b l e t h e r s...cultural equity, cultural ecology and place-based learning. we champion local...

www.tracscotland.orgScottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street, Edinburgh EH1 1SR

ISSUE 33 - AUTUMN 2016

Supporting andcelebrating the traditionalart of storytelling and the

diverse network ofstorytellers across

Scotland today

Scotland's network oftraditional music

organisations - puttingtraditional music at the

heart of Scotland'sculture

Celebrating thediversity of traditional

dance and otherrelated traditional andsocial dance forms in

Scotland

SCOTTISHSTORYTELLINGFORUM (SSF)

TRADITIONALMUSIC

FORUM (TMF)

TRADITIONALDANCE FORUM OFSCOTLAND (TDSF)

BB LL EE TT HH EE RR SSSCOTLAND'S NATIONAL NETWORKS FOR TRADITIONAL ARTS AND CULTURE

A living flow of song, music, dance, story and wordplay Space for conviviality and collective energy open to all

Creative practice inspired by shared memory and experience A wellspring for community identities and personal growth

www.tracscotland.org2

TRADITIONAL ARTS AND SENSE OF PLACEREALISING CREATIVE POTENTIAL

Scotland's history and heritagebelongs to all of Scotland's people.Ahead of 2017's Year of History,Heritage and Archaeology, TRACSand BEMIS jointly host a St. Andrew'sDay conference exploring how wemight realise the creative potential ofour diverse cultural heritage in localcommunities across Scotland.

Modern Scotland has been shaped bymillennia of global influence. Part ofScotland has always been - and willbe - African, South Asian, Middle andFar Eastern, European and all thediversity of culture, language, religionand beliefs inherent around the globe.In order to foster social and culturalequality, every citizen of Scotlandshould know the broader story ofScotland's story and role in the world.

It is vitally important to encourage asense of equal ownership in ournational heritage and historicenvironment, including greaterrecognition of the diverse intangiblecultural heritage (ICH) of local

communities. From language, customand belief to music and song, ourdiscussions explore the unique localexpressions of cultural heritage andtheir global connections,simultaneously universal and particularin character.We look forward to how we might

realise this creative potential, fosteringgood relationships at a communitylevel and promoting a dynamic,inclusive Scottish national identity forthe future. Wednesday 30th NovemberScottish Storytelling Centre10am I Free but ticketed

This Autumn's issue of Blethers introduces a new andambitious initiative from TRACS: The People's Parish. This isa framework for working with communities to discover andrediscover a 'sense of place,' to dig into the cultural memoryand find the resources with which it can be expressedcreatively. As Patrick Geddes saw it, 'each place has a truepersonality.' Inspired by this theme, we also highlight somewonderful projects underpinned by the philosophies ofcultural equity, cultural ecology and place-based learning.

We champion Local Voices, an organisation founded byethnologists Chris Wright and Steve Byrne. Local Voiceswork with a range of different social groups in communitiesacross the country to collectively explore, document andpromote aspects of local cultural language and culture toencourage people to 'sing their own songs again.' They haverecently launched a new website and will be workingtogether with local practitioners to support Gifting EveryChild - a collaborative and multilingual project through whicheveryone living in Scotland can tap into our rich creativeculture.

We also highlight Fuaran, a recently completed resourcefrom Fèisean nan Gàidheal. This project worked with a newgeneration of Gaelic speakers and singers to engage inresearch and collection of Gaelic songs in their local area.

The Shieling Project in Glen Strathfarrar is an environmental

educational project inspired by the heritage, landscapesand traditional culture of Highland Scotland, working withteachers and young people to explore the natural andcultural heritage of shieling life and its significance today. Inthis context, songs, stories and traditional skills are all waysto engage body, heart and mind in a relationship with thelandscape that is more than intellectual. Lastly, SensingPlace in Dumfries and Galloway is a new project that looksto harness the power of storytelling and archive film toexplore new ways to access local creativity.

While we focus on the microcosm of local culturaldiversity, we don't forget our global connectedness.Storyteller Claire Druett reflects here on her visit to theFederation of European Storytellers' annual conference(FEST) in Paris, which took place weeks before the Brexitvote. In the current climate, making connections with ourEuropean friends is more important than ever. This themeis picked up in the Scottish International StorytellingFestival with a programme of events exploring ourinternational connections. This year's 'Festival of Dreams'will see a celebration of live storytelling, oral traditions andcultural diversity, with a focus on the magical stories ofLatin America

Mairi [email protected]

ENHANCED BY OUR DIVERSITY, CONNECTED BY OUR HUMANITY

Dance Ihayami with Marion Kenny, Dance Base 2016

3www.tracscotland.org

The theme for this year's ScottishInternational Storytelling Festival is the'Festival of Dreams.' In addition to theFestival on Tour, this year sees anationwide local festival campaign andnational action celebrating the worldchanging power of dreams.

Stories are at the core of how weidentify and express ourselves,interpret and shape our worlds, bothreal and imaginary. Storytelling helpsus connect - to each other, to ourpast, to our place, to our world - andtogether we are empowered by ourconnections. Dreaming is ourbirthright: everyone has this capacity.Too often, however, we're persuadedto believe our voices don't count orthat the future is determined by apowerful few. All of us together canexpand the possible by telling,listening to and inventing new stories.

Dare To Dream is part-inspired bythe #DareToImagine campaign in2015, sponsored by the people-powered U.S. Department of Artsand Culture:

"In these times, social imaginationis a radical act, restoring personaland collective agency, shiftingdominant narratives, andaffirming that all of us make thefuture. When we have theaudacity to dream in public,when we begin to unleashimagination and turn it intoaction, we can move the world."- U.S. Department of Arts andCulture

Dare To Dream reaches for some bigthemes: active citizenship, heritage,sustainability, creative placemaking,health and recovery, communitychange and transformation. Thefestival has worked with the ScottishRecovery Network, the InternationalFutures Forum, research and designcollective Lateral North, the US

Department of Arts & Culture andthe Scottish Storytelling Forum tocreate simple resources for use byschools and communities.

This includes an 'ABC of LocalDistinctiveness' - a simple tool createdto inspire people and communities todiscover and re-discover whatever isdistinctive about a place: rivers andlandmarks, plants and animals,buildings, customs, dialects,celebrations, names, recipes, history,myths, legends, story and song. It alsoincludes a wonderful 'Pedagogy ofDreams' created by storyteller BethCross - a guide for teachers andyouth group leaders to enable

children to explore the bridgebetween the inner and outer worldthat stories offer.

