Chris Bain (USA) Highly accomplished Chicago-born fiddler Chris Bain is a co-founder of Bua and is at its instrumental heart, which benefits much from his varied musical background including traditional Irish, Welsh, Scottish, and even Bluegrass. Chris has toured extensively in Wales after spending an exchange year there during his university years, performing with ensembles such as Crasdant. Chris is also an integral part of the Chicago Irish session scene, and plays regularly with Chicago Irish band Anish and the Trinity Irish Dance Company.
Dawn and Margie Beaton (Cape Breton) Dawn and Margie Beaton grew up in Mabou, Cape Breton and were surrounded by music and dance in the formative years of their lives. From a very early age, the girls found themselves dancing on local stages around Cape Breton. Just after beginning school, both girls began taking fiddle lessons and never looked back. Over the years they have performed at concerts, ceilidhs and festivals all around Cape Breton Island, mainland Nova Scotia, P.E.I. and as far away as Washington, D.C. In 2008, they were awarded the Frank “Big Sampie” Sampson award which enabled them to record their first album ‘Taste of Gaelic’.
Eric Beaudry (Quebec) Eric Beaudry has garnered several awards including a 2002 Prix Mnèmo. In 2003 Éric became a member of La Bottine Souriante. Éric's love of music spurred a passion for enlightening others and, with his degree in guitar and jazz, Éric began teaching traditional music at Joliette's CEGE. With the group De Temps Antan, Éric's rich vocal range and unquestionable talent on stringed instruments - guitar, mandolin and bouzouki - guarantee a rousing performance for all.
Martine Billette (Quebec) is an internationally renowned step dancer, considered one of Quebec's best. She performs with Pierre Chartrand and Marie-Soleil Pilette in the trio Rapetipetam. Martine is also a well-respected pianist and has represented the rich folklore of her country touring the U.S., Great Britain, Japan, and France with several groups including Ménage à Trois, the Manigance dance troupe, the Pierre Schryer Band and as a duo with master fiddler Andre Brunet.
Fiona Black (Scotland) Fiona Black (accordion) from the Highlands of Scotland began playing music through the Feisean movement and then at The National Center of Excellence in Traditional Music. She recently graduated in Music and Dance from the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance. Fiona is a member of the dynamic multinational young band, The Outside Track. Equally versed in the music of both Ireland and Scotland, Fiona is a fine teacher and player.
André Brunet (Quebec) André Brunet’s high-energy and refined style of fiddle playing was showcased as a member of La Bottine Souriante. Today, André, the 2008 Canadian Grand Master Fiddle Champion, is one of the foremost musicians on the traditional Québécois music scene; whether performing as a trio alongside Pierre-Luc Dupuis and Éric Beaudry in De Temps Antan, or with the Celtic Fiddle Festival quartet with brilliant fiddlers Kevin Burke, Christian Lemaître, and guitarist Ged Foley.
Bua (USA) Bua is a quintet comprised of some of America’s most talented young musicians: Jackie Moran, Chris Bain, Seán Gavin, Brían Ó hAirt and Brian Miller. Bua has been described as “the essence of a superb band.” Tipping their hats to such greats as The Bothy Band and Planxty, their sound is “a throwback to the playing of the 1960s and 1970s, keeping the music down the path of tradition.” Their 2006 release 'Live at Martyrs’ is “a work without gimmicks, where the musicianship is of the highest quality.”
Steve Byrne (Scotland) From Angus, in Scotland's eastern lowlands, founder member Steve has been immersed in traditional music since early childhood, and continues to write and arrange songs in his native dialect. After graduating from Edinburgh University's School of Scottish Studies, Scotland's leading folklore institution, he was a finalist in 2001's inaugural BBC Young Scottish Traditional Musician of the Year competition. For five years from 2002, Steve was the Traditional Arts Officer for the City of Edinburgh Council, where he co-ordinated the city's annual Cèilidh Culture traditional arts festival. An experienced folk music tutor, he has taught in the UK, Romania and Canada.
