Hinterlands and Confusions

Hinterlands, so we are confused, what is going on?

Regrets over what might have been or could have been here in Scotland. Our voices lost. I read of our great poets and philosophers – from Dunbar, Duns Scotus, Buchanan, Allan Ramsey, Hugh MacDiarmid, and of course our national bard Rabbie Burns. The great Scots songbooks: rediscovered, reframed and renewed, and given a fresh and memorable voice. So many voices calling on the vibrant, challenging Scottish winds – that blow wildly on our rugged coastlines and empty shores and islands. 

 

I visited the small coastal town of Montrose: birthplace of the Scottish renaissance 1930s. And then onto Arbroath Abbey and the stories of the return of the Stone of Destiny here. 

The folk singers and folk musicians, play their melodies and lively jigs and reels at the folk festivals and folk clubs. Looking back and building on and also taking the song forwards. Its crucial to have a hinterland – it’s the strong foundations, clarity, visions, 

Great artists instinctively know this.

 

At the Edinburgh book festival I hear many confused voices over the years I’ve attended. Debate and diverse voices are encouraged to broaden our outlooks. There can be controversy alongside a fear too. A fear of upsetting the voices of unionism. Guardian Sathnam Sanghera spoke of empire land; Kezia Dugdale recognised that Scotland is stuck; Lesley Riddick spoke of Scandinavia and better local governing; Irvine Welsh spoke of his personal journeys and successes and his dislike of imperialism; Ruth Wishart spoke of a free press. 'Together We repair' Edinburgh International book festival EIBF 2025. The question now is – to repair what path must we follow. We are mostly confused.

 

Nearly or over half of Scots support independence, but what does that mean? Indy in Europe? The picture is unclear. I try to hear as many and varied voices. Unionists feel brave and often speak up. While Britain feels broken and in chaos. Those in England have lost support for the Tory Brexit, then they lost support for Labour Change, and now turn to Reform, whose answers feel unclear and populist. 

 

The many voices from the National newspaper: vary from the writers of art, culture, history, economists and engineers. Where is Scotland now and where is it heading and how do we understand and know the past? What are we afraid of? Scotland’s songs fill my head. Caledonia, Westlin Winds, Sunshine on Leith, Ye banks and Braes, Jock O Hazeldean, Scots Wa Hae, Auld Lyne Syne. 

 

There are shoots and blooms of positive change – a new Scottish art galleries, national Scottish Theatre, National newspaper….This doesn’t mean inward naval gazing. But to be international, we must first be national. 

 

A Scottish narrative – a sense of place, and understanding of Scots voices. Sunset song, Waverly, A Drunk Man Looks at a Thistle.

Voices that wonder, what unionism really means? Are we united? There is so mush talk of political failure on every side – how is this constructive at all? Where is the vision and creativity for the future?

Poetry Shapes Us

 

While Burns loved the lassies, his legacy is much deeper and more wide-ranging poetically than his love life. Some of his songs are so familiar, perhaps we can overlook his literary significance – both of his time and of ours.  The musicality of his song writing and poems, is unmatched and many famous poets and songsmiths name Burns as a favourite writer– from Bob Dylan to Wordsworth. 

In his short life he touched hearts, wrote of the worth of man (and woman), respect for the natural world, of freedom fighters, and he was a man o independent mind. 

 

“Poetry hold s mirror to a nations heart and soul. “ Jackie Key

“Its the language of being human” 

 

 *Famous Scots Poems 20^th century 

 

Memo for Spring - Liz Lochead

Drunk man looks at a Thistle – Hugh MacDiarmid

In my Country – Jackie Kay

A Man in Assynt – Norman McCaig

 

Gaelic Song

A rare beauty, or the big sky of Lewis. 

Gaelic poems were songs, tunes and words intertwined. The connections to place.

  

Norman McCaig

“Who owns this landscape – has it anything to do with love? Even the dead are part of it. Land is a character…Landscape is my religion, I feel at home. My substitute for religion and politics.“

 

Drunk man looks at a thistle – Hugh MacDiarmid – Where extremes meet

His poem, revolutionized Scots poetry ’to be yoursell” 

“He showed us that small nations are better than large ones, and the possibility of a new Scotland.” Alan Riach. “A revolutionary vision of what society can be. To rethink the Burns cult for a multi-faceted identity. Language matters.”

 

Ewan MacColl version of Scotland

Ewan MacColl & Peggy Seeger

 

MacColl was a Scottish indy supporter

He wrote some incredible songs. 

He is remembered best for his songs – Dirty Old Town, First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, Shoals of Herring

He was born Salford, Jimmie Miller -he would lie and said he was from Auchterrarder and had a Glasgow childhood. 

 

He had Scottish parents – his mother from outer Hebrides. He read of 19^th century Gaelic poet Eoghan MacColl of Lochfyneside. He collected Scots ballads, 

 

MacColl recorded album of street songs from Dublin, Salford and Glasgow with Irishman Dominic Behan. He was friends with Scots poets Hugh MacDiarmid and Hamish Henderson.

