MIKE Vass’s most recent project, The Four Pillars, a celebration of the main types of Scottish fiddle tune – the Strathspey, the reel, the air and the march – will be released next month.

Vass has long been one of the country’s foremost composers of traditional music, with his narrative style underpinned by a musical lyricism that makes his music compelling listening.

For this project, commissioned, with help from Creative Scotland, by the Scots Fiddle Festival, Vass has gathered solo works from four fiddlers, himself, Lauren MacColl, Patsy Reid and Jenna Reid, and brought them together into a suite of music accompanied by a string quartet, piano and percussion as well as spoken word excerpts.

It is a unique and important work that again illustrates the depth of talent we are lucky to have in this country.

The Four Pillars is released on July 26 on Unrooofed Records