Strathpeffer Pavilion, 20 April 2012

WITH Andy Thorburn now replaced by Ingrid Henderson, Blazin Fiddles’ lineup continues to evolve towards gender parity.

THOUGH it’s unlikely gender parity had anything to do with it, or even the fact that Ingrid is Allan’s sister and Iain MacFarlane’s wife – she is a fine musician in her own right and they’re lucky to be able to call her in. Despite rehearsal time measured in not days but hours, and in the case of her accompaniment to Bruce Macgregor’s “Captain Simon Fraser”, minutes, she stepped up on Saturday without a sign of nerves and added her own special energy to the evening.

Jenna Reid, Bruce MacGregor, Anna Massie and Iain Macfarlane

A fine evening it was, too. In every incarnation, Blazin’ Fiddles have the knack of firing up audiences, setting feet tapping and making even the most morose faces break out in delighted grins. Friday night was no exception. The tried and tested formula of ensemble sets punctuated by solo or duo performances continues to work, showcasing the different styles of fiddle playing from Allan Henderson’s pure, authentic Lochaber to Jenna Reid’s fine, fine Shetland in which she proves herself, again, to be one of the finest fiddlers of her generation.

In the first half, many of the sets were entirely new material, starting with some energetic Shetland reels. The ensemble playing was, as always, tighter than the tightest thing, a breathtaking display of musical aerobatics. Anna Massie and Ingrid Henderson provided a lovely, light, syncopated rhythm section to support the sweeping, swooping strings. Occasionally Massie swapped guitar for fiddle, and some intense duelling duetting work with MacFarlane was a particular delight as they matched each other note for note at dazzling speed.

The band were perhaps a little more relaxed in the second half of mostly more familiar material drawn from their decade-plus repertoire; they tore through it in throwaway bravura style and delighted the audience from start to finish.

© Jennie Macfie, 2012

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