Traditional music
Far from being reduced to folklore, traditional Scottish music is alive and well, and is frequently heard throughout the country. Starting with the emblematic bagpipes, the national pride and joy of Scotland, the music of which fills the streets at every opportunity. The latter is intimately linked to Gaelic culture and is divided into two main traditional styles: Ceòl Mór and Ceòl Beag (literally "big music" and "little music"). The first, Ceòl Mór, comprises the pibroch style, a slower, more classical form of traditional bagpipe music. The second, Ceòl Beag, includes dance music such as jigs, reels, strathspeys and slow airs.
Bagpipe competitions are a good opportunity to hear the finest bagpipers, both solo and in pipe bands. Scotland's Glasgow Police Pipe Band and Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band are the world champions, with 20 and 16 victories respectively at the World Pipe Band Championships. As for soloists, two great Scottish pipers are Gordon Duncan and Fred Morrison.
Almost as famous and emblematic as the bagpipe, the Celtic harp (called clàrsach in Scottish Gaelic) is also considered a national instrument. In fact, until the late Middle Ages, the clàrsach was the most popular instrument in Scotland, and harpists were important figures often employed by kings. Since then, the instrument has experienced successive waves of affection and disinterest, but in recent decades seems to have returned for good to the hearts of the Scots. The latest generation of harpists includes such interesting names as Savourna Stevenson, Maggie MacInnes and the group Sileas.
The last of the most common traditional instruments, the fiddle is none other than the Scottish fiddle. Introduced to the country in the late 17th century, it has acquired a number of distinctive features over the years, such as being played on several strings simultaneously, and often held on the elbow or chest instead of the chin. Aly Bain and Alasdair Fraser are Scotland's two leading exponents of the fiddle.
One of the best - and most authentic - opportunities to cross-fertilize Scottish musical traditions are the ceilidh (pronounced "keïli"). Originally used to describe gatherings of storytellers, musicians and dancers, this Gaelic word now describes traditional music and dance balls that play a vital role in Scottish social and cultural life. These are mainly held in pubs in summer, or sometimes in the street. Another good opportunity to see ceilidhs is theArran Folk Festival in Brodick, which organizes concerts around them over three days in early June. Other popular traditional music events include the Shetland Folk Festival in Lerwick (between late April and early May) and the Celtic Connections Festival in Glasgow (last two weeks of January), which focuses on Celtic music in all its diversity, as does the Hebridean Celtic Festival on the Isle of Lewis. On the Isle of Skye, there are also two interesting events: the two-month Feis An Eilean Skye (!) and the Accordion & Fiddle Festival, which puts the accordion and fiddle on a pedestal for a weekend in May. More dance-oriented is the Highlands & Islands Music & Dance Festival, mainly based in Oban.
Folklore
In the 1950s and 1960s, a wave of revivalist folk music swept through Scotland. Adding traditional themes or melodic motifs to the "voice + guitar" format, and sometimes even Gaelic, Scottish folk was initially driven by Kenneth McKellar (1927-2010), Moira Anderson (b. 1938) and Andy Stewart (1933-1993) - who sang sentimental ballads accompanied by accordions and bagpipes. These artists benefited greatly from the development of radio and television in the country. At the same time, a star duo emerged, Robin Hall & Jimmy McGregor, considered the first truly great stars of Scottish folk, and exported throughout the UK. In the 1970s, bands like the Irish-Scottish The Boys of the Lough began to blend traditional folk and rock, quickly followed by Battlefield Band and Runrig, then Capercaillie a little later.
It was these bands who gradually forged a new genre, "Celtic rock", which, as its name suggests, is rock incorporating Celtic instrumentation or themes, and which has contributed massively to promoting a Panceltic culture. In Scotland, JSD The Natural Acoustic Band and above all Five Hand Reel were pioneers of the genre, paving the way for other big bands such as Big Country and Wolfstone in the 1980s. While the waves of punk and new wave have diminished public interest in Celtic rock, the spirit of the genre has crossed generations and made grandchildren. First in the 1990s with bands like Shooglenifty and Peatbog Faeries, then more recently with Mànran and Tide Lines, who have revived the spirit of Celtic rock by adapting it to today's pop-rock canons.
