Mackintosh at Murthly

Mackintosh at Murthly by Pete Clark. This CD is as good as Pete Clark's Even Now which features the music of the Gows, and arguably more important, because Robert Mackintosh (1745-1807) is a less well-known figure than the Gows were. He was born in Tulliemet and had one of one of those crossover careers that were possible at the great time of the Scots Enlightenment, when Edinburgh was a hub of philosphy, science, the arts and culture, with Burns, David Hume and Scott among the great figures. Red Rob Mackintosh wrote gavottes, minuets and airs, drawing room music, with as much facility and skill as he wrote reels, strathspeys and jigs, though for me his Scots tunes have greater character and distinction. On this CD, both sides of his composition are well represented. The performers are highly skilled, their playing is stylish and the recording is excellent, as is the presentation of the CD. It was recorded at Murthly Castle in Perthshire. It is also, at 70 minutes, rather more generously filled than some Scots fiddle CDs are. One touching little point, the final tune, The Last Pint of Ale, in reality a reel, is played slowly and rather wistfully by Pete Clark on the viola as a tribute to the maker of his viola, Duncan MacDonald from the Isle of Eigg, who died in the year this CD was made. Mackintosh at Murthly.

Perthshire Amber

Perthshire Amber. This album provides an excellent mix of traditional Scottish folk, contemporary rhythms and orchestral arrangements. First Movement, Perthshire Amber, Second Movement, Crannog, Castle Menzies, Third Movement, The Fair City, Fourth Movement,Rannoch, The Butterstone Puddock, Castle, 5. S. Mr. & Mrs. MacLean of Snaigow, 6. Search, 7. Kaimes, 8. Enhanced Track. Perthshire Amber. Perthshire Music.

Anna-Wendy Stevenson

Between the ages of ten and eighteen, Anna-Wendy Stevenson went every weekend to visit her grandfather, the pianist, composer and music scholar, Ronald Stevenson. She took her violin and every weekend they played together.

On a sunny Sunday afternoon in March 2005, nearly twenty-five years after the start of that special relationship, it finally bore fruit in a recital at the Dunkeld Hilton on the banks of the Tay, as part of Pete Clark’s second Niel Gow Festival.

For an enchanting and intimate hour, the audience eavesdropped on a grandfather and granddaughter playing through a well-loved repertoire together – an event possibly unprecedented since the time of Bach, as Ronald joked.

The theme was the Scots tradition of song, poetry and tune, a major source of inspiration for Ronald Stevenson throughout his long career, and one to which Anna-Wendy returned eight years ago after swapping her early career as a classical pianist for that of traditional fiddle player.

From the music of Gow himself and his near contemporary Robert MacIntosh, through the folksongs of South Uist, to the poetry of Hugh MacDiarmid (Ae Gowden Lyric), Ronald’s arrangements and original compositions were alternately humorous and playful, impassioned and lyrical. These moods were perfectly echoed by Anna-Wendy’s beautifully articulated and sensitive playing.

The South Uist Folksong Suite which Ronald dedicated to Margaret Fay Shaw, the folklorist and song collector who died only last year, was particularly entertaining. Describing themes from island life such as spinning, waulking (preparing the wool) and witching the cows for milking, his whimsical accompaniments were constructed entirely from phrases of the melody played out of sequence to give the pieces an almost Escher-like sense of perspective.

He also gave a solo recital of Grieg’s , to show how at any time traditional tunes and songs can make their way into the most sophisticated contemporary compositions. Here the accompanist became the virtuoso and we were given a brief glimpse of the full breadth and power of Ronald’s playing.

At the piano Ronald beamed and twinkled with pride as Anna-Wendy coaxed ripples of magic from her fiddle, and directly across the river on the opposite bank, the ghost of Gow doubtless shed a silent tear beneath his favourite tree. Anna-Wendy Stevenson. Perthshire Music.