Gaelic Song, Kilmarnock Edition and lots more!

Gaelic Song Update- I've been away for a while but decided I should really get back to Blogging and tell you what I've been up to recently!

2012 has been a busy year for me, musicwise. I've not only recorded a new solo album 'Archipelago', again on Greentrax Recordings but I've just released a new album with the band "Kilmarnock Edition" too. "Archipelago" is a unique recording of Songs of the Scottish Islands sung in Scots & Gaelic and visits some of the less well known islands of the Scottish coastline. The cover image is of St Kilda , or Hiort, in Gaelic. 

 I even get the chance to sing in the ancient Northern Isles tongue of Norn. It was a fascinating project to work on and one with which I learned a lot. It was produced by David Lyon of Greenock, an amazingly talented and conscientious musician and producer. He is the husband of Yvonne Lyon , who also sings with Kilmarnock Edition.

I was delighted to be nominated in the Gaelic Singer of the Year category at the Scots Trad Music Awards this year- a tremendous honour, particularly given the talent amongst the other singers in the category. The results will be announced at the glittering ceremony in Fort William on December 8th this year. The whole event is a fantastic celebration of the good things that go on inthe world of Scottish Traditional Music throughout the year.

Kilmarnock Edition goes from strength to strength and we celebrated the launch of our album 'Pay It Forward' on Friday Nov 23 at the Scottish Music Centre in Glasgow. We now look forward to our Celtic Connections debut in January in Glasgow . Hope to see you there!




In the meantime I will be busy working on my Mackay Country Song Residency, which looks at the history and effect of social migration within Sutherland. My residency is entitled "Dachaidh" or "Home" and examines what 2Home" means to different people.

Delighted if you like to leave any comments of questions here abut anything I have written about.

Gaelic in the News today- Gaelic Medium education a parents right?

An important debate for Gaelic took place today in the Scottish Parliament. Should every parent have the legal right to have their children receive a Gaelic medium education?
I have been in the lucky position of having that option for my children to e educated through the medium of Gaelic- our local school provided that option for us, at least for child 2 and 3. But we had to fight for it. And it has been worth every drop of sweat, blood and many tears. I have no hesitation in recommending GME for any family- not only because of the cultural and linguistic benefits but also for the more broad mainstream education benefits. Learning another language opens a childs mind, they soak things up like no adult can. It is easier for a child to learn another language, that has been proven.
So this whole debate is not just about the economics of the matter- we shoudl also remember that the heart of any populace is formed by the identity of a People- and if we dont have our languages and cultures, then we are missing part of our identity - that which forms who and what we are. We must remember also that we are LUCKY to have our own indigenous language - so many countries have lost that, their own tongues submerged by English. There are economic benefits ofr Gaelic too of course- tourism for one, with the many 1000s of tourists who ocme to Scotland to soak up that Gaelic culture.
So for that culture to survive, there has to be education - and it has been proven over and again that children who have come through GME suffer NO ill effects from not learning to read and write english till they are in p3/4. Indeed my sons kept abreast - and overtook- their mainstream peers in more than one subject- in primary and secondary education.
So please, support GME- we're lucky to have that option - please dont waste all the time and effort by so many parents over the years, including myself, who have fought to have that right.

The small town football team with big time aspirations- Ross County!!!!

Woo hoo! Can you believe that our local boys from our wee town in the Mid Highlands have actually achieved what wasn't thought possible...taken on the might of the Celtic side, thrashed them ,in great style, in a great football match and made it to the final of the Scottish cup! Incredible. But its true. Dingwall has 5000 population but 7500 folk made it down to Hampden today to support them! I have never seen Dingwall High St so deserted- poor stall holders for this months Farmers market! My daughter Katie was at Hampden too and she said that she'd never seen so many Dingwall folk in one place- not even in Dingwall! And as for my son Kenneth, well he's beside himself with excitement. He was busy day being filmed for a programme for BBC Alba about 'Football Nuts', and if there was ever a day for a TV company to film something really interesting and exciting then today was it! When I spoke to him,half an hour after final whistle, he was so excited , he couldn't even speak English let alone Gaelic!

Siuthadaibh a bhalaich! Thats he way to go Lads- Go on The Staggies! Roll on the final next month at Hampden- sure the world that the wee team from Dingwall cant be written off yet!