"Imagination is the power todream something different - forourselves, our communities, ourplanet. That what this year'sDreamfest is all about: daring totrust in our dreams and togethermake them real." - DonaldSmith

www.daretodream.scot#DareToDream#CuirBrighRiBruadar#DaurTaeDream

DARE TO DREAMEVERYTHING CREATEDMUST FIRST BE IMAGINED.EXPLORE THE POSSIBLEAND DARE TO DREAM!

From 1st September to the 30th November2016, The Scottish International StorytellingFestival invites you all as creative citizens todiscover the stories of the past and to dreamthe stories of the future.

Imagine the best possible future. What storieswould you tell to the world today, from thefuture of your dreams?

Dè na sgeulachdan a dh' innseadh tu don t-saoghal an-diugh, bho d' aislingean mun àm riteachd?

Whit stories wid ye aye tak wi ye, an whit widye leave ahint?

Il Sogno. Che bono si’ mio Signore, io me moro e te me poni lu cielo tutto in festa de stelle ” by Dario Fo, 2014, Photo by Luca Vittorio Toffolon, Courtesy of www.archivio.francarame.it

4 www.tracscotland.org

Local Voices is an organisation foundedin early 2013 by ethnologists SteveByrne and Chris Wright. Its mission isto help communities across Scotlandidentify, collect and engage with theirlocal heritage. They work with a rangeof different social groups incommunities across the country tocollectively explore, document andpromote aspects of local language,dialect, song, story, music andmemory, with a focus on revitalisingthose elements of local heritage andculture which are at risk of being lostor which are currently under-acknowledged.

Chris and Steve also provide orfacilitate access to resources, expertise,training and mentoring for localcommunities to gain confidence inexploring their own memories andtraditional culture on an ongoing basis.Projects aim to encourage interactionbetween older and youngergenerations to promote sharedcommunity identity, a sense of place,and an awareness of the value of thelocal in the globalised age.

At the heart of their work is the beliefthat the every voice deserves to beheard and that individuals andcommunities are strengthened andempowered by sharing their lifestories, participating in their traditionsand learning about their local culture.In the age of globalised mass media,they are committed to enablingcommunities to find their own voiceand heritage and be able to share itconfidently with the rest of the world.

Between them, Steve and Chris havea wealth of experience in ethnography,oral history and folklore fieldwork, aswell as related aspects of local andnational cultural policy involvingtraditional arts and culture. They haveworked on both large-scale heritageprojects involving digital archives ofnational importance, as well as smalllocally-focused projects.

As a precursor to the formation ofLocal Voices, Steve and Chrispartnered with local authorities in theirrespective hometowns of Arbroathand Dundee to carry out school

workshops. Working with primarychildren in a number of schools, theydiscovered and re-introduced some ofthe local songs and singers that can beheard in archives of traditional music,including the Kist O Riches/Tobar anDualchais online archive(http://www.kistoriches.co.uk).

"We started off by exploring theidea of our families andcommunities as sources ofknowledge and cultural memory,and the power of heirlooms andtraditions to connect us to thepast. We then learned somesimple local songs - often streetsongs - that helped start adiscussion about local Scotsdialects and aspects of identity.These topics formed a basis togo on and look at some largersongs that we could tease apartand use to learn about our localenvironment and working life." -Chris Wright

LOCAL VOICESI've long held the belief that traditional singers have a responsibility to research and revive their local songsand traditions, which I have attempted to do for my own home region over the years. Before we get toobogged down and dusty about this, archives are all well and good - but my main interest is in getting peopleto sing their own songs again. - Steve Byrne


The next project on the horizonextends this early work. The NationalLibrary of Scotland (NLS) has for someyears now been developing a nationalstrategy to secure the country's audioheritage. A new initiative called the'Connecting Scotland's Sounds'project (supported by the EsmeeFairbairn Foundation) aims to championthe preservation and sharing ofScotland's sound heritage. To help theNLS achieve its aims, Local Voices hasbeen commissioned to deliver schoolsworkshops on Scots-language songs asfound in a number of different soundarchives. The goal is to simultaneouslyhighlight the value of the Scotslanguage and its culture to youngpeople, while also demonstrating the

importance of audio archives as aresource for education and communityengagement with audio heritage. Theywill also be partnering the ScotsLanguage Centre to maximise thelegacy of the workshop outputs.

Folk culture emerges as a naturalphenomenon from people associatingin small groups; most folklore reflects alocal character and identity. This meansthat any compilation of traditionalmaterial for use in education shouldinclude plenty of local items. To thatend, Local Voices is partnering withTRACS to deliver CPD workshops fora range of professionals working ineducation and the arts to supplementthe core material Gifting Every Child

TRACS: GIFTING EVERY CHILDWhat songs, stories, dance steps and seasonal customs shouldevery child in Scotland know? What belongs to them regardlessof origin, culture or language? Gifting Every Child is acollaborative and multilingual project through which everyoneliving in Scotland can tap into our rich creative culture.

Presented in a simple online format incorporating text, audio,video and helpful guidelines, Gifting Every Child provides amanageable and accessible introduction to the traditional arts thatcan easily be put to use in the classroom, club, community hallor family sitting room. www.tracscotland.org/resources/gifting-every-child

- a collection of traditional songs,stories, dances and other lore as astarting point from which parents,teachers and youth organisations canbuild their own local collections of folkculture.

Chris and Steve will be travelling toseveral locations in the country to helplocal practitioners gain awareness ofthe resources of traditional materialrelating to their local areas, andadvising on how projects for youngpeople can be developed usingmaterial from these resources.

@LocalVoicesCIC [email protected]

The Shieling project is a social enterprise inspired by theheritage, landscapes and traditional culture of HighlandScotland, working with teachers and young people toexplore the natural and cultural heritage of shieling lifeand its significance today.

THE SHEILING PROJECTRE-CONNECTING PEOPLE WITH PLACE

Going to the shieling (àirigh in ScottishGaelic) was a traditional practice ofmoving up to the high ground withlivestock to live there for the summer -a journey many would have madeevery year. Each summer, for a longstretch of our past, young people allover Scotland would play an integralrole in taking the livestock up to hill ormoorland pastures, camping there insmall bothies, learning about the worldbeyond the village. Ruins of shielingsare abundant in high or marginal landin Scotland. The mountain hutsgenerally fell out of use by the end ofthe 17th century, although in remoteareas this system continued well intothe 19th century. In some parts of theWestern Isles, the tradition carried oninto the 1950s.

