Improvements & Music

In at last and during the first few days we started to find out what improvements needed to be done. The bathroom needed several things doing and the plumber and electrician have already sorted these things out very quickly. The heating system, a solid fuel burner is due to come out next week and replaced with the Air to Air heating system although this cannot be done for another month.  We are waiting for the joiner to come back with a price for several things, all in all the tradesmen have come very quickly.

After several days of unpacking cardboard boxes we are nearly free of mountain of cardboard we just need extra storage space in the kitchen, this should be ready for collection next week. Most things have to come up from Scotland.

You will not be in Shetland long before you find that music is an important feature of daily life in the isles. You can hear music most nights either in pubs or at the many concerts held at the Marlee, Islesburgh or Garrison theatres.

Everyone seems so talented, even the very young can play the fiddle. Tom Anderson was a major force is making sure that Shetland tunes are still alive and being played today. He took his ideas into the schools and taught the schoolchildren ensuring the traditional music is still around and being now being played around the world.

                                                                                    Junior champion

We have been to a number of concerts are well as informal sessions, some traditional fiddle music , African drummers, Norwegian choir, rock bands, accordions, guitars and Blues, brass bands and classical music.

Throughout the year a number of excellent and well attended festivals take place. These attract musicians from all over the world and it’s also a time about tuition as there are various sessions throughout the week festivals to learn more about the instruments.

                                                                                 Informal sessions in pubs

Most of Shetland musicians can play more than one instrument and they often change round during informal sessions. At the Lounge in Lerwick you never know how many musicians will turn up. sometimes six other times up to twenty and if you have forgot your instrument there are plenty on the wall to borrow.

Here are a few of the even to look for.

·         Shetland Folk Festival

·         Shetland jazz festival

·         Fiddle frenzy

·         Shetland Blues Festival

·         Shetland accordion and Fiddle festival

·         Guitar festival

Tickets go very fast and some require membership before you can get a ticket.

Another set of concerts to look out for is the Shetland Showcase, these have now just finished but we are looking forward to the next set of sessions. One of our favorites was Maggie Adamson and Brian Nicholson, Maggie has been the Scottish Fiddler of the year for the past two years, while Brian is part of three groups including the famous Hom Bru, another great band that finished off the showcase

                                                                                     Maggie and Brian

One thing you must do is watch the Edinburgh Tattoo on Monday night where you will see 40 Shetland fiddlers performing, they sounded great at a concert held in the Town Hall just before they left for Edinburgh.