18 Jan - 4 Feb 2024

About Celtic Connections

“If there’s one thing that makes wintertime in Glasgow great then it’s Celtic Connections.” The Guardian

Glasgow’s annual folk, roots and world music festival celebrates its connections to cultures across the globe. From 18 January - 4 February 2024, over 2,100 musicians from around the world bring the city to life for 18 days. During that time, there are concerts, ceilidhs, talks, art exhibitions, workshops and free events.

Creative Director Donald Shaw programmes more than 300 events across multiple genres of music. The festival is renowned for its ability to bring together one-off line-ups for special collaborative shows. The camaraderie between musicians continues late into the night at the Festival Club - home to legendary musical collaborations and spontaneous sessions.

“There are situations that you’ll see where people are playing that you’ll never see again, or if you do, it’s because it worked here first.” Donald Shaw, Creative Director

The festival has also curated key parts of the cultural programme for major international events, including: 

  • Ryder Cup Chicago
  • Ryder Cup Gleneagles
  • London 2012 Olympics
  • Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games
  • European Championships 2018
  • UEFA European Championships 2020
  • UCI World Cycling Championships 2023

In 2021, due to Covid-19, the festival went online for the very first time. Over 100,000 people tuned in from 65 countries to watch over 10.5 million minutes of content across 19 days.

In 2023, the festival celebrated its 30th edition. It was also the first festival without restrictions since 2020, seeing over 300 events with more than 100,000 attendances at 25 venues across Glasgow.