Ardersier Folk Festival marks 5th edition with three-day of events for all ages
The fifth edition of the Ardersier Folk Festival saw the Moray Firth village come alive with three days of music, song, dancing and laughter last weekend.
Participants of all ages attended the many events on offer, starting with a lively ceilidh dance in the War Memorial Hall on the Friday.
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Workshops and sessions took place through the weekend, while Saturday afternoon saw the hall filled with local children and their families for a concert featuring Ardersier Primary School, Mellow Yellow children and adults, Ardersier Forte Choir, Edinburgh singer Sylvia MacGowan and festival organiser George Livingstone.
A special highlight occurred during the performance of this year’s headliner, Siobhan Miller, who gave a wonderful concert with her trio — and at one point the band stepped out from behind the microphones into the audience to play and sing with them.
The support act included Siobhan’s dad, Brian Miller, with Dougie MacKenzie, long time stalwarts of Scotland’s folk scene.
The songwriting competition for the Paul Tonberg Shield was won by Maria Miller from Elgin with her song The Hole in the Floor, followed by a lovely set from last year’s winner, Shirley Barr.
Finally, renowned fiddler Bruce MacGregor brought his “MacGregor’s Gathering” showcase of musicians who play regularly in his bar in Inverness, to raise the roof with an incredible display of musicianship.
“The winning song about discovering treasure during hard times perhaps sums up this edition of the festival,” said Ardersier Folk Club representative David Godden.
“Over the weekend, when an internet debate was raging over the direction and future of trad music in Scotland, Ardersier International Folk Club once again showed that in this part of the world at least, the future looks very bright.”