Founder Sam Harrison, whose idea itwas to start the project, is a specialist inplace-based education and a graduateof the Centre for Human Ecology. Forhim, the experiences on offer at theshieling link to the sustainability of theland and community, a sense of prideand responsibility, and increased mentaland physical well-being: a 'sense ofplace.'

Visiting the Shieling at Struy today,young people have the opportunity toget to grips with skills from ancient tomodern: peat cutting to sustainablebuilding, Gaelic work song andstorytelling to tree planting.

The project also offers professionallearning, becoming the firstorganisation to be accredited by theGeneral Teaching Council for Scotland(GTCS) to deliver a professionallearning programme for teachers inLearning for Sustainability. The projecthopes to make an impact on some ofthe big themes of our times: food,sustainability, health and well-being.

"For the Shieling Project, understandingand immersion into the landscape isn'tan abstract idea, just to be talkedabout. Songs, poems and stories,alongside skills like basketry, peatcutting, walling, are all ways to engagebody and heart (and of course themind) in a relationship with thelandscape that is more than justintellectual. With our whole selvesengaging with a place, we can balanceso many elements: the beauty of theoutdoors, and the bloody midges; ourhopes and ideas of the land, with thelimitations of what we can actually do.Telling and creating stories of a place,in that place, can be very powerful. Ihave seen teachers in tears listening towhat their pupils have produced.

Traditional arts like song, poetryand music are at the centre ofthe Shieling Project, becausethey are a wonderful way ofcutting through to the heart ofthings, and building thatemotional link to the land whichis fundamental for happy peopleand landscapes."

This is an example of a learning projectthat embodies the values andapproaches that are vital if we are toovercome the crises of our time:ecological degradation, alienation andloss of meaning. It can help Scotland'syoung people face a variety ofchallenges: increasing levels ofunhealthiness; physically, mentally andin their local environments; lack ofopportunity to go outdoors; lack ofcontact with heritage and traditions oftheir local area; and little understandingof food production or farming. In thecase of the Scottish Highlands, manyhave grown up with a connection tothe landscape but know little of thestory of the place - the history, thecultural expressions of place, thepoetry, the music, the language.

The project team has the ultimatevision of a modern shieling camp witha micro-dairy and learning centre,leading Scotland in sustainability andheritage education. The idea is simple:to explore the landscape's past to helpshape a more resilient future.

The Shieling Project is run by acommunity of staff, directors, advisors,the local community, funders andfounders.

Sam [email protected]


Tha an làrach seo na eisimpleir dechuid de na chruinnich agus na chaidha chlàradh le naoinear de na daoine aghabh pàirt ann am Fuaran.Tha sinncuideachd air mapa a chruthachadh aleigeas le daoine na h-òrain arannsachadh a-rèir sgìre.

Thathar an dòchas gum bi iad seo nandeagh ghoireas do sheinneadaireanagus luchd-teagaisg, 's gu dearbh gumbi e gam brosnachadh gu bhithrannsachadh agus cruinneachadhtuilleadh òrain Ghàidhlig.

Tha Fèisean nan Gàidheal gu mòr ancomain luchd-maoineachaidh a'phròiseict seo - Maoin Dualchais a'Chrannchuir agus Iomairt na

'S e pròiseact dualchais a th' ann amFuaran a chuir Fèisean nan Gàidheal airdòigh gus ginealach ùr desheinneadairean agus luchd-labhairt naGàidhlig a bhrosnachadh gus òrainGhàidhlig as na sgìrean aca fhèin arannsachadh agus a chruinneachadh.

Thairis air an dà bhliadhna a dh'fhalbhtha còrr math is fichead neach òg aois16-24 air pàirt a ghabhail ann ambùithtean-obrach seinn is trèanaidh lecuid dhe na h-eòlaichean ascomasaiche a th' againn ann an saoghalna Gàidhlig. Tha naoinear air a dhol airadhart gus trèanadh agus rannsachadhna bu dhoimhne a dhèanamh le bhitha' cumail agallamhan le daoine bhochaochladh coimhearsnachd agus a'sgrùdadh chruinneachaidhean agusghoireasan beul-aithris. Tha an sgiobaseo air 22 òran a thrusadh agus achlàradh as ùire, a' toirt dhuinncruinneachaidh phrìseil ùir de dh'òrainGhàidhlig.

Gàidhealtachd is nan Eilean - agus arluchd-compàirt Tobar an Dualchaisagus Colaiste a' Chaisteil (ÀrainnBheinn na Faoghla). Bu thoil leinntaing mhòr a thoirt do dh' AlbaChruthachail, Bòrd na Gàidhlig,Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, Comhairlena Gàidhealtachd agus ComhairleEarra-Ghàidheal is Bhòid airson ancuid taice leantainnich a tha air leigeilleinn Fuaran a stèidheachadh.

Mu dheireadh tha sinn fada an comaingach neach a ghabh pàirt anns a'phròiseact agus a h-uile duine a thugseachad an cuid ùine, òrain agussgeulachdan airson Fuaran - mìle taingdhuibh uile.

FUARAN: CRUINNEACHADH ÙR DE DH'ÒRAINGHÀIDHLIG LE FÈISEAN NAN GÀIDHEALA NEW GAELIC SONG RESOURCE FROM FÈISEAN NAN GÀIDHEAL


teachers and audiences and that it willin turn encourage more people toresearch and learn Gaelic songs. Weare also very grateful to the HeritageLottery Fund, Highland and IslandsEnterprise and to our project partners

Fuaran is a heritage initiative establishedby Fèisean nan Gàidheal to encouragea new generation of Gaelic speakersand singers to actively engage in theresearch and collection of Gaelic songsin their local area.

In the past two years, over twentyyoung people aged 16-24 have takenpart in training and song workshops,led by a host of leading Gaelic songand research experts. The onlineresource provides a selection of someof the material that nine of our Fuaranparticipants have researched andrecorded in their local communities.The hope is this will become a usefulresource for Gaelic singers andteachers, and that it will also encouragethem to research and collect Gaelicsongs.

