Highland fiddler Duncan Chisholm and his band will kick off Tradfest, Edinburgh's traditional festival of live music, spoken word, ceilidhs, dance, workshops and new commissions, at the end of next month.
The 10th festival programme, running from Friday 29 April to Monday 9 May, will return with in-person shows to the Traverse, Scottish Storytelling Centre, and venues across Edinburgh.
“We’re thrilled to be announcing this year’s line-up and full programme," said Ros Rigby, Chair of The Soundhouse Organisation, producers of Edinburgh Tradfest, "we have all really missed being able to watch live performances in venues and can’t wait to welcome back audiences from all over the UK and overseas to this year’s festival.”
Live music
Among the live-music events taking place in venues across Edinburgh is newly commissioned Come All Ye by Phil Alexander (Moishe’s Bagel) celebrating the impact that many immigrants have made on the cultural life of Scotland.
Bogha-Frois aka ‘Queer Voices in Folk’ will be curating a line-up of bands including Hebridean trio Hecla, and up-and-coming five piece band Madderam.
Bogha-Frois will also be involved in a live storytelling event at the Scottish Storytelling Centre - Queer Folks’ Tales – and are included on the festival’s latest podcast series which will be released next month.
A highlight in this year’s programme will be twice-nominated Mercury Music Prize nominee and multiple-award winner at the BBC Radio Two Folk awards Eliza Carthy performing with her father Martin Carthy.
Also lined up, is local band Shooglenifty, Finnish ‘nordgrass’ fiddle music from Frigg, harmonious and playful vocals from trio Sian, US classic banjo artist Aaron Jonah Lewis, bluegrass band The Shee, neo-trad trio Project Smok, and bagpipe-fiddler Malin Lewis.
Spoken word
The festival will present their second Rebellious Truth talk which will address gender inequality in traditional music with Úna Monaghan (harper, composer, researcher and sound artist from Belfast) and live storytelling events with the Scottish Storytelling Centre.
These include Hillsook Weddeen a rich and beautiful story about a Hillswick Wedding embedded in Shetland folklore performed by comedian, storyteller and filmmaker Marjolein Robertson; Stories from the Kist in Scots and Doric hosted by Tobar an Dualchais/Kist o Riches with Tim Porteus, Jackie Ross and Jess Smith; and Learning from the Kist an accompanying workshop for people interested in improving their storytelling technique led by Donald Smith and Ruth Kirkpatrick. There's also a Guid Crack open-floor on the festival's opening night at the Storytelling Centre.
A pilot mini-festival Pomegranates, organised by the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland (TRACS), will explore traditional dance the world over. Events vary from a live-music accompanied costume promenade show at the Netherbow Theatre to a headdress parade in tribute to Ukrainian traditional dance artists.
TRACS is also behind The People’s Parish Maps exhibition (15 April to 15 May) – a nationwide project connecting local stories, traditions and cultural memory with the distinct local voices, culture and creativity from Scotland’s 871 civil parishes.
Siobhan Anderson, Music Officer at Creative Scotland, which is a key festival funder, said: “This year’s programme is a real celebration of the best of Scotland’s traditional talent, the rising stars of the future and the incredible musicians and storytellers that we are thrilled to see returning to Edinburgh.”
Tradfest runs from 29 April to 9 May. Full details on the Tradfest website.
2022 Edinburgh Tradfest Programme
Friday 29 April
Duncan Chisholm + Beth Malcolm | Music Hall, Assembly Rooms | 20:00 | £19/£16
Guid Crack | Scottish Storytelling Centre | 19:30 | £5
Saturday 30 April
Ross & Ali Trio | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Janice Burns and Jon Doran | Traverse 2 | 20:00 | £15/£12
Pomegranates | Scottish Storytelling Centre | 18:00 | £10
Sunday 1 May
Martin Carthy & Eliza Carthy | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Malin makes Music | Traverse 2 | 20:00 | £15/£12
Monday 2 May
Come All Ye (special commission) | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Sian | Traverse 2 | 20:00 | £15/£12
Tuesday 3 May
Frigg | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Rebellious Truth 22: Úna Monaghan on gender in traditional music | Traverse 2 | 20:00 | £15/£12
Hillsook Weddeen | Scottish Storytelling Centre | 19:30 | £8
Wednesday 4 May
Gunning & Cormier | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Eabhal | Traverse 2 | 20:00 | £15/£12
Thursday 5 May
Karine Polwart & Dave Milligan | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Alice Allen & Patsy Reid play Scott Skinner | Traverse 2 | 20:00 | £15/£12
Queer Folks’ Tales | Scottish Storytelling Centre | 19:30 | £10
Friday 6 May
Shooglenifty + Deira | Potterow | 20:00 | £17/£14
Nuala Kennedy & Eamon O’Leary | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Saturday 7 May
Project Smok | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Aaron Jonah Lewis | Traverse 2 | 20:00 | £15/£12
Learning from the Kist | Scottish Storytelling Centre | 14:00 | £ Pay what you can
Stories from the Kist | Scottish Storytelling Centre | 19:30 | £10
Sunday 8 May
Bogha Frois | Traverse 1 | 20:30 | £15/£12
Evie Ladin & Keith Terry | Traverse 2 | 20:00 | £15/£12
Monday 9 May
The Shee | Traverse 1 | 21:00 | £15/£12
Edinburgh Tradfest Podcast
New episodes released on 15, 22 and 29 April featuring interviews with festival headliners, stories from Come All Ye stars, Queer Folk Tales, and music.
Friday 15 April – Sunday 15 May
Exhibition: The People’s Parish Maps | Scottish Storytelling Centre | Admission Free