Ross-shire talent shines bright as nominations for annual awards celebrating Scotland's traditional music culture open; MG Alba Scots Trad Music Awards reflect creativity during coronavirus crisis
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Voting has opened for nominees in the annual MG Alba Scots Trad Music Awards which recognise excellence within Scotland's traditional musical culture – and once again there's plenty of Ross-shire interest.
They include Anna Massie - Black Isle Correspondent for Trad Music in the Media and Fèis Rois Adult Feis Weekend Online for Event of the Year Award.
Ms Massie's entertaining glimpse of life in lockdown and beyond, interspersed with impromptu tunes, has built a growing following online.
She even used a period of quarantine in Glasgow to turn human jukebox, streaming a live performance every day of a wide variety of genre-hopping songs that fitted the theme.
She has also featured in MacGregor’s Live at Five – livestreamed music sessions from MacGregor's bar in Academy Street, Inverness – is among those nominated for the Community Music Project of the Year.
And she's also nominated in the Musician of the Year, a category sponsored by the University of the Highlands and Islands.
Other nominations in the 12 categories include Duncan Chisholm’s Covid Ceilidh for Online Performance of 2020.
The winners will announced on Na Trads 2020 to be broadcast on BBC Alba on December 12 at 9pm. It will also feature specially recorded music performances.
Murdo MacSween, communications manager at MG Alba, said his organisation was proud to be be the title sponsor in what has been an especially testing year.
"We’ve seen fantastic collaborations and innovation - all reaching audiences in ever unique and inspiring ways," he said.
"These awards give us an opportunity to recognise and celebrate the creative pioneers and incredible wealth of talent we have in Scotland, and we’re delighted to be able to join with Hands Up for Trad to enable this once more."
Encompassing all aspects of making and playing from composing, Gaelic song, folk and Scottish dance music to pipe bands and a host of others in between, each year sees a lively and enthusiastic crowd enjoying some of the biggest names as the industry and audiences join to honour singers, instrumentalists, composers and songwriters, and this year sees the awards, in a different format broadcast on BBC Alba.
Margaret Cameron, commissioning editor and head of creative collaborations, said: "It was important to BBC Alba to keep faith with the event and to find a safe, innovative and engaging way to reflect on the incredible fortitude and creativity of the sector, both behind and in front of the camera."
The University of the Highlands and Islands said it was delighted to continue to support the Musician of the Year award, in what had been an incredibly challenging year for the musical and wider artistic community.
Anna-Wendy Stevenson, programme leader in the university's BA (Hons) Applied Music course, said: "It is more important than ever to celebrate the contribution and positive impact our musicians have on our wellbeing, culture, communities and economy.
"It has been incredible to witness the adaptability and resilience of many musicians, skillsets we actively impart to our students, and we value the role of this event MG Alba Scots Traditional Music Awards, in bringing together organisations across music in Scotland to support the development of and recognise the work and talent of our musicians."
The nominations are:
Music Tutor of the Year sponsored by Creative Scotland’s Youth Music Initiative:
Rua MacMillan
Rachel Hair
Josie Duncan
Lauren MacColl
Corrina Hewat
Laura Beth Salter
Louise Mackenzie
Gaelic Singer of the Year sponsored by The Highland Society of London:
Fionnag NicChoinnich (Fiona MacKenzie)
Joy Dunlop
Rachel Walker
Raymond Bremner
Album of The Year sponsored by Birnam CD:
All Is Not Forgotten by Siobhan Miller
Banjaxed by Ciaran Ryan
Bayview by Project Smoke
Eye of the Storm by Tide Lines
Light My Byre by Peat and Diesel
Shhh I’m on the phone by Innes Watson
Steall by Ewen Henderson
The Ledger by Gillian Frame, Findlay Napier and Mike Vass
The Roke by Ross Miller
The Woods by Hamish Napier
Up and Coming artist of the Year sponsored by Royal Conservatoire of Scotland:
Benedict Morris
Rebecca Hill
Malin Lewis
Avocet
Community Music Project of the Year sponsored by Greentrax Recordings:
Campbell’s Ceilidh
Tunes in the Hoose
MacGregor’s Live at Five
Hands Up for Trad Strathspey and Reel Society
Joy Dunlop’s Covid Choir
Carry On Streamin
Comhairle Cèilidhs (Comhairle nan Eilean Siar)
Event of the Year Award sponsored by VisitScotland:
365 stories + Music (Aidan O'Rourke and James Robertson)
Virtual Edinburgh International Harp Festival
Fèis Rois Adult Feis Weekend Online
Tional Gaelic Online Music Festival
BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician Award 20th Anniversary Concert (Celtic Connections)
Coastal Connections (Celtic Connections)
Citty Finlayson Scots Singer of the Year sponsored by Traditional Music and Song Association (TMSA):
Siobhan Miller
Claire Hastings
Adam Holmes
Allan and Rosemary McMillan
Trad Video of the Year, sponsored by Threads of Sound
Erica’s by Balter
Calum Dan's Transit Van by Peat and Diesel
Deep Dark Beast by Twelfth Day
Moorlough Shore by ELIR
Ceòl Mòr Style by Calum MacCrimmon
Taste the Rain by Tide Lines Choir
Online Performance of 2020 sponsored by Gordon Duncan Memorial Trust:
Sandy on Sunday Show (Sandy Brechin)
Live from The Lounge with Paul Anderson and Shona Donaldson
Pete Clark from the shed
Tide Lines Virtual World Tour
Skerryvore Live Across The World
Duncan Chisholm’s Covid Ceilidh
Lomond Ceilidh Band’s The Daily Ceilidh
Original Work of the Year sponsored by PRS for Music:
'The Woods by Hamish Napier'
Everyday Hero by Skerryvore
Graham Rorie - The Orcadians of Hudson Bay
Rachel Newton - To the Awe
Camhanaich (Dawn) by Mhairi Hall
Trad Music in the Media sponsored by Sabhal Mòr Ostaig:
Marie Martin - Box and Fiddle Magazine
Ewan Galloway and Derek Hamilton - RadioGH
Fiona McNeill - Celtic & Folk Fusions Radio Show
Sruth na Maoile (BBC Radio nan Gàidheal and RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta)
Anna Massie - Black Isle Correspondent
Musician of the Year sponsored by the University of the Highlands and Islands:
Tim Edey
Peter Wood
Anna Massie
Jenn Butterworth
Ailie Robertson
John Carmichael
To vote, go to projects.handsupfortrad.scot/scotstradmusicawards
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