Fèisean nan Gàidheal DevelopmentOfficer and Fuaran co-ordinator RachelHarris said,

"We hope that Fuaran will be a usefuland engaging resource for singers,

Tobar an Dualchais and Lews CastleCollege UHI, without whom thisproject would not have been possible."

www.feisean.org/fuaran

@fngaidheal

Photograph by Matt Harvey

puts it, to work creatively withreminiscence, anecdote and story onthe individual level but also with the'myths of place' which, 'reflect the waythe collective imagination andunderstanding of a whole populationhas invested a place with meaning'.3

From the point of view of thetraditional arts this is the work whichconnects with the function of the bardswithin communities, creative peoplewith a particular relationship to theirco-habitants in a place, and cruciallywith a deep attachment to that place.A great example of that is the musicianand singer, Ali Beag MacLeod fromAchiltibuie, described by his kinsmanKevin MacLeod, the well-known dancemusician, as having 'roots coming outof his feet straight into the sand andseaweed of Achiltibuie […] you go outon the boat with Ali and he can tellyou all about the coastline, the namesof places, and people who lived therein every small corner.' 4

Part of the engagement with placethen is the engagement with it as thesum total of everything that hashappened in it up to the present point(as geographer Doreen Massey put itin her memorable phrase, the'simultaneity of stories-so-far'), a

present point that is constantly shiftingand which contains within itself theinevitability of change. It is ourknowledge of those processes ofchange and of our attitude to them,the layering of geology and climate,the physical changes to settlementswrought by shifting social andeconomic relations, which contributeto the meaning we invest in place,whether that meaning is sub-consciously felt by individuals orpublicly expressed through thecollective making and re-making ofmyth, legend and song. No two placesare alike, each has its own genius loci,and each informs the self-identity ofthe people who live there in its ownway.

The People's Parish then is aboutworking with communities to find andexplore that genius loci, that sense ofplace, to dig into the cultural memoryand find the resources with which itcan be expressed creatively. Whatinterests us in particular is how the'folk voice' within that cultural memorycan be used to help communities tosay something about themselves tothemselves - and to the world at large- in this early part of the 21st century.

TRADITIONS IN PLACE: THE PEOPLE'S PARISHNEW INTITIATIVE FROM TRACS INSPIRES LOCAL CREATIVITY OF PLACE

The Greek philosopherArchytus said 'Perhaps placeis the first of all things, sinceall existing things are eitherin place or not withoutplace.'

As human beings we are alwaysemplaced. In other words, we'renever not in a place. We don't - can't -exist in an abstract space with nodepth of field or without a horizon ofsome kind. Those depths and horizonsare what make sense of ourperception, make sense of ourexperience as embodied. Places havethe effect of gathering in those depthsand horizons, giving them a sense ofwholeness which enables us to returnto them, remember them and classifythem in some way. But as well ashaving those physical qualities, placesare both an end point and a transitionpoint of time and history, ever shifting.Culture gathers in place, just as itgathers in the bodies which perceiveplace. As Edward S. Casey puts it, 'Asplaces gather bodies in their midst indeeply enculturated ways, so culturesenjoin bodies in concretecircumstances of emplacement.'

It is the complete congruence of placeand culture which interested PatrickGeddes, the great Scottish polymath.Place for him was part of a trinity thatalso encompassed 'Work' and 'Folk', allthree necessary components of anunderstanding of the ecology ofhuman settlements. One of Geddes'schampions, Murdo MacDonald, pointsout2 that, for Geddes, 'Place WorkFolk', were not geographical,economic or anthropologicalabstractions, but the interactingelements of a process that shapesplaces not only physically butpsychologically; how Folk makemeaning of Place through acts ofcollective imagination.

TRACS’ new initiative the People'sParish is very much about the kind ofprogramme suggested by storyteller,Hugh Lupton. Part of its task is, as he


Others might concur or inevitably addto that and so a picture is built up. Inthat kind of detail lies the localdistinctiveness which informs historical,cultural and ecological richness5.Geddes himself wrote:

'Local character is no mereaccidental old-world quaintness,as its mimics think and say. It isattained only in the course ofadequate grasp and treatment ofthe whole environment, and inactive sympathy with theessential and characteristic life ofthe place concerned. Each placehas a true personality.6

It is our ambitious aim to involve thewhole of Scotland, but we are takingas our starting point the 15 parishes inMidlothian each with its own distinctivecharacter, from the expanse of Falaand Soutra in the south, to the sprawlof Newbattle in the north. TRACSinvited local activists, artists andcommunity organisations to a day toexplore how the People's Parish could

work in the fifteen parishes ofMidlothian on Saturday 10thSeptember at the National MiningMuseum, when a mix of speakers, amap workshop, and local song andstory from Kirsty Law and Lea Taylorset up what we hope will be a fruitfulstart to the initiative.

Purpose

To stimulate participation

To empower communities acrossScotland to access, explore, shapeand own their local assets

To record local culture

To enable connections betweenlocal history, archaeology,literature, intangible culturalheritage and creativity

To affirm the work of localpractitioners

To broker platforms for theexpression and celebration of localculture and creativity

To equalise opportunities forsupport


In this we are emulating in some waysthe model used in the latter part of the18th century when ministers wereenjoined to contribute to the StatisticalAccount of Scotland, a parish-by-parishsummary of the economic and moralstate of the nation. Now this soundsdry as your mammy's washing on adry day for good drying, but in amongthe lists of average swede productionby the bushel there is fascinatinginformation about the topography,occupations, stories and histories ofplaces the boundaries of which are stillrecognised today. (The civil parishesonly ceased to become a unit ofgovernment in Scotland as recently as1930, and their boundaries are stillused by the census today.)

They are a wonderful starting point forthe exploration of distinctiveness ofplaces - local details, landmarks,geology and geography, resources (thenatural dimension); and ourconnections with the 'layering' of aplace - of what has happened in theplace before the present day and howthe resonances of past events persistinto the present (the cultural or humandimension). The difference is that,instead of the account being a statisticalone created and edited by one personin a position of privilege ('top down'),the People's Parish aims to be acreative one, fashioned from thebottom up.

We have identified a 7 stageprocess for bringing the People'sParish initiative to life (see panel)One example of action-research,developed by the environmentalcharity, Common Ground, shows howdetails can be brought to light. The'ABC' puts everything on the samelevel, puts unexpected things next toeach other and perhaps catches themin a different light. It can be quirky orcommonplace. Different people willvalue different things, but that's whatmakes it interesting.

If I was to think about my homecommunity of Portobello in Edinburgh,for example, my ABC, off the top ofmy head, might include:

Amusements, the Beach, theBoatyard, the Cakestand,Cormorants, the Daisy Park, EiderDucks, Figgate Burn, Georgiancottages, Gargoyles, Harry Lauder,Hugh Miller, Istanbul, Joppa Rocks,the Kilns, Lee Crescent, Miami Viceapartments, the Prom, Redshanks,Setts, Town Halls, the Tower, Terns,Turkish Baths, Weather-vanes.