Song of today- Dean Cadalan Samhach- Sleep Peacefully. From Kintail, a lullaby,

http://www.last.fm/music/Fiona+J+Mackenzie/_/Dean+Cadalan+Samhach

Just because its in Gaelic doesn't mean its traditional......

I've been getting increasingly disillusioned with the view in certain quarters, influential quarters, about Gaelic and Gaelic Song. Too often I have had to overcome the stumbling block of the view that because something is sung in Gaelic, that it must be traditional - Gaelic=Traditional, and ne'eer the twain shall meet. This, to me, typifies something which will hasten the end of the Language- a language which I have been struggling, in my own small ways, to help survive over the last 15 years. If the language does not absorb new influences and styles it will not advance, it will not survive. There is noone who has a greater respect for the language and culture than myself and I deeply love the 'tradition' but I also recognise the importance of moving forward. The future of any culture is the Youth and that Youth has be offered a choice of cultural styles and influence- they may love the 'old stuff' but they must also be offered the New. And too often , I have been battered down or saying this, for trying to offer a new direction, whilst retaining the Respect. And Im afraid that often, the reason for this is that I am regarded as, and always will be, a Nouveau Gaidheal, a new Gael, someone who 'doesn't belong' - because I dont have a Gaelic Family Past. However, I have created this for my children- they all now have a 'Gaelic Past' and are all heavily involved, and enjoying the language and Culture- and THEY are the important ones, the ones who will carry the language forward.

So I will contintue to fight for the language and culture in my own small way, sing my old songs but also look at new ways of getting young folk involved, in a way which is relevant to them...

Let me know your comments, please!

Sorry for the rant but its something I feel very strongly about.

Im also going to start giving you a daily recommendation for a Gaelic Song of the Day. Today Im going to be a bit narcisstic and give you one of my own favourites. Hope you enjoy it! Its a true story, a song of Unrequited love- You Are Alive in My Soul. From my album 'A Good Suit of Clothes'. http://www.last.fm/music/Fiona+J+Mackenzie/_/Tha+Thu+Be%C3%B2+Nam+Anamsa+%3D+You+Are+Alive+In+My+Soul

Tapadh leibh- have a good weekend!

Scotland's close relationship with Andalucia!

Did you know that Scotland actually has a very close and historically important connection to Andalucia? Have you heard of the town of Teba? No, well, you should. Teba is a small town not far from Ronda , high in the Andalucian hills. It was here in 1330, that King Alfonso x1 was endeavouring to take the town of Teba from the occupying Moors. It so happened that the Scot Sir James Douglas, better known as Black Douglas was travelling on The Crusades, taking the heart of King Robert the Bruce, to give cheer to the soldiers. As he travelled through Spain, he lent his armies support to King Alfonso. During the battle , Black Douglas was killed but not before he threw Bruce's heart into the midst of the Moor forces, in a silver casket. The casket was retrieved and returned to Melrose Abbey. The following year the Earl of Selkirk also engaged the Moorish forces in Teba and left behind a slab of marble which now is incorporated into a large monument in the middle of the towns square.
It is a very strange feeling to come across this little piece of Scotland in the middle of the Andalucian plains- especially when you arrive on the exact anniversary of the battle....Aug 25th.... without knowing beforehand, the exact date.........

A Gael in Spain stays Mainly on the train......strikes allowing...

Getting organised for the Gaelic Song & Language course I am running in Andalucia, Spain , at the end of this month. 'Gaidhlig Thall Thairis' takes place in the tiny village of Juzcar from 28 April to May 2nd and myself and Rhoda Meek will be teaching Song and Gaelic in surroundings more likely to house the odd flamenco dancer or finca owner, than a shivering, white faced person with a distinctive accent reminiscent of jute mills or the Byres Road in Glasgow...........


But before we can get there , we have to GET THERE.......and thats not always easy from the Scottish Highlands. It takes me longer to get to the airport to fly to Malaga, than it does for the actual flight. Folk in the South sometimes forget how difficult travel can be for us- my travel plans over the winter, to gigs, concerts etc have been interrupted on several occasions because of a) weather and b) strikes. Life is costly enough these days without losing several £s because of missed journeys. Also , dont forget that the likelihood is that I will have had to go 'down' the night before and stay in a hotel just to avoid any danger of a traffic delay or flood, pestilence and all the other reasons Farce Railscot give for delays......... So that budget flight has suddenly assumed proportions equal to a first class ticket toMelbourne.... Watch this space......