Fil Campbell (Ireland) Irish singer-songwriter Fil Campbell grew up in Belleek in Co. Fermanagh in the North of Ireland. She was brought up on the folk songs that were popular in Fermanagh and Donegal and spent her childhood immersed in music. With both ceilidh bands and singers in the family, music was all around and performance was part of everyday life, both at home and at school. Fil's focus as a singer is on popular Irish folk songs from the 1930s and 40s as featured on her most recent CD and TV programme Songbirds.
Shane Cook (Ontario) Canadian Shane Cook "rates at the top of the short list of the finest fiddlers in the world today." Shane has distinguished himself as a master of the Canadian old-time fiddle tradition and excels at an array of fiddle styles ranging from Irish and Scottish to French-Canadian, Texan, and Bluegrass. In 2006, Shane retired from competitive fiddling as one of Canada's most highly awarded fiddlers. He is a three-time Canadian Open National Fiddle Champion, a three-time Canadian Grand Masters Fiddle Champion, a Grand North American Fiddle Champion, and is the only Canadian to have ever won the US Grand National Fiddle Championship, a feat he accomplished at just 17 years of age.
Catherine Crowe brings 25 years of experience in Celtic art, music and education. She currently teaches a credit course in enameling at George Brown College in Toronto. With artist collective An Droichead/The Bridge she strives to make both music and visual art meaningful in a contemporary cultural context.
Stephen Darke(Canada) Stephen is widely recognized as one of North America’s foremost acoustic sound men. Stephen has done major festivals throughout Canada and the U.S., as well as around the world, and has headed this area at our festival for many years, consistently providing world class sound and a steady hand at the tiller. Universally respected by performers, Stephen is also a luthier and sound consultant.
De Temps Antan (Quebec) Since 2003, Éric Beaudry, André Brunet and Pierre-Luc Dupuis have been exploring and performing time-honoured melodies from the stomping grounds of Quebec’s musical past. Using fiddle, accordion, harmonica, guitar, bouzouki and a number of other instruments, these three virtuosos blend boundless energy with the unmistakable joie de vivre found only in traditional Quebec music.
Pierre-Luc Dupuis (Quebec) Pierre-Luc Dupuis hails from a lineage where traditional music was always at the forefront of daily life. At 19, he founded Les Langues Fourchures, and in 2003, he joined La Bottine Souriante, one of Quebec’s best-known music groups. Since then, he has wowed audiences from Dublin to Porto and Budapest to Melbourne with his unique humour and warm-hearted charisma. Pierre left La Bottine Souriante in 2008 to devote himself to his true love - De Temps Antan.
Diane Edwards has been exploring marquetry for over 20 years, creating original landscape art, using veneer as her palette. Her line of fine crafted boxes is highlighted with marquetry pictures and patterns and can be found in a number of galleries and stores. Contact Diane Edwards for any information or advance material requests. diane.mythago @ gmail.com
Brendan Emmett(Ireland) Born in Ballyfarnon, Co. Roscommon, Brendan Emmett is one of the finest mandolin/guitar players on the Irish music scene today. Much sought after for his studio work, he has recorded with such music greats as Ralph McTell, Frances Black, Maura O’Connell and Makem and Clancy. Brendan has also toured extensively with Christy Moore, Frances Black, The Woman’s Heart Tour, Eleanor Shanley and with his own band The Boys of Sligo. Musically Brendan’s playing covers a wide range of styles, from Irish Traditional to folk, blues and jazz.
Kimberley Fraser (Cape Breton) Kimberley Fraser was born on Cape Breton Island, and nurtured within its rich musical heritage. She first began to impress audiences at the age of three with her step-dancing talents. Soon after that she took up both the fiddle and the piano. Though still in her early 20s, Kimberley’s career is already a distinguished one. She has traveled the world, from Victoria to Afghanistan, and has released her second studio album, Falling on New Ground, which won the 2008 East Coast Music Award for best Roots/Traditional Album of the Year.