1 PRELIMINARYENGAGEMENT

WHO ARE: The local networks Potential partners The anchor organisations The individual activists Where are the resources

2 ACTION-RESEARCHeg: Ways of showing local

distinctiveness Abc Parish maps Stories, traditions,

topography 'Made in…'

Workshops on local traditions Story circles Interviews

STAGES3 FORMULATION OF

CREATIVE IDEAS Report-back and presentation

of material documented inaction-research (an event):what are the key assets, ideas?

Propose a choice of projectmodels based on these (peoplecan choose)

Can be cross art-form

4 CREATIVE LEARNING What skills need to be

developed to realise theproject? What learning?

5 PERFORMANCE/EXHIBITION/ INSTALLATION

6 EVALUATION

7 DOCUMENTING ANDARCHIVING

1 Edward S. Casey, 'How to Get from Space to Place in a Fairly Short Stretch of Time', in Steven Feld and Keith Basso (eds), Senses of Place (Santa Fe: School of American Research Press, 1996), p.46

2 Murdo Macdonald, 'Patrick Geddes: Environment and Culture' in Walter Stephen (ed.) Think Global, Act Local: The Life and Legacy of Patrick Geddes (Edinburgh: Luath Press, 2004)

3 Hugh Lupton, The Dreaming of Place (Combe Martin: Daylight Press, 2001)4 Joe Peach, 'Rhu Beag', Living Tradition (114) 20165 Sue Clifford and Angela King (eds). Local distinctiveness: place, particularity and identity. Essays for a

conference, Sept. 28, 1993 (London: Common Ground, 1993)6 Patrick Geddes, Cities in Evolution (London: Williams and Norgate, 1915)

THE DEEPCONNECTIONBETWEEN MUSICAND DANCEIn my recently completed PhD thesis,I considered the attitudes of Scottishtraditional musicians towards danceand dancers towards music, andassessed how these attitudes mighthave evolved. A common themeemerged from the musicians anddancers I interviewed: to playsuccessfully for dance, musiciansshould also be dancers.

I interviewed musicians and dancersinvolved with Highland dancing,percussive step dance and ceilidhdancing. These styles of dance share alargely common musical repertoirethrough the use of strathspeys, reelsand jigs. Each style places differentrequirements on how the music isperformed in relation to tempo, styleand rhythmic emphasis. Myrespondents identified that there isvery little available in the way oftraining for musicians in any of thesestyles - other than developing theirown awareness of the differentrequirements of each dance style.

Highland dancers concentrate onachieving technical excellence in theirperformance of each dance. Thismeans that they concentrate on thebeat of the music rather than on themelody. Two dancers described theirexperience at a competition wherethe piper 'started playing a tune thatwe'd never heard of, and we couldn'twork out where the beat was [...]And then the judges saw we werecompletely lost, and stopped thepiper to get him to play a differenttune'.

Dance piping and solo competitivepiping are very different disciplines.One piper, with experience of both,explained that Highland dance pipingis 'a very different way of approachingthe music'. He continued:

I could understand why I had beentold not to [play for Highland dancing]because it's actually quite difficult tochange your musical mindset. Youhave to put aside a lot of the thingsyou've been told, especially in termsof tempo. Marches, strathspeys, reelsand jigs - these are the kind of tunes

PLAYING FOR DANCING


that solo players play in competition.Although they have the names ofdances - the strathspey, the reel, thejig - there's no way that a dancer coulddance to the performance of a solo[competitive] piper playing thesetunes. They've been altered beyonddanceability.

Not only is it difficult for pipers toadapt their style of playing, but manypipers may not even be aware of theneed to adapt.

Some percussive step dancers Iinterviewed felt that the musicperformed in Scotland was not suitedto their style of dancing. It can bedifficult to fit the often complicatedfootwork to it. One dancer noted thatwhen preparing for teaching, he wouldchoose recordings from Cape Bretonover Scottish recordings, although, heexplained, 'occasionally you might findone or two tracks on a Blazin' Fiddlesalbum, but not everything [is suitablefor dancing]. You would really be hardpushed'.

Another dancer made a similarobservation after experiencingdisappointment trying to step dance toScottish music.

She had expected that 'almost anytraditional Scottish music should besuitable [and] you could step dance toit. But I've found that that's not thecase'. It appears that a problem for

step dancers in Scotland is that not manymusicians are aware of the rhythmicemphasis and impetus that the dancestyle demands.

Musicians have different conceptions ofwhat constitutes excitement and interestfor ceilidh dancers but perhapsexcitement and interest may not be whatthe dancer requires. Some novice ceilidhdancers told me that what they neededmost from the music was a steady beat.They were so concerned with thephysical geography of the dances thatthey were not particularly aware ofmelodic or key changes and changes intempo could throw them right off track.A steady pulse meant that 'it's easier tokeep with the music for dancing' as onedancer explained. As dancers becamemore familiar with the dances, theirmusical awareness increased, but evenexperienced dancers noted that theyneeded a strong, steady beat from theband to 'hold everything together'.

It seems that the more understandingthe musician has of the needs of thedancer, the more successful theexperience will be for both dancers andmusicians. If you are a musician whoaspires to play for dancing, get yourselfalong to a dance class!

Pat Ballantyne@[email protected]

Photograph by Simon Baker


Back in 2007, when my own children were small, I took them to a few family ceilidhs.At that time, it seemed that many gatherings were geared to families only in the sensethat they had children attending (getting ignored or squashed underfoot, quite often).

CEILIDH KIDS

There often appeared to be noconcession to children's confidencelevels, attention spans, stamina, noisesensitivity or bedtimes. So I thought itwould be fun to organise a little groupso that we, and other families weknew, could have some fun together. Ibooked a hall for a pilot six-weekblock and soon our numbers hadswelled.

Nine years later, my colleague KatyGray and I now run four pre-schoolfamily sessions a week in Edinburgh.We have several bookings mostweekends - mostly birthday partiesand fundraisers. Schools and nurserieshave invited us to lead sessions.CeilidhKids has participated in somelarge scale family-oriented festivals,including Scottish dancing among theactivities on offer. Overseas families -often connected to the University -are keen to explore Scottish cultureand many local mums and dads wantto share half-forgotten dances withtheir children but need a reminder!

Whilst we welcome families of anyage, CeilidhKids' main area ofspecialism is the early years age group,accompanied by parents, carers, orolder siblings. Our wee friends haveshort attention spans, so the success ofa dance must never rely on anyonebeing in the right place at the righttime. Little ones often wander offunexpectedly, or have their own ideasabout how the dance should go(suddenly lying down in the middle ofthe floor being a particularly popularvariant). If you are three years old andhave been encouraged to spend eightbars heading for somewhere inparticular, you need to spend the nexteight bars settling into that place, notimmediately heading off somewhereelse.

