THE stories of women who rebelled against societal norms and expectations as told in Scotland’s traditional songs will be explored by singer/songwriter Karine Polwart in the live streamed finale of Edinburgh Tradfest.
Polwart will also reflect on the history of misogyny and sexual violence in her inaugural Rebellious Truth lecture.
Presented in partnership with the Department of Celtic and Scottish Studies at the University of Edinburgh, the evening will explore Scotland’s passion for the traditional arts, their history and future, and will mix live performances and presentations from School of Scottish Studies traditional artist in residence Mike Vass, as well as Polwart. The event will be live streamed from St Cecilia’s Hall in Edinburgh on May 10.
This will be the first time Edinburgh Tradfest has been presented online and it is hoped it will reach a wider, international audience as a result.
“Taking the festival online this year was a difficult decision for us,” said co-director Douglas Robertson. “However, we couldn’t be more delighted with how this year’s programme is shaping up and with all the support we have received from artists, funders and partners keen to see Tradfest stay on the map.”
Co-producer Jane-Ann Purdy said they were excited about reaching people who might not have experienced the festival before.
“We hope that when they can they will join us in Edinburgh for future Tradfests,” she said.
As part of the festival, the Scottish Storytelling Centre will host the online launch on May 7 of Scotland Online: A Directory of Musicians, a comprehensive and ever-expanding list of musicians working and recording in Scotland. Presented by the Traditional Music Forum and TRACS, the launch will feature special pre-recorded performances by Rachel Hair and Ron Jappy, Maeve Mackinnon with Ali Hutton and Luc McNally and David Foley and Jack Smedley with Jenn Butterworth, as well as a live Q&A with the artists.
The festival kicks off this Friday with Shetland Springs, a specially commissioned celebration of the Shetland fiddle tradition. Originally planned for the pandemic-hit 2020 event, the hour-long concert will celebrate the rich and distinctive tradition of the “spring”, the dialect name for old Shetland dance tunes. It will be presented in association with the Shetland Folk Festival, an event that normally shares Edinburgh Tradfest’s opening weekend. Curated by Catriona Macdonald of the String Sisters, it will include Margaret Robertson, Chris Stout and Ross Couper.
The main festival programme will be broadcast daily and presented as a series of nine podcasts. Episodes will explore traditional music in Scotland and some of the characters of the
Edinburgh folk scene, as well as featuring tracks and interviews from some of Tradfest’s 2020 line-up.
These include Romanian singer-songwriter Lizabett Russo, iconic Scottish band Shooglenifty, banjo virtuoso Aaron Jonah Lewis, Scottish folk band Kinnaris Quintet, Moishe’s Bagel, Old Blind Dogs and piper/fiddler Malin Lewis.
For tickets and information go to edinburghtradfest.com
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