Post by Admin on Dec 11, 2020 17:04:01 GMT
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A weekly two minute catch-up for members from the
TMF Director's desk
These are some of the things that have caught my attention this week.
Well done to the Scots Fiddle Festival and Seall's Small Halls Festival in Skye for keeping the flag flying this week. This was the Fiddle Festival's 25th year and the retrospective film they produced, narrated by Bruce MacGregor, is a joy. Small Halls runs till tomorrow (28th)/
Stonehaven Folk Club was also busy last weekend, and raised a magnificent £1867 for its Folk in Crisis Fund with the Stoney Song-a-Thon featuring a host of weel-kent singers. As money is slow to come from the likes of the official Freelancers Hardship Fund this and the Paddy Bort Fund are providing essential support.
Planning for Make Music Day 2021 is already under way. Inspired by the Fête de la Musique in France and held on 21 June every year, the day is a chance to celebrate music of every kind. It's in my mind to attempt to co-ordinate something for next year across the TMF. Just a vague idea at the moment...
The BBC and Creative Scotland have launched a fund for D/deaf, neurodivergent and disabled professional artists who will be invited to apply to produce new video or audio works. The fund aims to commission ten new works, with support from digital production specialists.
I've been collecting short testimonials from musicians this week, having asked people to send a 50 word statement about their experiences over the past eight (!) months. Various politicians have been asking so they'll be sent to the Parliament's Culture Committee and give a personal insight into just how hard it's been for many. Please pass on the word and keep them coming in.
Sorry to hear that Box and Fiddle magazine is going into cold storage until things start up again. Its reappearance will hopefully be a welcome sign that things are beginning to return to normal again.
The English Folk Expo's Folk Talk event this week had much that is useful, not least a talk about the prospects for touring in the EU after December 31st (five weeks away!) There is still a worrying lack of detail, but agents Ian Smith and Mark Ringwood have put together this excellent website with information about the details of tax, visas, carnets and all the rest of the things that we never used to have to worry about before 'taking back control'.
Someone who knows more about European touring than most is former Battlefield Band man, Alan Reid. Alan has made a 30 minute video which will go live on December 4, as part of Acoustic Music at the Meeting Place, a series that usually takes place in Rutherglen. The video will raise money for local food banks. Donations here.
Danny Kilbride, my counterpart from trac Cymru, the Welsh folk development agency, emails with a link to a video of Avanc, (Ensemble Gwerin Ieuenctid Cymru - the Youth Folk Ensemble of Wales). That word 'ensemble' in the Welsh title reminds me of the late, much missed Ishbel MacAskill in a 'discussion' about the number of borrowed words in Gaelic. 'So what's the Gaelic for 'spaghetti' then?', was the jeer. Ishbel gathered herself up as only she could and demanded, 'And what's the English for spaghetti?!'
Which is as good an excuse as any for this Desert Island Disc.
All the best
DF
David Francis is Director of the Traditional Music Forum
Copyright © 2020 Traditional Music Forum, All rights reserved.
A weekly two minute catch-up for members from the
TMF Director's desk
These are some of the things that have caught my attention this week.
Well done to the Scots Fiddle Festival and Seall's Small Halls Festival in Skye for keeping the flag flying this week. This was the Fiddle Festival's 25th year and the retrospective film they produced, narrated by Bruce MacGregor, is a joy. Small Halls runs till tomorrow (28th)/
Stonehaven Folk Club was also busy last weekend, and raised a magnificent £1867 for its Folk in Crisis Fund with the Stoney Song-a-Thon featuring a host of weel-kent singers. As money is slow to come from the likes of the official Freelancers Hardship Fund this and the Paddy Bort Fund are providing essential support.
Planning for Make Music Day 2021 is already under way. Inspired by the Fête de la Musique in France and held on 21 June every year, the day is a chance to celebrate music of every kind. It's in my mind to attempt to co-ordinate something for next year across the TMF. Just a vague idea at the moment...
The BBC and Creative Scotland have launched a fund for D/deaf, neurodivergent and disabled professional artists who will be invited to apply to produce new video or audio works. The fund aims to commission ten new works, with support from digital production specialists.
I've been collecting short testimonials from musicians this week, having asked people to send a 50 word statement about their experiences over the past eight (!) months. Various politicians have been asking so they'll be sent to the Parliament's Culture Committee and give a personal insight into just how hard it's been for many. Please pass on the word and keep them coming in.
Sorry to hear that Box and Fiddle magazine is going into cold storage until things start up again. Its reappearance will hopefully be a welcome sign that things are beginning to return to normal again.
The English Folk Expo's Folk Talk event this week had much that is useful, not least a talk about the prospects for touring in the EU after December 31st (five weeks away!) There is still a worrying lack of detail, but agents Ian Smith and Mark Ringwood have put together this excellent website with information about the details of tax, visas, carnets and all the rest of the things that we never used to have to worry about before 'taking back control'.
Someone who knows more about European touring than most is former Battlefield Band man, Alan Reid. Alan has made a 30 minute video which will go live on December 4, as part of Acoustic Music at the Meeting Place, a series that usually takes place in Rutherglen. The video will raise money for local food banks. Donations here.
Danny Kilbride, my counterpart from trac Cymru, the Welsh folk development agency, emails with a link to a video of Avanc, (Ensemble Gwerin Ieuenctid Cymru - the Youth Folk Ensemble of Wales). That word 'ensemble' in the Welsh title reminds me of the late, much missed Ishbel MacAskill in a 'discussion' about the number of borrowed words in Gaelic. 'So what's the Gaelic for 'spaghetti' then?', was the jeer. Ishbel gathered herself up as only she could and demanded, 'And what's the English for spaghetti?!'
Which is as good an excuse as any for this Desert Island Disc.
All the best
DF
David Francis is Director of the Traditional Music Forum
Copyright © 2020 Traditional Music Forum, All rights reserved.