Similarly, if a pre-school child isrequired to stand still for eight bars,you have to specify this, otherwisethey'll just skip off elsewhere. To let goof your partner's hand is very scary. Tohold a stranger's hand is usuallyimpossibly threatening. Everyone hasto be allowed to cling to someoneelse at all times, and it's too much toexpect anyone to stand on the correctside of their partner, so the dancemustn't depend on this either. An adultmay bring multiple children, so everydance must be possible with twopartners, or whilst carrying a baby ortoddler.

A few dances need very littlemodification. We finish every sessionwith a ceilidh-style non-progressiveCircassian Circle. We have made afew alterations to the Gay Gordons,Britannia Two-Step, SwedishMasquerade, (a big hit! - now retitledGiants, Trees and Frogs) and the FlyingScotsman, and written a few newdances of our own. Most arecompatible with the 'traditional' versionof the dance, so anyone familiar withthe regular version can participate inthe usual way. Children need to standnext to their adults rather thanopposite, so the Flying Scotsman andGrand Old Duke of York involve a lineof families facing a line of families, andtwo top couples slipstep down the

middle simultaneously. It's usually bestto have only one main point of focus,so we tend to dance in one large circleor one very long set, rather thansplitting into small groups. An advantageof this is that the set can progress at itsown pace, so if a sequence takes anextra eight bars at some point, nobodygets out of synch. Having a sympatheticand alert musician is an advantage here,as he or she can just slip in a few extrabars as required…

We launched Ceilidh Kids in Glasgowin 2014, with local mum and dancerMireia Anon-Rebollo at the helm.Mireia runs most of her sessions innurseries and through the Gaelicschool. Word is spreading, leading toseveral fundraising ceilidhs in the area,and Mireia is planning to run monthlyfamily dances. Meanwhile, for me, oneof the huge advantages of living inEdinburgh is the immediate availabilityof the Festival Fringe, in which itbecame obvious that CeilidhKidsshould participate. In August 2015 weorganised 35 free family sessions,which were exhausting, hot andchaotic, but great fun and massivelypopular.

Caroline Brockbank@CeilidhKids @GlasgowCK [email protected]

SENSING PLACE - A KIND OF SEEING

What stories are important to you?Sensing Place harnesses the power ofstorytelling and archive film to explorenew ways to get involved in creativework that has its roots in where youlive.

The project began life when we(producers Shona Thomson andAndrew Ormston) compared notesand decided to build on ourrespective work in developing newapproaches to arts and screenprogramming in rural areas. Morespecifically, we were interested in theimpact of screening local archive filmin events. Hippodrome Festival ofSilent Cinema (Shona) and Berwickupon Tweed Film & Media ArtsFestival (Andrew) had successfullybroadened audience interest withlocal screen archive material.

Sensing Place was created to explorehow this approach could forge betterconnections between the resourcesof national cultural institutions andlocal promoters as well as providing aplatform for creative work in ruralcommunities.

We also wanted to explore aninterdisciplinary approach that wouldcombine storytelling, arts, curationand film. We were mightilyencouraged in this by an earlydiscussion with Donald Smith ofTRACS who pointed to a close affinitybetween oral and cinematicstorytelling. This was to be a projectthat was as much about the processesof developing and presenting work asthe finished product, and our aim isto create pathways for futurepartnerships and projects.

We quickly realised that the projectwould offer most opportunities forcollaboration by focusing on threeadjacent areas and held a round ofplanning meetings with local partnersranging from venues like The Stove inDumfries and The Dick Institute inKilmarnock, to events organisers likeMoniaive Festival Village and AlchemyFilm Festival, to organisations likeCABN and East Ayrshire Leisure. Welearnt that there was a real andwidespread interest in local screenmaterial, whether it was collecting it,archiving it, or being creative with it.We also learnt that communities arekeen to tell their stories to thinkabout both the past and the future,and to link different generations in theprocess.

Communities across East Ayrshire,Dumfries & Galloway and the ScottishBorders are now working withstoryteller (Jean Edmiston), filmmaker

www.tracscotland.org 12

NEW MODELS FOR CULTURAL PARTICIPATION

(Anne-Marie Copestake) and 'screenbandita' (Lydia Beilby) to create newsite-specific works in partnership withlocal festivals and promoters as part ofthe Storytelling Festival's Festival onTour programme. The three SensingPlace artists are a collaborative team,looking to combine and explore theirdifferent skills and disciplines as theywork. You will be able to followprogress on our project blog(sensingplace.eu) and on our twitteraccount (@creativeclachan).

Sensing Place has had tremendoussupport at every stage ofdevelopment. Film Hub Scotland,Regional Screen Scotland, theNational Library of Scotland's MovingImage Archive and TRACS helped uson our way. Creative Scotland aresupporting the project and SensingPlace is one of two Britain on Filmprojects supported by the BFI inScotland this year. There will be apresentation on the project withextracts from the resulting work aspart of the Scottish InternationalStorytelling Festival's 'Dare to Dream'programme on UNESCO's WorldDay for Audiovisual Heritage -Thursday 27th October at 11am inthe Scottish Storytelling Centre.

Andrew Ormiston &Shona [email protected]

Its background is as follows; in 2001 agroup of thirty storytellers met at theMaison du Conte near Paris andexperimented with multilingual tellingand thought on the possibility of aEuropean Federation. The firstconference was held in Oslo in 2008;it then travelled annually toSwitzerland, England and Spain. Bythe time it got to Belgium in 2012 ithad become an international non-profit organisation. Rome in 2013was attended by our Andy Hunter.By this time, non-Europeanorganisations could become associatemembers. It then went to Sweden,Greece and most recently France.Next year it will be held in Ireland.

This year, the main focus was onpreparing for European funding inorder to create an official Networkamidst a full programme of talks,workshops and events. Eachstoryteller was asked to bring a song,proverbs, publication details oflegends by a respected collector, acollection of seeds and a traditionaldrink. I wondered how many storieseach teller had in their head andwhether they had declared these atcustoms...

The conference started with Franceand the revival of storytelling in thatcontext - its past and future projects.Writer Erica Wagner presented'Reality and Fiction' which led on to apresentation around the telling of truestories with Jack Lynch and theatredirector Hassan el Gueretly, who hasbeen working with telling true storiesof the Arabic spring. Brendan Nolanand Micaela Sauber from 'TellersWithout Borders' spoke of their workwith refugees. Micaela spokeadmirably regarding the use ofstorytelling in these environments, ofthe dangers of triggering and thepositive outcomes if timed accordingly

between PTSD which can becomeuntreatable to PTG, post traumaticgrowth.