 

MacColl was part of the Scottish Literary Renaissance – 1920s, 1930s connected to the Celtic revival movement renewed cultural nationalism. Both looked back to poets such as William Dunbar and also to contemporary poets such as Ezra Pound, TS Eliot, WB Yeats, Edwin Morgan , first Scots Maker. 

Town planning of people and their environment – place-work-folk. 

Also novelists  Neil Gunn, Lewis Grassic Gibbons, 

Scottish Gaelic Renaissance – Sorley MacLean.

Edwin Morgan

Hugh MacDiarmid

He had strong left wing views and monitored by M15. He married Peggy Seeger lived Beckenham, Kent on his song royalties. He was a prophet not fully acknowledged. Who felt and imagined himself as part of the Scotland of his parents. 

 

We need honest visionaries who recognise the past and see the ways forward.

BOOK: The cultural and political life of Ewan MacColl by Ben Marker.

 

Irish Times columnist Fintan O’Toole writes, “MacColl’s influence on the culture we live through now is so ­pervasive as to be almost invisible – so much taken for granted that we hardly bother to see it.”

ITALY images

Abuzzo

Photos from my much loved trips to Italy – the land of art, great diversity, history, beauty, creativity. Italia and its connections to Scotland. 

 

Tuscany

Renaissance, Michelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, …..
I have visited Florence, Venice, Milan, Verona, Sienna, Tuscany, Rome, Abruzzo, Sicily, Barga, Lake Garda,

wet street Sienna

The Florence vistas, the mountain villages of Abruzzi, olive picking, the wet streets of Sienna,

Lake Garda

Nations Apart: Turbulent times

Burns and Mozart both lived in times of huge turbulence - late 18^th century. Burns 1759 - 1776. Mozart 1756 - 1791.

Robert Burns retold and recharged the great tales and songs of the Scottish nation in such unique ways. 
I visited Vienna last year where the genius musicians Strauss and Mozart told the tales of central Europe, Austria (population 8m) and of the great Danube river.

The poet Bob Dylan lived through the turbulent times of the Cold war and the civil rights marches. 

In Paris in the 18^th century Impressionism painters expressed the great creative out pouring and flair, to see in new ways. 

Italy’s Renaissance (14^th century to 17th) took two dimensional art not only to three dimensions but to stratospheric new heights and told of Italy’s great struggles and love of beauty.  

All these highly unique stories matter …

Scottish Collaborations: Medici Intersection

In Edina at the Mercat Cross, the great and good gathered -  from all walks of life and it was a great melting pot of ideas. They met near William Creech’s publishing house, in the time of great men such a David Hume, Adam Smith, Dugald Stewart, Robert Burns, Alexander Nasmyth, and many others. 

“During the renaissance the Medici family provided opportunities for people from different disciplines – artists, writers, scientists, engineers, natural philosophies – to all come together, in a space where they could work together to solve problems. All the labs in England and Wales are commercially driven and are completely privatised. Whereas in Scotland we have  a more cohesive organisation, not driven commercially.”

‘its partly our philosophy of working together, which comes out of the Scottish enlightenment. The enlightenment here emerged in a different way than it did in England and Wales and France and elsewhere, because instead of just having scientists and natural philosophers working together to solve problems we also had artists and writers and poets and we brought them all together in some sort of a rammy.” Forensic scientists Dundee centre, on their multi disciplinary approach. "  

Namh Nic Daeid, Dorector Forensic centre Dundee

Medici intersection

Scottish Renaissance

Frightened Rabbit

In 2009 we celebrated 250 years since the birth of our national poet Robert Burns with many events and concerts across Scotland..

Today in 2015 rock bands like Frightened Rabbit can sell out US venues and are signed to Atlantic records. They have developed their fan base worldwide while being based in Scotland. Also the band The Errors, an electric rock band, say they don’t need a London office to communicate today. According to radio DJ Vic Galloway PR and Publishing continue to be based in London.

Scotland over the past decades has hosted some of the world’s most successful arts programs and events. T in the Park is the UK’s second live event; Celtic Connections is one of the main worldwide roots music events. Edinburgh festival is the worlds biggest arts festivals.

Twenty years ago people might have mocked folk singer songwriters The Proclaimers Scottish accents – and now it is normal for musicians here to sing with their Scottish accents and write about where they come from and be proud!.

The band Twilight Sad say that ‘American audiences sing back to us in pretend Scottish accents!’ Great!

Our main festivals encourage a great deal of cross-collaborations which are highly productive and illuminating. Folk singer songwriter Karine Polwart has spoken of the special musical collaborations that are welcomed here between different artists. As long as we continue to welcome and embrace other cultures – as we do whole heatedly at our arts festivals.

The internet has broken down barriers too and this cultural identity and pride in your roots has been happening elsewhere. 

Biffy Clyro

The question remains whether cultural revivals have driven devolution – I can’t help but feel they have. It is part of the crucial debates over our distinctly Scottish identity. 

Today many young musicians are less affected by the Radio One formula sound. It used to be Scottish artists felt second rate, but no more!

Frightened Rabbit, ‘Now there is more confidence about staying in Scotland. ‘