IN the first of a series of HI~Arts Reflections, John Saich charts the achievements of Inverness based singer-songwriter Maryann Frew and asks her about the role of HI~Arts in her story
MARYANN FREW is steadily […]

JOHN SAICH draws inspiration from the talented CLOUD NINE as he catches up with them on the 2003 Ceilidh Trail.
It’s not that long ago that the concept of an all female traditional band was pretty radical. I […]

THE CLUE, for those who know, is in the name. Mùth (pronounced Moo, with a further hint in the logo) is a collective of young, enterprising art and music enthusiasts in Oban who quite simply wanted to make a difference in their home town. According to Rhona MacDougall, one of the four team members, in north […]

Corran Halls, Oban, 28 October 2009 IT’S A SAD thing to confess as an advocate of the arts in Argyll that I haven’t had a night out at the Corran Halls for a long, long time. In light of that admission, I had no particular expectations of the Oban venue for Homecoming Rhapsody 09 (featuring a reprise […]

A Goody-Bag For The Soul JOHN SAICH reports from a successful gathering of makers and artists on the Isle of Mull FOLLOWING a highly successful Makers Day in Stornoway, HI~Arts Crafts Development Coordinator Pamela Conacher brought together a similarly inspirational and informative gathering in Mull on 7 May. Tobermory’s An Tobar was the p…[Read more]

Will The Real … JOHN SAICH talks to singer FIONA MACKENZIE (or one of them, at least) about a love of Gaelic and pop, and working with one of Scotland’s top producers. In 2008 Lewis born singer and song writer Fiona Mackenzie released her first solo album on Linn Records to great critical acclaim. Produced by Calum Malcolm, Elevate […]

An Tobar, Tobermory, Isle of Mull, 5 August 2008 THE BEAUTY of An Tobar is that if you live on Mull, or are even just there for a few days, chances are you’ll get to hear something special when you least expect it. And, what’s more, you’ll hear it close-up in an environment that city venues […]