Islanders’ musical magic at Tolbooth
Ground-breaking trial
Folk music quartet Fara will be bringing their spellbinding sound to the Tolbooth next month.
The acclaimed band, who have been nominated for a clutch of awards in recent years – including the Scots Trad Music Awards Best Live Act – can’t wait to get back out on tour after months of lockdown.
They comprise Orkney fiddlers Kristan Harvey, Jeana Leslie and Catriona Price, and Highlander Rory Mathieson on piano.
Kristan told the Observer:“There’s always a lot of light with a Fara show; we like to keep things light hearted.
“We have some new music – and some new stories to go with that.
“We’ll be keeping an informal vibe as we usually do.
“It’s all about tunes, songs, melodies. The songs are generally about our own experiences. Most of our music is self written and the rest come from Orkney stories.
“We have played the Tolbooth maybe five or six times now. We had quite a special night over lockdown, recording a gig there. We’re very familiar with the venue and love playing there.
“We really can’t wait to get back out and to see people. Times have been unusual, but nothing can compare being in a room with people, sharing music and conversation.”
The band, named after an island in Scapa Flow, had been abroad on tour when the pandemic hit in March 2020 and spent much of the following year on Orkney.
Kristan said:“We were in Australia when lockdown came into force and it was a mad rush to get back to Scotland.
“During lockdown a couple of band members came up to Orkney.
“We put together videos called the Orkney series, releasing a video every Friday, as a way of keeping in touch with folk.”
Fara also used the time to write material for their new album, set for release next February, which includes fiery reels and haunting songs inspired by the poetry of Orcadian writers.
Kristan said:“We’ve just finished recording our third album.
“Orkney has a lot of natural resources and is leading the way in renewables, and that became a theme of the album.
“I think it works well. By writing our own music we can really shape it the way we want.”
Fara play the Tolbooth on Saturday October 9, and tickets are priced £15/£14.
Contact the Tolbooth on 01786 274000.
A number of glaucoma patients in NHS Forth Valley are being given the chance to attend their regular eye review at a high street optician, rather than having to travel to hospital for an appointment.
A ground-breaking pilot scheme has begun in a local optician in Alloa and will roll out soon to practices in Dunblane and Falkirk as part of a national programme of shared eye care.
People will be able to be examined by an optometrist, and the results will be relayed to an NHS Forth Valley consultant ophthalmologist for assessment. Visual fields and scans will be uploaded so that the consultant can review them remotely removing the need for patients, who often have to rely on friends or family for transport, to travel to an eye clinic at hospital. The test results will be transferred using a secure electronic patient record.
The scheme began at L A Hunter Optometrists in Alloa earlier this month and will soon be followed by availability at Erskine Eyecare in Dunblane and For Eyes Opticians in Camelon and Nicol’s
Opticians in Alva.
Linda Hunter, who has an independent prescribing qualification and is studying for an advanced qualification specifically aimed at caring for glaucoma patients within a shared care setting, has also been working in eye clinics in local hospitals during weekends throughout lockdown to help with any backlog.
She said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for a truly collaborative relationship between primary and secondary care to not only improve patient care moving forward, but also help relieve the burden on already overstretched NHS departments.
“Substantial investment by a number of local community optometrists, including my own, in hospital grade equipment means that eye care can move from the hospital to the community. If a more urgent healthcare issue were to arise in one of these review appointments and it was necessary to speak to a consultant, I can also dial in remotely for a face-to-face consultation.
“Having these regular checks in a communitybased practice also removes any stress associated with hospital visits and cuts down waiting lists for hospitalbased appointments, allowing clinicians more time to see those who are at greatest need and require a different approach to their eye care.”
Jason Graham, Operational Manager, NHS Forth Valley, said: “We look forward to rolling out a number of additional local opticians over the next few weeks. We really appreciate the support of local community optometrists during the pandemic, including those who have and continue to help run additional eye clinics at Forth Valley Royal Hospital during weekends to help tackle the backlog of appointments.
“Optometrists are also very highly skilled healthcare professionals so this new shared care initiative helps to make use of their skills and expertise as well as freeing up hospital-based staff to focus on patients with more complex eye care needs.”