Airline flies in to make sure islanders perform at festival
Seventy island pupils scheduled to appear at Celtic Connections tomorrow night (Friday January 17) will be flown by Loganair following fears that ferries will not be running in time to get them to their appearance in Glasgow.
Loganair came to the rescue following a plea by Comhairle nan Eilean Siar’s chairman of transportation and infrastructure Councillor Uisdean Robertson.
Performances will include 70 island pupils from the Dìleab: Air a’ Chuan project, Willie Campbell and Band, Ceitlin Lilidh and Pàdruig Morrison with the Sgoil Lionacleit Pipe Band, the Sir E Scott Choir from Harris, singers and musicians from Castlebay Community School in Barra and the Nicolson Institute in Lewis, as well as other island musicians including Iain ‘Costello’ MacIver and Neil Johnstone.
The chartered flight will make two trips to Glasgow on Wednesday, via Stornoway and Benbecula.
Kay Ryan, chief commercial officer at Loganair, said: ‘We are delighted we’ve been able to help the children get to Glasgow. We know how important this event is for them after all the hard work they have put in and we hope they have an amazing time at Celtic Connections.’
Dìleab project director Rhona Johnstone said: ‘We are delighted that the young people from our Western Isles schools have been invited to perform at this year’s
Celtic Connections festival at the Dileab: Air a’ Chuain concert on Friday night to celebrate Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 2020 and explore the rich connection we have to the waters and coasts surrounding our own islands.
‘In addition to the main concert, our pupils from Castlebay Community School, along with Willie Campbell, have been asked to perform in the Coastal Connections Festival in a Day event taking place in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Saturday, January 18.
‘Playing at a world renowned festival such as Celtic Connections is a tremendous opportunity for the pupils to showcase their talents and we have immense pride in all our young people taking part.
‘Getting 80 pupils and staff to Glasgow in January was always going to be risky given the weather we so often get this time of year. We are extremely grateful to Loganair for their assistance to make sure that everyone gets down in time to meet up and rehearse together. We would also like to acknowledge the support received from ferry company Caledonian MacBrayne, which is one of the partners of the Celtic Connections festival.
‘CalMac generously sponsored our ferry travel, which we will still be using on the return journey, but have also been very helpful in providing assistance and advice with regards to our travel position and have done all possible to help our situation during the stormy conditions.’
The concert follows on from the success of the previous Dìleab events of 2018, the recording and subsequent launch of the EP of five songs which Willie Campbell was commissioned to write and the hugely successful concert in November 2019 in Ionad Spòrs Leòdhais where 60 young musicians from Lewis and Harris performed alongside Face the West, The Tumbling Souls and Skipinnish.
The concert will take place in the New Auditorium of the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall at 7.30pm.