Seán Gavin (USA) Seán Gavin's ornate, driving style on flute and uilleann pipes clearly reflect his immersion in Irish music from a young age. Born in Detroit to Co. Clare fiddler Mick Gavin (an inductee to the Irish Traditional Music Hall of Fame), Seán received tutelage from Scariff flautist Leo MacNamara and the late piper Al Purcell—a student of Leo Rowsome. Though he’s the youngest member of Bua, Seán has toured throughout North American and Europe and is a seasoned performer.
Sheila Graziano (USA) Sheila has been performing and teaching Appalachian clogging for nearly three decades. Dedicated to traditional dance, she is passionate about “passing it on”. History and information about different dance styles are woven into her workshops, connecting the dots between Irish, English, Scottish, Welsh, Canadian and American styles of footwork. Sheila has been a dancer and choreographer for The Commonwealth Dance Collective, Crow?s Feet and The Crosstown Cloggers. She is the instructor and choreographer for Fiddlers ReStrung and the Saline Fiddlers, and teaches regularly in southeast Michigan.
Gráinne Hambly (Ireland) Gráinne Hambly from County Mayo is one of the leading harp teachers and performers of her generation. She is in great demand at summer schools and festivals both in Ireland and abroad, combining dazzling speed on dance tunes with graceful slow tunes. Gráinne has won senior All-Ireland titles on harp and concertina and the prestigious Keadue and Granard harp competitions, published two books of arrangements and recorded widely as a soloist and as a guest artist.
Steafan Hannigan (Ireland) Steafan Hannigan is the author of The Bodhran Book, The Bodhran DVD, and the Low Whistle Book, all best sellers. He is one of the most in-demand session players, and a founding member of Sin E as well as an extremely popular teacher. Throughout his illustrious career, Steafan has also worked with Band of Hope, Uriah Heep, Afro-Celt Sound System, Bill Jones, and Loreena McKennitt. He performs in a duo with his wife Saskia Tompkins.
Matt and Shannon Heaton (USA) Matt & Shannon Heaton’s music comes from a traditional aesthetic, a devotion to strong traditional bones, and a passion for reaching out to the modern world around them, blending Irish traditional music with original songs. They honed their craft in Irish music sessions in Chicago, Boston and through regular trips to Ireland, where they learned tunes with some of Clare's finest. Shannon is a virtuoso on the flute and whistle and Matt is an expert guitar and bouzouki player.
Jean Hewson (Newfoundland) Jean Hewson is one of the most talented balladeers singing and playing in Newfoundland today, and is well-known for her unique rhythm guitar arrangements. She is the accompanist of choice at local sessions and festivals, having developed her style backing up such notable Newfoundland fiddlers as Emile Benoit and Rufus Guinchard. She has one solo recording to her credit, and with Christina Smith has released albums such as ‘August Gale’ and ‘Like Ducks’ to critical acclaim.
Fiona Hunter (Scotland) A native of Glasgow, Fiona holds a BA in Scottish Music from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, where she studied with the renowned Scots singer Alison McMorland. Still only in her early twenties, she has performed extensively around the world, including at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC. Having developed a particular enthusiasm for the songs of Scottish Travellers, she has been working with members of the Perthshire-based Stewart family, learning her craft first-hand from the last tradition-bearers of this celebrated folksong dynasty. A highly gifted song interpreter with a distinctively strong, richly-hued voice, Fiona also brings her skills on cello to the Malinky line-up.
Alan Jabbour (USA) Alan Jabbour was born in 1942 in Jacksonville, Florida. A violinist by early training, he put himself through college at the University of Miami playing classical music. While a graduate student at Duke University in the 1960s, he began documenting oldtime fiddlers in the Upper South. Documentation turned to apprenticeship, and he relearned the fiddle in the style of the Upper South from musicians like Henry Reed of Glen Lyn, Virginia, and Tommy Jarrell of Toast, North Carolina. Alan has been Head of the Archive of Folk Song at the Library of Congress 1969-74, Director of the folk arts program at the National Endowment for the Arts 1974-76, and director of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress 1976-99.
