John Somerville

Accordionist John Somerville has worked with many acts from the Scottish folk and roots scene including being a founding member of Treacherous Orchestra, Croft No Five, Box Club, Babelfish and the Cask Strength Ceilidh band. He has gained a reputation for pushing the boundaries of folk whilst remaining true to his native Highland roots. Hailing from Abriachan on the shores of Loch Ness, John’s playing has drawn influences from far and wide - from Highland and West coast music through to Border and Piping traditions, Ceilidh music, European Folk and Electronic Dance music. He now lives in Glasgow where he is in demand as a teacher, performer, arranger and composer.

Jake Paterson

Jake Paterson is a fiddle player from Dunning in Perth and Kinross. He started playing the fiddle at the age of 6 with the Blackford Fiddle Group and hasn’t put it down since. During his musical career, he has played in multiple groups such as the Blackford Fiddle Group Ceilidh Band and the Gordon Duncan Experience, as well as venturing into other areas of music with the Perth Youth Orchestra, which he was the leader of in 2016. Jake studied at Newcastle University, where he received a BA First Class with Honours in Traditional Folk Music, and also studied for a year at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance in Limerick, Ireland. He currently plays in the band Rohallion, who have played across Scotland, and recently played their first music festival in Estonia.

Liam Manion

Liam Manion is a keen fiddle and guitar player and was inspired to pursue a career in music and teaching through the local traditional music scene in Dunkeld. Going on to study education and trad music at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Liam was taught by the likes of Marie Fielding, Patsy Reid and Jenn Butterworth and is now a secondary school music teacher himself. In his spare time, Liam is the Chair of the Niel Gow Festival, hosts Thursday night sessions in Dunkeld’s Taybank and plays with Jake in their band Rohallion.

Signy Jakobsdottir

Signy Jakobsdottir has over thirty years of experience. Recording and performing credits include work with Capercaillie, Donald Shaw, Michael McGoldrick, Patsy Reid and Josie Duncan. She plays a broad range of instruments from congas to cajon, darbukka to drum kit and uses bells, gongs and unusual percussion instruments to create atmosphere, texture and a unique sound. Class with Signy usually includes rhythm warm-ups using drumsticks and learning accents inside of different grooves, using percussion to create atmosphere and texture and building short pieces together.

Sophie Stephenson

Sophie Stephenson is a dance artist, teacher and performer who specialises in a Scottish style of percussive step dance. Hailing from Fort Augustus on the shores of Loch Ness, Sophie's passion for the traditional arts is rooted in her Highland upbringing and participation in cèilidh dances, music sessions and local fèisean from a young age. Sophie is particularly inspired by the rhythmical connections between language, music, song and dance, and many of her collaborations bring together puirt-à-beul (Gaelic mouth music) and percussive dance. 

Emma Chisholm Wright

Emma started learning the clarsach in primary school and went on to study music at university.  After travelling around the world with a tiny clarsach, she returned to the Highlands and currently lives in Kingussie with her young family.  She regularly teaches for Fèis Spè, Fèis Rois, the Clarsach Society and the Cromarty Arts Trust and performs all over Scotland.  Emma loves sharing the experience of playing and experimenting on the clarsach with people of all ages. 

📷: Karen Thorburn Photography

Ruairidh Iain Buxton

Ruairidh Iain Buxton is a musician and Gàidhlig speaker. He grew up surrounded by Scottish traditional music and Gàidhlig culture. Hailing from the Coigach peninsula in the north west coast of Scotland. He plays a variety of bagpipes, flutes and whistles. Ruairidh currently plays with the West Coast trad band Ceol an Aire and Rhuvaal. He is graduate from The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Craig Harrison

Craig is from Co. Clare, Ireland and is heavily influenced by Irish, and particularly Clare fiddle styles. Craig has lived in Scotland for the last eight years, and works as a musician in Glasgow. He plays with the trio Ape House, who won a Danny Kyle award in 2022 and will soon be releasing their debut album. He is a regular on the ceilidh and session circuits, and he is also an experienced fiddle teacher. Craig is passionate about arrangement, ornamentation, and the cultural history of traditional music.

Calum Maclean

Join Calum Maclean for a walk up the Birks and along Urlar Road - learn about the Gaelic landscape, mythology, songs and stories of the area! For kids and adults, the morning session will be for Gaelic beginners and the afternoon session will be for intermediate/advanced Gaelic speakers. Make sure you bring good boots, waterproofs, warm clothes and a bottle of water. Please note: this walk will be on rough paths and include some steep climbs. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

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Calum Maclean is an Aberfeldy-based broadcaster. He has a great interest in nature and connecting people to the depth of Gaelic history and culture connected with the outdoors. Calum grew up speaking Gaelic and regularly appears on BBC ALBA, where he is one of the main presenters on the SpeakGaelic series.

Iain Hunter

Iain has been speaking Gaelic since he was very little, coming through Gaelic Medium Education. Now, he uses his Gaelic wherever he can and is currently working towards a university degree in sports coaching. Iain has played shinty since primary school and now plays senior shinty so we’re in safe hands with him!

Mischa Macpherson

Mischa Macpherson is a Gaelic singer from the Outer Hebrides, whose love for music and Gaelic culture began at an early age on her home island of Lewis. She was greatly influenced by the Fèisean nan Gàidheal movement and her involvement with Fèis Rois, both of which played a major role in shaping her musical journey. Mischa went on to win the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award and Gaelic Singer of the Year at the MG Alba Scots Trad Music Awards. She has since performed at festivals and concerts around the world, from Europe to Australia, and in 2023, she represented the UK at the G20 Summit in India.