona Garbutt (Campbell) of Benbecula, Catriona MacPhee (MacNeill) of Inverness, and Calum Ailig MacMillan from Point in Lewis. They belonged to different generations, and reflected contrasting vocal attributes and stylistic nuances in their pleasing delivery of songs associated with the evening’s theme.

Alasdair MacLennan, a confident 9-year old from Harris, and the more mature Martin MacIntyre represented the renascent story-telling tradition with tales of fairies and changelings, while a group of youngsters from Fèis a’ Bhaile and Fèis na h-Oige in Inverness enacted a wee drama of their own, based on a story by Seonag Monk and set in a fairy mound on Tomnahurich.

Hamish Moore’s ambitious Na Tri Seudan had its premiere perfomance at Celtic Connections in Glasgow the previous week, and the two excerpts performed by a reduced cast of musicians gave at least a taste of the whole. Na Tri Seudan looked back to a time before the homogenisation of the Victorians and the hegemony of military piping, when Moore believes that Scots music, dance and language was more intimately linked than it later became.

Dr Angus MacDonald, the Society’s piper, had opened the concert with a solo set, but it was his brother, Allan MacDonald, who was featured as the solo piper and singer in Na Tri Seudan. He was joined by six more pipers (Iain MacInnes, Hamish Moore, Malcolm Robertson, Bruce Rankine, Angus MacKenzie, and Donal Brown, who also danced, but not while playing!), fiddlers Karen Steven and Mairi Campbell (both of whom also doubled as step dancers), and singer Kathleen MacInnes.

Dòchas are one of the brightest young bands on the Scottish folk scene, but for some reason did not come across to full effect in this setting. Their set was lively enough, but lacked the anticipated impact in this big auditorium, and in front of a rather subdued (and probably tiring) audience. The band returned for the finale (with the delinquent pipe tuning evident in their last tune of their own set sorted out) after Dr Mairi MacArthur had delivered the customary thanks, but the applause had died almost before they left the stage.

The real musical highlight was supplied by the remarkable piping of Fred Morrison at the opening of the second half. He played cauld wind pipes in contrast with the Highland instruments employed in both Na Tri Seudan – Allan MacDonald excepted –  and Dòchas, and fired off a couple of dazzling fast sets featuring his own compositions, interleaved with a poignant slow air on low whistle inspired by a ghostly apparition in a South Uist glen.

© George MacKay, 2004