Gaelic Phrase for Today - I am fed up of it! Tha mise seachd sgith leis! pronounced- Tha mishuh sh-ach-k ski laysh!

http://www.fionamackenzie.org/Events

Learning Scottish Gaelic in Spain

Heres a wee piece on the Secret Andalucia site about the connections between Andalucia and Scotland- and the forthcoming Gaelic Course in Andalucia. E mil me for more details of this exciting opportunity to learn Gaelic and Gaelic Songin a beultiful, warm, lemon fragrant part of Spain!
http://www.secretandalucia.com/guadiaro-valley/news/419-flamenco-in-a-kilt.html

Learn Gaelic Song , Language & Acting Under the Lemon Trees!

Plans just firmed up for this years Gaidhlig Thall Thairis Course in Andalucia, Spain. Come and learn Gaelic- at your own pace and level- Gaelic Song, again at a pace to suit you, acting - and you can even improve your Spanish in all subjects if you so wish to , too! w ehave 3 tutors, myself, Gillebride Macmillan and Rhoda Meek. The course takes place in Juzcar, near Ronda, between 29 April through to 2 May. Details of this holiday woth a difference can be found at
http://www.fionamackenzie.org/Events

Learn Scottish Gaelic and Gaelic Song in the Sun!

Fancy having a Spring Break in the Sun and learn something new at the same time - or brush up on older skills? Join myself and Uist singer and tutor Gillebride Macmillan in the beautiful surroundings of the Alto Genal, deep in the heart of lovely Andalucia, Spain. Learn Gaelic, improve your Spanish (Gillebride is a fluent Spanish speaker as well as Gaelic) , learn some beautiful Gaelic songs, even if you're not a singer, and learn something of the Andalucian culture, cuisine and countryside at the same time. April 28th - May 2nd 2010, Juzcar, Andalucia, 1 1/2 hours from Malaga. Fully inclusive, travel excepted. More details . Siuthad! Join us for some fun, food and ferias!

http://www.fionamackenzie.org/Events

The American 'Livvie' LiveIreland awards!

Absolutely delighted to find out today, the last day of 2009, that I have won a special award in the Livvie Awards by LiveIreland.- Special Merit of the Year - for the album "A Good Suit of Clothes". A real honour and a lovely New Year present! Mile taing, LiveIreland! And epsecially thanks to Irvin of course, the honour should really go to him- he made the songs what they are.

Bliadhna Mhath Ur indeed!

http://my.liveireland.com/profiles/blogs/the-livies-liveireland-music

Bliadhna Mhath ur Dhuibh Uile!

In case Hogmanay celebrations overtake me ( I wish!), I'd just like to wish you all a very Happy New year when it comes. Bliadhna Mhath ur nuair a thigeas e!
I'd be very keen to hear from anyone who'd like to learn some mroe wee bits and pieces of Gaelic with me or who have any queries about Gaelic Song?
I'd also be interested in hearing from anyone who may have musical projects they may have ideas for?
And also love to hear from anyone who'd be interested in coming with me to Spain this Springtime to learn Gaelic Song & Language? More detials to come soon.

A very safe and happy Hogmanay and Ne'Er Day to you all!

Christmas Eve Concert online update

Fiona and katie's concert of Gaelic carols on Christmas Eve shoudl be alovely way of seeing in Christmas Day ( if you're with UK time) and whatever time of day it is with you, its guaranteed to get you in the Christmas spirit! Join us at 1140pm for half an hour of old favourites and some newer ones too - download the lyrics and listen to the podcast on my website so you can join in!

Get the mulled wine or spiced apple juice out of whatever makes you feel festive an

d relax for a wee while. Katie will accompany me on the Scottish Clarsach for some of the songs. If you do join us for the carols make sure and close any other programs you may have running on your computer before watching as they may mean your computer will struggle to stream the broadcast

Look forward to seeing you - and hope you enjoy it!

A very Nollaig Chridheil to you all!

