Review of Duncan Chisholm, Iain Macfarlane and Marc Clements
Item Posted: Friday 14th May , 2004
The news that Duncan Chisholm, Iain Macfarlane and Marc Clements were putting on a gig at Lochgoilhead drew afficionados from Glasgow and London, as well as the local area.
This was a rare chance to hear these three masters, more commonly at home these days in the great concert halls and major tour venues of the cities, in the intimate surroundings of a small village hall. The lads themselves were a little bemused at their warm personal welcome, but it was what they had been looking for. All three play, or have played, with supergroups like Blazin’ Fiddles and Wolfstone, but they decided to tour as a threesome to get back to their roots, and to play their music more informally and with more intimate audience contact.
Duncan and Iain are both ex pupils of the great fiddler, Donald Riddell. Duncan’s fiddling skills are legendary, as a worldwide performer. As Living Tradition magazine commented he is “the future of the Scottish fiddle, true to his roots, but hungry for discovery.”
Iain’s primary influence was his father, whose first instrument was the pipes, but who also instilled in his son a love of the fiddle from an early age. As a result Iain can dazzle on three instruments-the fiddle, the flute and the accordion, reflecting the all-round instrumental ease of one who has grown up in Glenfinnan, steeped in traditional music culture, then able to profit from RSAMD’s course in Traditional Music. Iain Macfarlane is a formidable fiddler, and seems to have played with just about every well known band on the Scottish scene. He owes his popularity not just to his wonderful instrumental ability but to his genial personality: like Phil Cunningham or the early Billy Connolly, he is also a naturally funny raconteur. The audience loved his Sean Connery story…which you will have to hear for yourselves.
Marc Clements has developed a distinctive guitar style, but like all outstanding guitarists in traditional music, effaces his own great abilities to complement the many star fiddlers who want him to accompany them. He has some of the most accomplished and inventive backing to traditional music that I have ever heard. What I didn’t know until Sunday 9th was that Marc also sings. In the relaxed, session-like performance, Marc sang songs mostly from the North American tradition, songs of dispossession and loss of traditional land and industries like fishing:
“These tunes seem to me to have an immediate relevance to our own history of land clearance, and to the savage attack on our fishing fleets that is going on”, said Marc. The Lochgoilhead audience listened intently, for these songs were moving, and they added something different to an otherwise very Scottish approach to traditional music.
The three performers sat on stage laughing and yarning, “doing turns”, and it was all very reminiscent of the best type of session. Duncan, who is known equally for his driving and upbeat renditions of the fast stuff as well as for his contemplative and distinctive style in slow airs, delighted everyone with his passionately gentle rendition of Phil Cunningham’s “The Gentle Light That Wakes Me”, an air which will live forever, but has not yet, as far as I am aware, been recorded –Phil and Duncan, we are waiting! Duncan is considered by many to be one of the greatest fiddlers in the world today-lucky Loch Goil to have the chance of hearing him.
All three joined in a Gaelic song, and we would have liked to hear more of these. It is not often in this area that we get the chance to hear Gaelic song performed on stage, particularly by men, so it is all the more welcome.
Duncan, Iain and Marc, although still young men, have been to the fore as performers for an astonishingly long time now, and are all greatly supportive of the vibrant younger generation who are poised to take the world by storm. They are known as generous and inspirational teachers, and we are lucky that all three love Scotland and choose to live here and share their talents with us. Part of their reason for joining us for the day was to raise money for, and publicise, a tour that the Workshop has co-ordinated. As Duncan Chisholm said : “ The future of traditional music will depend on the enthusiasm of workshops such as yours in giving the next generation the opportunity to play and listen to the music.”
The tour, with Anna Wendy Stevenson on fiddle and James Ross on piano, is also being backed by ScottishPower, Loch Fyne Oysters and Live Music Now!
The week long tour will be giving free concerts to local primary schools, a free concert for the elderly in Dunoon, free come and try fiddle sessions at the Loch Fyne Food Fair. There will also be public concerts – do please try to come along!
Wednesday 26th May 7.30 p.m. Kirn Parish Church Centre
Friday 28th May 7.30 p.m. Ardrishaig Public Halls
Saturday 29th May 6.00 p.m. Loch Fyne Food Fair
Sunday 30th May 2.00 p.m. Loch Fyne Food Fair
Tuesday 1st June 7.30 p.m. Glendaruel Village Hall
Linda Morpurgo
Duncan Chisholm, Iain Macfarlane and Marc Clements
The news that Duncan Chisholm, Iain Macfarlane and Marc Clements were putting on a gig at Lochgoilhead drew afficionados from Glasgow and London.
This was a rare chance to hear these three masters, more commonly at home these days in the great concert halls and major tour venues of the cities, in the intimate surroundings of a small village hall. The lads themselves were a little bemused at their warm personal welcome, but it was what they had been looking for. All three play, or have played, with supergroups like Blazin’ Fiddles or, in Duncan’s case, Wolfstone, but they decided to tour as a threesome to get back to their roots, and to play their music more informally and with greater audience contact.
Duncan and Iain are both ex pupils of the great fiddler, Donald Riddell, with Iain’s primary influence being his father, whose primary instrument was the pipes, but who also instilled in his son a love of the fiddle from an early age. As a result Iain can dazzle on three instruments-the fiddle, the flute and the accordion, reflecting the all-round instrumental ease of one who has grown up in his native Glenfinnan steeped in traditional music culture, then able to profit from RSAMD’s course in Traditional Music. Iain Macfarlane is also a famous and formidable fiddler, and has played with just about every well known band on the Scottish scene, or so it appears. He owes his popularity not just to his wonderful instrumental ability but to his genial personality: like Phil Cunningham or the early Billy Connolly, he is also a naturally funny raconteur. The audience loved his Sean Connery story…which you will have o hear for yourselves.
Marc Clements has developed a distinctive guitar style, but like all outstanding guitarists in traditional music, effaces his own great abilities to complement the many star fiddlers who want him to accompany them. What I didn’t know until Sunday 9th was that Marc also sings. In the relaxed, session-like performance, Marc sang songs mostly from the North American tradition, songs of dispossession and loss of traditional land and industries like fishing:
“These tunes seem to me to have an immediate relevance to our own history of land clearance, and to the savage attack on our fishing fleets that is going on”, said Marc. The Lochgoilhead audience listened intently, for these songs were moving, and they added something different to an otherwise very Scottish approach to traditional music.
The three performers sat on stage laughing and yarning, “doing turns”, and it was all very reminiscent of the best type of session. Duncan, who is known equally for his driving and upbeat renditions of the fast stuff as well as for his contemplative and distinctive style in slow airs, delighted everyone with his passionately gentle rendition of Phil Cunningham’s “The Gentle Light That Wakes Me”, an air which will live forever, but has not yet, as far as I am aware, been recorded on cd-Phil, we are waiting! Duncan himself is considered by many to be one of the greatest fiddlers in the world today-lucky Loch Goil to have the chance of hearing him.
All three joined in a Gaelic song, and I, for one, would have liked to hear more of these. It is not often in this area that we get the chance to hear Gaelic song performed on stage, particularly by men, so it is all the more welcome.
Duncan, Iain and Marc, although still young men, have been to the fore as performers for an astonishingly long time now, and are all greatly supportive of the vibrant younger generation who are poised to take the world by storm. They are known as generous and inspirational teachers, and we are lucky that all three love Scotland and choose to live here and share their talents with us.