World Play a Strathspey Day

Traverse Theatre 2/5/26

Edinburgh Tradfest Day 2: World Play a Strathspey Day

Eilidh Shaw and Ian Carr

Séamus and Caoimhe

The first weekend of Tradfest 2026 coincided with the annual encouragement by the folk at Hands Up For Trad to play a strathspey and announce to the world that you have done so. So a concert to mark the day seemed only right. In the event strathspeys were a bit thin on the ground as the musicians, fiddlers Eilidh Shaw and Dylan Cairns, melodeon man, Sam Mabbett, and pianist Angus Lyon ranged over a set of laments, jigs, Irish and Scottish reels, hornpipes and a waltz, occasionally stopping by the wayside to air a strathspey, or in one case a set of the strathspey’s close relation, the Donegal Highland. While the fiddles were about their business they were supported by solid work from Mabbett, now playing the tune, now providing rhythm from the melodeon’s left hand, and Lyon whose syncopated backing was as imaginative and fresh as it was sturdy and driving.

Eilidh Shaw had time to draw breath before she was back, this time in the more compact Traverse 2, with Sweden-based guitarist, Ian Carr (on this occasion sans his trademark pork-pie hat). The programme included a fair few of Eilidh Shaw’s own tunes, strong melodies firmly in the Highland idiom, and one of Carr’s own, titled appropriately for the times ‘Do Not Despair’. A judicious selection of contemporary trad composers from the likes of Charlie McKerron, Inge Thomson, and Jim Sutherland complemented the traditional and self-penned numbers. Indeed the title of the Sutherland tune, ‘The Flow Country’, provided the watchword for the gig, as Shaw’s smooth fiddling meshed beautifully with Carr’s accompanying mix of full-on chords and delicate counter-melodies often with a moving bass line going at the same time. He is a marvellously inventive player, whether playing finger-style or with a pick, and knows exactly when to throw in the odd diminished or off-the-wall chord. They rarely play together, a fact belied by their rapport. They are also both very droll, making for a very enjoyable hour or so for the capacity audience.

After that treat it was back up the stairs to a packed Traverse 1 for the rising young brother and sister duo, Séamus and Caoimhe, who immediately demonstrated their sibling harmony with a song in Irish. Many of their songs are what is known as sean-nòs, or ‘old style’ characterised by fine ornamentation and more often than not themes of love and loss. The pair, from Gaelic-speaking Connemara, have been hearing the songs sung since they were small children (not spared some of the darker themes either). They don’t eschew instruments, of which they play many, but always use them in the service of the song. They know how to use the instruments to great effect as in the numinous moment in one of the love songs, when the guitar and shruti box stopped, leaving only their crystal clear voices to see the song to its conclusion. They are committed to these songs, which are vital to their community, helping people to deal with emotions at times of loss and grief. Their second half performance included songs in English, canny versions of ‘Scarborough Fair’ and the Beatles’ ‘Blackbird’ with added mouth music, a fitting nod to Lennon and McCartney’s Irish heritage. These young performers know exactly where they come from, cherish it, and have the talent to express their roots in music that is both profound and sublime. They are far from po-faced, however, sending us off into the night with a bit of step-dancing and a lively reel, our hearts full.