Given that the main focus this yearwas the European grant, we neededto ascertain how to define a'European Storyteller.' What shouldtheir repertoire be? How shouldpolitics, social etiquette andnationalisms be approached? Whatmakes a professional Europeanstoryteller and defines creativeexcellence? How should they bepresented on social media and how?So many questions! With 58languages - and the fluidity of story, itstranslations, versions, roots and itsassumed and established ownerships- this led to a lively debate. Arepertoire of 'themes' may be theanswer: those fundamentals thattransgress throughout, love, kindness,peace, displacement, etc.

Bruno de la Salle from the executivecommittee presented his storytellingphilosophy. He told me he had metTraveller Duncan Williamson inEdinburgh in 1972 at anAnthropology Society meeting. This isan example of the intrinsic linkbetween storytellers: storytelling is astate of mind movement that sweepsalong those open and willing.

The European library and collectionof stories, legends, versions andtranslations will be discussed further inIreland next year, but it was clear thatthe fundamental intention ofstorytellers is reflected equallythroughout Europe and beyond. Ofcourse there are differences intradition and approach, in verbaletiquettes and referral methods. Thequestion is this: how do we ensureintangible heritage is retained? Bycontinuing our established oralmethods and respecting them whilstbeing gracious, with the knowledge

stories, once free, cannot berepressed.

Given the current political climate,displacement and the predicamentfaced by refugees were topics of greatdiscussion. An Iranian student NilufarGharavi presented her designs andtheory behind easily transportableunits that can be taken into campsand communities for storytellers,artists and therapists to utilise.Bridging Borders is a simple andpractical idea, supported by theNORCAP. The design is impressiveand hopefully this will be embraced.

FEST continues to gathermomentum, and every year morepeople attend. Like anything thatinvolves varying cultures andlanguages, things need discussing andimplementing gradually to establish aplatform from which everyone canwork. If the European grantapplication is successful, it could leadto some great connections andfabulous opportunities. Tandem tellingbetween languages and an establishedlibrary with origin and translated talesopens us up to really interconnectand create new links. It offers theopportunity to exchange bestpractice, learn and develop our skillsand implement larger combinedprojects which can be built upon foryears to come. Our involvement withFEST is exciting and full of possibilities.

Here are some links for you to gainmore insight, along with the onlymagazine dedicated to storytelling inFrance, La Grande Oreille.

Claire [email protected]@live.co.ukwww.fest-network.euwww.lagrandeoreille.com/www.tellers-without-borders.net


STORYTELLINGIN EUROPEStoryteller Claire Druett recentlytravelled to France to meet withEuropean friends and represent theScottish Storytelling Forum at theannual FEST conference (Federationof European Storytelling). Fest Storytelling in KEA, Greece, 2015

I was struck, during a one monthwriter's residency in Finland, of thepeer-to-peer approach to sharing skillsand working practices. To me it madesense. Especially as adults - as mostapprentice storytellers are - we cometo this part of our journey with arichness of experience alreadygathered along the way. It makessense to share that. So those were mythoughts: to help give a sense ofidentity and supportive community tothe group of people wishing to beprofessional storytellers, and to in partdo this in a skills-sharing andgenerously spirited way.

Though a serious word -'apprenticeship' - the truth is it is afairly loose apprenticeship and it islargely up to what each person makesof it. There are many opportunities inScotland to make much of this journey- this schooling - this equipping oneselfwith the necessary skills, confidenceand understanding to then work as astoryteller.

We have apprentice gatherings at theScottish Storytelling Centre threetimes a year. These are whole-dayget-togethers that are largely peer-led.I ask apprentices if they would like tooffer a workshop on any aspect ofstorytelling. So far, these offerings havebeen diverse, rich and wonderful. Italso gives apprentices an opportunityto run a workshop. As for storytellerswe know that there are many thingsyou are expected to turn your hand to- telling stories in front of an audienceis just one of them.

We have had workshops in how toincorporate singing into yourstorytelling, how to make use ofprops, how to project your voice,how to guide people in storytelling onthe street, how to work withchallenging teenagers, how to blendstorytelling and museum exhibits, howto use storytelling as a tool for self-development. We have gone onshamanic journeys with our stories,learnt about archetypes as a way ofinhabiting story characters, and muchmore. We always make a space forstory crafting groups during this day,giving apprentices the chance to tell atale in a small group and receive somefeedback. I often ask someone fromthe storytelling community to give ashort talk as a part of this day -perhaps informing people on whatwork they do, or to offer practicaladvice on how to publicise themselvesas storytellers etc.

In addition to the apprentice days wealso have performances, usually two ayear, in the theatre, called 'Stories onthe Way.' This gives apprentices theopportunity to tell a story to - wehope! - a fairly large audience in thetheatre. Again, our style of workingtogether is in the spirit of communitywith the essence of the ceilidh at theheart of how the evening is shapedand how storytellers introduce eachother.

In my role, I am happy to meet withpeople and chat about their storytellingdevelopment. Other than that, it is aquestion of seeking and shaping yourown apprenticeship.


I recommend that people to go alongto the Guid Crack Club, to CaféVoices, and also to go along to themany storytelling clubs and groupsaround the country that are springingup. These groups are immenselyhelpful and great fun. In this way,people learn what oral traditionalstorytelling is. They are givenencouragement and feedback.

I also encourage people to doworkshops - like Starting with Stories,and more.

Most people on the apprenticeshipwould agree that to reach a placewhere you can confidently and skilfullywork in different environments andwith different groups and audiences asa storyteller, it takes a lot of work,voice work, body work, understandingthe spirit of oral storytelling, learningstories and how to engage withaudiences.

The criteria for the Directory states astoryteller should have been workingfor three years - and in my experiencethat is often how long it takes. Ofcourse it depends on where peoplehave come from, and what they havebrought with them. This is not atraining aiming to turn out people whoall have the same style - quite theopposite.

The apprenticeship fosters community,and growth, with the hope that thefuture of storytelling in Scotland is infine voice and warm spirit.

Janis [email protected] @janismackay

THE STORYTELLING APPRENTICESHIP

The storytelling apprenticeship - atany rate with that name - has beengoing for four years now, althoughof course every storyteller in theirvery different ways has undertakentheir own apprenticeship. I felt itwas good to have a word that gavean identity to a group of people, allof whom and in diverse ways, areworking towards joining theDirectory of professionalstorytellers in Scotland.