Sharon Johnston (Ontario) Sharon Johnston is a dedicated teacher of the harp to adults and children and the director of the Huron Harp School. She has studied with Janet Harbison, Robin Huw Bowen, Grainne Hambly and other leading harp exponents. Sharon is a Level 2 Certified Teacher of the Irish Harp Centre.
Caroline Keane (Ireland) Caroline's musical career began with the tin whistle at the age of seven; after a brief stint with this, her ambitions soon spread to the concertina. Under the guidance of her then teacher Noel Hill, she developed proficiency in her art, receiving the Lán Mara award in 2006. She now regards her music as having a strong traditional base with occasional references to other genres including Classical, Jazz and East Clare. At present, while studying as an undergraduate for a BA in Irish Music and Dance at the University of Limerick, Caroline has already secured her TTCT Diploma in Irish music teaching.
Paddy Keenan (Ireland) Paddy Keenan was Ireland’s 2002 Traditional Musician. Paddy sprang to fame as a member of one of the most influential Irish groups, The Bothy Band, which forever changed the face of Irish traditional music, merging a driving rhythm section with traditional Irish tunes in ways that had never been heard before. Paddy’s virtuosity on the pipes combined with the ferocity of his playing made him, in the opinion of many, its driving force. Paddy's flowing, open-fingered style of playing can be traced directly from the style of the great Travelling pipers.
Nuala Kennedy (Ireland) Based in her adopted homeland of Scotland, Irish traditional singer and flautist Nuala Kennedy performs a range of material from across the Irish and Scottish traditional music repertoires. She also composes her own idiosyncratic brand of traditional music and tours in a variety of lineups from duo and quartet to a nine-piece festival band. Her debut solo album ‘The New Shoes’, released on Compass Records, was warmly received around the world.
Emory Lester (USA) The power and attack of his mandolin playing are unmatched, and his sound is infectious, placing him among the elite mandolinists of our time. He has long been an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, and has performed with many jazz groups as a violinist, and with several new age ensembles playing a variety of instruments. “Amazing technique this guy has. He plays some of the hottest, cleanest, blazingest mandolin I've ever heard” - Mike Marshall.
Tom McFarland (Scotland) Tom comes from Belfast where he started studying drums as a teenager and played with garage bands. Later he guested with blues and pop bands before starting to concentrate on "hand drums". His interest in percussion stretches to instruments from all over the world - in his live work he plays, among others, the African Djembé, Latin American congas, bongos, various shakers, bodhrán and drum kit. Tom is currently touring with the Fil Campbell Band.
Brian McNeill (Scotland) A founder of the acclaimed Battlefield Band, Brian plays fiddle, viola, mandolin, cittern, bouzouki, guitar, concertina, bass and hurdy-gurdy. The importance of his songwriting, mostly about Scotland's past and future, has long been recognized and he is a published novelist. Brian toured with Clan Alba and with Martin Hayes and Natalie MacMaster in the highly rated Celtic Fiddle Festival series. His audio-visual show about Scottish emigration to America, ‘The Back O' The North Wind’ has won critical acclaim.
Malinky (Scotland) With their stunning fourth album ‘Flower & Iron’, Malinky celebrate their tenth anniversary and introduce a newly revamped line-up, meanwhile underscoring their reputation as one of Scotland’s most distinctive and accomplished folk bands. While retaining their hallmark song-based repertoire, performed by two superb lead vocalists and arrayed with tastefully inventive instrumentation, Malinky today unite seasoned maturity with sparkling freshness, casting their musical net wider than ever.
Darrell Markewitz combines over 25 years experience in the forge with extensive museum work and a background in fine arts. As 'the Wareham Forge', he specializes in "historic reproductions in metals". Visit www.warehamforge.ca for more information.
