John Taylor of Duran Duran at Edinburgh Book festival

John Taylor, member of 80s band Duran Duran, discussed his memoir In the Pleasure Groove at Edinburgh International Book Festival 2013. Copyrighted

Paper Sculptures Edinburgh Book Festival

Beautiful bird readers in cages paper sculptures arrived at Edinburgh Book Festival 2013 on Saturday as a gift. The birds were delicate and carefully crafted with newspaper. Scotsman writer Eileen Downe admires them here.

Aoife O'Donovan at Celtic

Great review of Aoife O'Donovan's new album in Sunday Times. 'Fossils' signals the arrival of a serious talent! — with Aoife O'Donovan and Bruce Molsky.

Aoife sang with the band Crooked Still at the Transatlantic Sessions.
Photos of Aoife at Celtic 2013.

Piping Live! 2013

Finlay MacDonald and Chris Stout

At Celtic Connections 2013 I took photos at the 20th Celtic Connections celebration concert with Finlay MacDonald and Chris Stout. Also photos of piper Fred Morrison who was great fun and my images are used in Fred's new music book Outlands. 

Fred Morrison

The festival was started by a young Finlay when it was hard to imagine the festival becoming the biggest worldwide piping festival.

I'm a big music fan but I don't know so much about the piping world.  I'd no idea the Piping Live was such a big world wide event. I love the pipes at the end of songs such as this one be Karen Matheson -  (lovely voice)  - 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGKAft_LzdU

Also, I lived in the US for ten years and it was the pipes that really used to make me feel homesick!   The pipes made me think of the highlands and glens -  getting sentimental now - I even missed the wet streets!

Finlay MacDonald and Chris Stout

The Piping Live festival is now in its tenth year.

A few highlights

11th August Piping Live Birthday bash - 1pm

11th August Finlay MacDonald & Chris Stout 4pm  -  Finlay MacDonald (head of piping studies at Glasgow's piping centre) and Shetland fiddler Chris Stout launch an album titled The Cauld Wind on 11th August - 5pm  Their sound combines a Shetland style with the Scottish pipes.

15th August - Fred Morrison launches his new Music book Outlands. 

16th August - Friday Night Folk event Oran Mor which includes Scots, Irish and Breton players.

Plus the World Pipe Band championships.   

Finlay MacDonald

Chris Stout