Classical music
Contrary to the English neighbor, few Scottish composers have acquired international fame. The first to make a real impact on musical history was undoubtedly Robert Carver (1485-1570), who remained famous for his polyphonic choral music. Later, in the middle of the 19th century, the visits of Chopin and Mendelssohn brought about a revival of Scottish classical music. Thus, at the end of the 19th century, a national school of orchestral and operatic music in Scotland clearly emerged, whose principal composers were Alexander Mackenzie (1847-1935), William Wallace (1860-1940), Learmont Drysdale (1866-1909) and Hamish MacCunn (1868-1916). The first, Mackenzie, is undoubtedly the most famous. After studying in Germany and Italy, he mixed Scottish themes with German Romanticism and produced some of the great works of his time, such as the three Scottish Rhapsodies (1879, 1880, 1911), Pibroch for violin and orchestra (1889) and the Scottish Piano Concerto (1897), all of which include Scottish themes and folk melodies. A prolific and pivotal work that establishes Mackenzie as one of the fathers of the British musical renaissance at the end of the century. William Wallace's work was more romantic, particularly influenced by Liszt and Wagner, while Drysdale's was full of Scottish themes, as was Hamish MacCunn's work, which was very much inspired by Scottish folk songs. A great pianist to mention was Frederic Lamond (1868-1948), a pupil of Liszt and one of his best interpreters.
After the First World War, the three great names of Scottish composition are the organist Robin Orr (1909-2006) and Cedric Thorpe Davie (1913-1983), both influenced by modernism and Scottish musical cadences, as well as Erik Chisholm, whose approach is close to Béla Bartók. After the Second World War, the creation of the Edinburgh Festival in 1947 led to an expansion of classical music in Scotland and the founding of the Scottish Opera in 1960.
Scottish composers influenced by Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007) include the prolific Iain Hamilton (1922-2000) and Thea Musgrave, who was also a student of Nadia Boulanger. More recently, James MacMillan (born in 1959) has established himself as one of Scotland's leading composers, strongly influenced by national folk music, alongside Craig Armstrong (born in 1959), author of numerous film scores including Moulin Rouge (2001), Love Actually (2003) and Gatsby the Magnificent (2013). Let's also mention William Sweeney whose work is particularly influenced by Scottish traditional music but also Leoš Janáček. Among the contemporaries, the great names are James Dillon (1950), affiliated with the "New Complexity" movement or the composer Helen Grime (1981) whose music is played by some of the world's greatest orchestras.
Scotland has two major symphony orchestras, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, conducted by Thomas Søndergård of Denmark, and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Donald Runnicles of Scotland. Both orchestras are resident in Glasgow and regularly perform on the city's two major stages: the Theatre Royal and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Scotland's busiest performing arts venue, with no less than 500 performances per year. In Edinburgh, the big stages are the Usher Hall, hosting operas and contemporary music stars, and the Queen's Hall, home to the Scottish Chamber Orchestra all year round. And let's not forget to mention the Edinburgh International Festival, one of the world's largest in its category.
Pop, rock and electro
With the success of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones at the dawn of the 1960s, the United Kingdom emerged as the center of the (pop) world. An aura that spilled over to neighboring countries, such as Scotland, whose music scenes became more dynamic and populated with important artists. Around the same time as the aforementioned giants, Donovan also appeared, the "Scottish Bob Dylan", whose folk, devoid of traditional elements, set the scene for the psychedelic folk of the future. The same goes for Bert Jansch, an avant-garde Scottish guitarist whose folk inspired Jimmy Page and Neil Young.
In the 1970s, a handful of local pop groups began to enjoy commercial success outside their own borders, but it was in the 1980s that Scotland really came into its own on the international scene, with some of its own people writing the great hours of rock and pop. A dream cast including Iain Anderson, leader of Jethro Tull, Annie Lennox of Eurythmics, Mark Knopfler, fabulous guitarist and founder of Dire Straits, as well as post-punk and new wave giants such as The Jesus and Mary Chain, Tears for Fears, Cocteau Twins, Primal Scream, Wet Wet Wet and Simple Minds.
The Scottish 1990s also saw the emergence of big names such as rock bands Teenage Fanclub and Mogwai, Belle & Sebastian and their indie pop, and acid house pioneers The KLF. Since 2000, musical production has cultivated a similar richness, with big hits like the rock revival of Franz Ferdinand, Biffy Clyro or The Fratellis, and icons like Shirley Manson, leader of Garbage. And then there's Calvin Harris, dubbed the king of electro-pop, who went gold in the UK with his debut album in 2007.
Joesef is the new rising star of neo-soul. A young Scottish musician, he released his debut album Permanent Damage on January 13, 2023. He has already conquered Britain with his melodious voice.
Edinburgh has no reason to be jealous of the great European capitals, and also boasts a number of quality stages. One of the local youth's favorites is without doubt The Liquid Room, which can accommodate up to 800 people over two floors, and is loved for its cutting-edge programming. Another popular venue, The Hive, stands out for its underground labyrinth layout and varied artistic line-up: pop, indie, electro, rock or electro. Other great venues include Cabaret Voltaire, featuring some excellent DJs; The Voodoo Rooms, with its fine Victorian decor; 3th Note, the place to be for indie bands; and SGW3, a large hangar refurbished in the south of France, with a cutting-edge program.