Ruth McLean learned to spin while living with an old shepherd in Scotland caring for sheep and gathering plants to dye wool. She studied art at University of Guelph and Lambton College in Sarnia and spinning at Georgian College in Owen Sound. Ruth has been making Earth and Spirit dolls for twenty years.
Karen Melady is a community artist and teacher. She began working with lanterns in Vancouver with Public Dreams Performance Society. Since her return to Goderich she has been making lanterns and teaching lantern making for ten years. She is co founder of the community arts collective Worth Their Salt.
Brian Miller (USA) Brian Miller comes from Minneapolis, Minnesota where transplanted Irish music luminaries Paddy O’Brien and Dáithí Sproule have loomed large in his musical life. His tune backing and song accompaniments have earned him a strong reputation as one of the best guitarists on the scene today. As Irish music critic Earle Hitchner put it: “the backing of Miller on guitar flexes not just muscle but a fully complementary style.” Brian is part of the Doon Céilí Band and Bua.
Jackie Moran (USA) Born in Thurles, Co. Tipperary, Jackie has toured with such renowned names as Riverdance, the Trinitiy Irish Dance Company, the Drovers and Ensemble Galilei and he has recorded with many of today’s greatest traditional Irish musicians. In addition to Bua he currently performs with Belgian-based Irish quartet, Comas. Known for his vibrant and articulate drumming, Moran is key to Bua’s dynamic rhythm section. Jackie is also a fine Irish tenor banjo player.
Maureen Mulvey (Ireland) Maureen Mulvey is one of our original and most popular teachers. Maureen has extensive experience as a dance instructor, including leading the dancing at several North American Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann conventions. Maureen was the 2007 Winner of the Ernie King Tradition Bearer Award (from our Celtic Festival). Maureen is a tireless dynamo and a people person who makes dancing approachable and fun.
Cillian O’Dalaigh (Ireland) Cillian O'Dálaigh (guitar, flute, whistles) has been surrounded by Irish music from day one. Cillian's father played with Irish band Cromlach and taught his son all he knew about Irish music when they lived in Germany. The family moved to Ireland when Cillian was 8 years of age and Irish music quickly became a major part of their family life. Cillian has recently graduated with a BA in Irish Music and Dance from the University of Limerick and is a member of The Outside Track.
Brían Ó hAirt (USA) Brían Ó hAirt is the youngest and only American to become a champion All-Ireland singer. A voice Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh of Danú hails as “beautiful…sweet and full of sensitivity,” his singing has been featured on radio programs in Ireland and the U.S. Brían’s dedication to Irish Gaelic song and the sean-nós style has bonded him to the close-knit singing communities of Conamara and has led him to become an adept singer of Scots Gaelic song as well. Brian is also a skilled teacher of sean-nos dance.
The Once (Newfoundland) The Once is a trio of young folk musicians, building on the traditions of their native Newfoundland, comprised of Geraldine Hollett from Burin, Phil Churchill from Corner Brook and Andrew Dale from Coley's Point.The trio first met in the summer of 2005 while working with the Rising Tide Theatre Company in Trinity. There they discovered a mutual appreciation for folk/traditional music, particularly for the music of their native province and the British Isles. Superb musicianship, clever arrangements and stunning harmonies make The Once a fresh and exciting new group whose rise will be worth watching.
Patrick Ourceau (Ireland) Patrick Ourceau is a legend in Ireland, the United States and Canada as one of the masters of East Clare and Galway fiddle. Patrick was influenced by Paddy Canny and Peter O’Loughlin as well as the great musicians living in New York City, particularly Woodford flute player Jack Coen. A tremendous teacher as well as a performer, Patrick has performed widely in various duos and trios with some of the best known Irish musicians on both sides of the Atlantic.
