Laura Jane Wilkie & Ian Carr with Macalla and Woodlands Bäckafall

Hailing from Tain in the Highlands, Laura Jane Wilkie has a unique style which has roots in the Highland fiddle traditions but is influenced by an eclectic range of music from all genres. Her debut album, Vent is centred around ancient women’s work songs - waulking songs. The album explores the melodies of these ancient waulking songs and how they have individually and communally provided a sense of safety, shared knowledge, power, love, humour and freedom. Laura has toured internationally with various projects and has collaborated previously with Shooglenifty, Man of the Minch, Rachel Sermanni, The GRIT Orchestra and many more. For this concert, Laura will be performing with guitarist and record producer, Ian Carr.

Macalla, (meaning ‘echo’ in Irish) is a new music collaboration exploring the rich melodies and rhythms between Iraq, Northern Ireland and Ireland bringing together the North West Folk Collective, (NI/IRE) with members of Mshakht Collective (Iraq).

Music has a unique power to build bridges between cultures and forge meaningful connections across borders and these rich musical connections between Irish and Middle Eastern traditions feature in this new eight-piece collective weaving contemporary and cross-cultural sounds, and rooted in a celebration of the musical traditions of both countries and cultures. Macalla features Lucia McGinnis (Harp), Niwar Issa (Qanun), Saman Kareem (Oud), Helin Star Qadir (Violin), Martin Coyle (Bouzouki), Denise Boyle (Fiddle) and Paul Cutliffe (Uilleann pipes and whistle).

Woodlands Bäckafall blends the essence of Swedish Midsummer with the vibrant atmosphere of an Irish pub. With vocals, guitar, fiddle, Celtic harp and nyckelharpa, the band breathes new life into traditional music from Ireland, Scotland and Sweden. Songs in Swedish, English, Gaelic, French and Polish are playfully woven together with fiery reels, captivating waltzes and mysterious ballads.

Macalla is supported by the British Council and co-created in partnership with Earagail Arts Festival, Donegal.