Fiona

http://www.fionamackenzie.org/

Duan Nollaig Christmas Show

The Duan Nollaig TV Christmas carol concert will be aired again this Christmas, twice! On STV on the 23rd Dec at 1135pm and then on BBC Alba , Christmas Eve at 2015. Heres a taster.
http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzilo8ZIISw

Live Christmas Gaelic Carol Concert- streamed on web

Im going to be performing what we think is the first ever Gaelic Christmas carol concert streamed live on the web on Christmas Eve! From 1140 till 1210, myself and singer and clarsach player Katie Mackenzie will take you gently into Christmas Day with some well known and not so well known Gaelic carols. You will be able to join in too but downloading the lyric and phonetic sheets which will be available shortly from my website http://www.fionamackenzie.org/

We will be performing , from my home, of course in UK time so if you're elsewhere in the world, you'll need to adjust your time schedule accordingly! The carols will be available, recorded on the site , after the broadcast.

The carols will be broadcast from my site at http://www.fionamackenzie.org/

Burnsong HOuse Day 6

Day of rehearsals for the Big Gig on MOnday in the Scottish Parliament. This week has been full of revelations - and none more so than that I feel like a whole new world of music is on my doorstep, not to sound too cheesy! The people in the house are such fantasic singers and musicians and Ive been priviledge to learn so much from the. And my doo wop BV's are getting better by the minute!
the gig will be broadcast on Radio Scotland on Monday 30th at 10pm .
My songs are called Guthan air a'Ghaoith and Thuirt Thu Riumsa. Guthan was the song I won my place in the House with and Thuirt Thu is one I wrote yesterday.

Burnsong House Day 5

Another productive day in the Burnsong House although there were a few very tired musicians floating around first thing. Have to decide today which of our new songs we want to do on Monday - think I'm going to sing the one I actualy wrote for today - a sort of a protest song or as near as Gaeldom can get to a protest song! Quite different to anything Ive ever done - or heard- before.
Task for today is to write about a place or an inanimate object. Im on the Blackberry.....

Day 4 in the Burnsong House

Some more great songs emerging today, from all. Everyone's style is so different but all have something special. Learning so much about the pitfalls and the intrinsic writing techniques which I either didn't realise existed or even didn't realise I was using anyway.
Really hope that I can come out of here with at least one song which DOESN'T sound like a Gaelic song....

Day 2 proper in the Burnsong House

First whole day in Burnsong - dreadful weather, get soaked between house and studio. Started at 10 and had first task - to come up with 10 titles. then a lecture on pitfalls of song writing and various challenges then given task no 2- to a) write lyrics for a song then give them to one of hte other writers to do the melody. Mean that one poor writer had to do a Gaelic song - poor Lisa, she coped fantastically well after a wee Gaelic cramming session! I wrote a song called Barr an Crois- the place we're staying is called Barncrosh and I dont know if its from the Gaelic but Ive used it as inspiration anyway.
Then had to perform the songs we were given the melody to compose- I got Andys' song a- a 'blokes' song!! Kebabs and Playstation 2 and drinking sessions featured heavily......... however he seemed happy with what I came up with!
Now after dinner off to write another one before 11am tomorrow- lyrics and melody with a chorus which EVERYONE can learn....... Any ideas!!!

Day 1 in the Burnsong House......:0)

Heading for lovely warm, dry Dumfries..............with waders safely packed....... hope the floods havnt affected the Burnsong House!
Looking forward to a challenging week - its good to be pushed out of your comfort zone now and then - but it is a bit daunting too! Im sure we will have a great time but the dynamics of 12 creative folk in one house could make for some interesting debate!
Co dhiubh, I shall endeavour to keep up to dat e with the blog- internet connection allowing....
wee articla on Bord na Gaidhlig page about Burnsong-
http://www.bord-na-gaidhlig.org.uk/Default.aspx.LocID-006new0d5.RefLocID-00600f006.Lang-EN.htm

Burnsong Update & Trad Awards! Last Chance to vote!

Things hotting up preparation wise for Burnsong next week. Getting exciting! Local papers ran pieces on it last week and I gave an interview on Radio nan Gaidheal this morning. Im sure it will be a very exhilarating if exhausting week!
And then of course theres the Trad Awards on Saturday the 28th in Dumfries. Its still not too late to vote for Pur's album The Lassies Reply as reviewed on Mike Wilson's Blog here. You can vote at
www.handsupfortrad.co.uk Album of the Year category number 1. the girls will much appreciate your vote! Listen to them on www.myspace.com/purlassiesreply