Gareth Pearson (Wales) Gareth is an acoustic guitarist and composer from Cwmbran, South Wales He has performed at festivals and concerts worldwide and was personally invited to the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society in Nashville by Tommy Emmanuel and by Southside Johnny to perform at their annual New Years Eve concert in New Jersey at the tender age of 17. Gareth has a formidable string of concerts and guitar festivals behind him including The Montreal Jazz Festival and regularly conducts guitar workshops when appearing at festivals.
Ken Perlman (USA) Ken is both a pioneer of the 5-string banjo style known as "melodic clawhammer," and a master of fingerstyle guitar. He is considered one of the top clawhammer players in the world, known in particular for his skillful adaptations of Celtic tunes to the style. On guitar, Ken's sparkling finger-picked renditions of traditional Celtic and Southern fiddle tunes are simply not to be missed. He draws his material from traditional sources -- the music of Scotland, Ireland, Cape Breton, Prince Edward Island and the American South.
Janine Randall (Cape Breton) Janine Randall comes from a well-known musical family and was step-dancing publicly at the age of three and playing piano by eight. In 1996, Janine founded the Ceilidh Trail School of Celtic Music in Inverness, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Janine has performed, taught, and presented scholarly papers at many prestigious events, including the North Atlantic Fiddle Convention at Elphinstone University in Aberdeen, Scotland; Montana State Fiddle Camp; Yukon Scottish Festival; Cape Cod Celtic Festival; Boston Harbor Scottish Fiddle School, and the recent North Atlantic Fiddle Convention at Memorial University in St. John’s.
Mairi Rankin (Cape Breton) Mairi Rankin has developed her own unique style amidst a rich musical culture. Mairi has toured nationally and internationally as a performer and educator in both fiddle and step dance as a soloist and with Cape Breton super group Beolach. She has performed with the Rankin Sisters, Unusual Suspects and Bruce Guthro and appeared on the television broadcasts of DRUM!, the East Coast Music Awards, Rita MacNeil’s Christmas special and MNE’s Togaidh Sinn Fonn in Scotland.
David Rankine (Ontario) David brings 30 years of experience in art, music and education to his unique workshops in Celtic Art, Design, Calligraphy, book making, mandalas, Sacred Geometry and manuscript illumination. As a musician, David draws heavily from such diverse influences as Applachian folk, Indo-Perisan, Classic Rock, Progressive Rock and also from a background in Scots and Irish folk music(bagpipes), David's original compositions engage the listener in a way that asks the listener to become part of the music- music that provides a co-creative healing space.
Norah Rendell (British Columbia) Norah Rendell (vocals, flute) from Vancouver was nominated for Traditional Singer of the Year at the 2008 Canadian Folk Music Awards. Also an accomplished Irish flute player, Norah plays flute in the Doon Ceili Band with accordion legend Paddy O’Brien. She is also a driving force in the international young band, The Outside Track. A fine singer, Norah is also the band’s vocal arranger and has a wide experience in teaching vocal harmony. She is a graduate in Irish Music and Dance from the University of Limerick.
Jason Roach (Cape Breton) Jason Roach was born and raised in Cheticamp, Nova Scotia. He began playing the keys at the young age of five and was introduced to the Celtic style at thirteen. Today, he is an enthusiastic twenty-five year old with a Bachelor of Music degree from St. Francis Xavier University. He has performed in public since 1997, including many piano solos and sharing the stage with a variety of instrumentalists. His own recording was produced at Lakewind Sounds this year. More recently Jason was featured on Dawn and Margie Beaton's "A Taste Of Gaelic".
Ailie Robertson (Scotland) Ailie Robertson is a composer, arranger, teacher, improviser and harp virtuoso. “Her synthesis of Irish, Scottish and contemporary harping technique into an individual style represents the realization of otherwise unimagined possibilities for the Celtic harp” (Niall Keegan, 2006). A 5-time National Mod Gold Medalist, she was also a finalist in the BBC Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year 2008, 1st prizewinner at the inaugural London Harp Competition, and best overall musician at the Edinburgh Competition Festival.
Brenda Roy is a goldsmith and award-winning jewellery designer whose work and is available in galleries across the province. Her creative use of design motifs and shapes allows her work to be both original and yet still retain an aura of ancient artifacts.
Christina Smith (Newfoundland) Christina Smith is a classically trained cellist with a degree in music, and is a master of several instruments in a variety of styles, but is best known for her work as a Newfoundland fiddler. She has performed in Canada, Japan, England, Ireland, Mexico, and the U.S.A. She and Jim Payne also represented Newfoundland at the Canadian Pavilion at Expo ‘92 in Seville, Spain. Christina’s compositions and arrangements can be heard on several award wining CBC radio documentaries, short films and videos. In demand as a session player in her hometown of St. John’s, she has backed up Newfoundland’s best known musicians, including Emile Benoit, Buddy Wassisname, the Irish Descendants, Jean Hewson, Jim Payne, Fergus O’Byrne, Ron Hynes and others.
Brian Taheny (Ireland) A major influence on Irish accompaniment style, originally from County Sligo, Brian Taheny plays every stringed instrument imaginable. Whether backing legendary piper Paddy Keenan, or as a member of Banjo Special, or playing a mandolin duet with Andrew Collins, “…there are a few musicians who grab you by the scruff of the neck and make you listen. Brian Taheny had exactly that effect on me (and not just on the mandolin!) when I first heard him.” Simon Mayor
Travis Teed (Ontario) Travis Teed is in charge of side stages at the Celtic Roots Festival, a sound engineer at local recording studios and an accomplished musician and singer. High energy and ears of gold combined with a love for people and music make Travis a dream sound teacher. Travis is a natural born teacher who makes understanding sound easy.
Laura Travis, an art teacher and avid carver of many years, holds an MFA in Sculpture from the Maryland Institute, College of Art, in Baltimore. She maintains her studio on Providence, RI. She is inspired by Celtic traditions which she has studied extensively for more than twenty years.
Mike Vass (Scotland) Widely regarded as one of Scotland’s finest young fiddlers, Mike hails from Nairn, in Scotland’s tradition-rich north-east. A runner-up in the 2007 BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year competition, Mike was subsequently invited to tour with the 2008 finalists as an accompanist. An avid composer of tunes, in 2008 he won the inaugural International Niel Gow Fiddle Composition competition, with his tune 'Cavers of Kirkcudbright', featured on Malinky's 'Flower and Iron' album. Mike is also a highly experienced tutor, having led numerous workshops for the Fèis movement in the Highlands, and continues to teach at the Scots Music Group and Pilrig Fiddlers in Edinburgh, as well as the Get Reel traditional music project in Stirlingshire. He now leads the Midlothian Ceilidh Trail project.
Janet Whittam has been a weaver for 35 years and a basket maker for 20 years. Her workshops are full of learning possibilities and are fun and innovative. Moving studio to southern Alabama for the winter has influenced her work with new materials and inspirations. Potential students can email Janet at
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to discuss any special needs or desired projects.
Brigitte Wolf has been working in glass for over 20 years in her studio Reflections Glass Studio near Lucknow, Ontario. She is a member of the Glass Artists Association of Canada. Her work is available in various galleries throughout Ontario. Contact her by email:
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or by phone 519-529-7007 if you have any questions about the course. Website: www.reflectionsglass.ca
Dave Wood (England) From Grindleford in Derbyshire, Dave is regarded as one of the leading guitarists on the folk scene today due to his innovative, rhythmical accompaniment style. A graduate of the Folk Music Degree course at Newcastle University, Dave played for several years with acclaimed young band CrossCurrent before joining Malinky in the autumn of 2007. Dave has also performed alongside Shetland fiddle star Catriona MacDonald, Claire Mann and Brian Conway, to name but a few. He is also a regular touring partner with celebrated Northumbrian musician Tom McConville. Dave is also a popular workshop leader and guitar tutor who specialises in guitar accompaniment for standard tuning.