MY STORYTELLING JOURNEYSince starting the ScottishStorytelling Centreapprenticeship programmein 2014, I've gained somuch. My knowledge andskills have developed hugelyand my love for storytellingitself has grown and grown.

Along with Andrew Coull, I run Suitand Pace, a performing artsorganisation and social enterpriseoffering meaningful experiences with afocus on fun. We work mostly withchildren, young people and adults withdisabilities and storytelling has becomea huge part of what we do. It offers somuch potential for generatingdiscussion and I love working in amedium that focuses on creating aparticipative relationship with theaudience.

When I turned up at my firstapprenticeship session, I was definitelymore of a writer than a performer (ithad been years since I'd last dabbled instudent comedy) but seeing howannoyingly good Andrew was inspiredme to have a go. The workshops onthe programme, generally led by fellowapprentices, really got me interested intraditional tales. I've been pretty muchaddicted to uncovering fresh storiesever since I realised how much fun itcan be to make them your own, todraw out the humour, or a particularmessage. I'm especially interested inScottish and Welsh tales, as I'm luckyenough to have a ninety-one year oldWelsh Grandma who can teach me theodd snippet of her native language (I'vemanaged to impress a few eight yearolds with my limited skills!).

Janis Mackay runs the apprenticeshipprogramme and is a huge support to allof us - a chat with her last year reallyhelped me to move forward with mystorytelling. She encouraged me to doa workshop for the other apprentices,to seek advice from more experiencedstorytellers, to join a storytelling groupand to offer to perform at the ScottishStorytelling Centre. I'd advise anyoneon the programme to have a bletherwith Janis sometime - believe me, herfaith and encouragement will move youforward.

After chatting with Janis, I basicallyfollowed all of her advice. Andrew andI did an apprentice workshop on issue-based storytelling, a major focus of ourwork (and a particular passion for me,as a trained community educationworker). This was a great bit ofexperience and led to me being askedto speak at the Village StorytellingFestival in March. I've picked thewonderful brains of storytellersincluding Sylvia Troon, Kate Walker,Sheila Kinninmouth and Ailie Finlay -everyone has been so generous withtheir time and advice (and Sylvia evenlet me play with her amazingpuppets!). I've also been to BurghBlethers in Dunfermline and BletherTay-Gither in Dundee - thesestorytelling groups have given me agreat chance to try new material in asafe space, and I'd recommend both asthoroughly friendly environmentswhere you can get brilliant advice andsuggestions. Andrew and I have alsonow performed at the ScottishStorytelling Centre, providing a TinyTales session in January, which felt likea major achievement for both of us

(and was also lots of fun).

Over the past year, I have built up myexperience through running more thanforty storytelling sessions, and afterperforming in schools, in tents and atfestivals, I definitely feel like more of astoryteller! Storytelling always seemsto lead to new challenges - I've startedto develop my puppetry skills, I'velearnt to juggle, I've made everythingfrom bunting to pom-pom spiders,and I've walked around Kirkcaldydressed as a jester (life is rarely dull).Performing alongside my fellowapprentices at 'Stories on the Way' inApril felt really special, and it was greatto see everyone developing their ownstyles and growing as performers. Iwas delighted to complete myapprenticeship this year and registeron the professional directory. It hasbeen such a supportive experienceand I'd recommend it to anyone whowants to get serious about storytelling.

Beth Hamilton-Cardus@SuitandPace [email protected]


'History is true but stories are madeup', is a persistent presumption. However, history is not 'facts;' it is theinterpretation - usually narratives - thatwe create to make sense of theevidence we have. So, actually, historyand storytelling feed off each other allthe time.That is why 'The History Press'produces books of folk tales reflectingthe culture and traditions of all parts ofBritain and Ireland. Scotland is stronglyrepresented with eight existing titles,with another six to come over thenext year. For my purposes, it is ahappy coincidence that the mostrecent new Scottish title is ScottishHistory - Strange but True by Johnand Noreen Hamilton. This is abravura compendium of the strange,the curious, the fabulous and the true!Our two storytelling authors are out toprove that truth can be moreentertaining than fiction and they havedone a first-rate job. The book is alsovery well structured and illustrated andwould make a great present. It wouldbe invidious to pick examples fromsuch a diverse treasure trove - readand enjoy!History is of special interest as 2017has been designated Scotland's Year ofHistory, Heritage and Archaeology.There are lots of opportunities forstorytellers and educators, so youmight fruitfully dip into HistoryThrough Stories: Teaching PrimaryHistory with Storytelling. The caveathere is that Hawthorn Press''Storytelling Schools' series is based onthe English curriculum, not Curriculumfor Excellence. Nonetheless, theauthors - Chris Smith, Adam Guillanand Nanette Noonan - provide a freshand helpful selection of approacheswith varieties of stories and crosscurricular connections to consider. TheScottish storyteller can make a creativetransfer into Scottish specific resources. What shines through is that it is storiesthat arouse our interest, stimulatingactive learning. It is where the storytakes our minds and imaginations thatmatters, rather than the genre orstatus of story in itself. We begin withstories, then research and discover,and then create a richer, fullernarrative…and so on.

BOOK BLETHERSSTORIES, STONES AND BONES

Sometimes this is called lifelong learning.Which takes us to the recent scholarly(and expensive!) book about HamishHenderson, The Voice of the People:Hamish Henderson and ScottishCultural Politics by Corey Gibson. Thisis an important study, undertaken by ayoung academic who did not knowHenderson personally, but through hiswritings and recordings. It is a shamethat Gibson's researches are confined tosuch an academic presentation andsometimes style, because they areprofoundly relevant to everything theStorytelling Centre and TRACS aretrying to achieve.Some previous commentators haveseen a division between HamishHenderson's poetry/art, and hisdevotion to folk culture. But whatGibson shows is that his life and workwere united by the desire to restoreartists to the kind of socially integratedroles and functions he felt they hadperformed in traditional societies.Having studied everything Hamishwrote myself, and tried inadequately toput it into practice, I could not agreemore. In the words chosen by TimNeat for the title of his biography,'Poetry becomes People' - throughcreative struggle and social immersion.Never have we had so much need ofthe kind of holistic imaginative activismpracticed and preached by HamishHenderson, the Gille Mór. He is still afew long strides ahead and we need tobe catching up on him in Scotland andacross this struggling planet.George Macpherson's new book TheOld Grey Magician goes in a distinctivenew direction. George focusses on onestrand of oral tradition, recoveringstories of a mysterious figure 'the greymagician,' sometimes 'the dark druid',who plays an important but unexplainedpart in the Fionn cycle. Here, Skye'sredoubtable tradition bearer fills the gap,and repossesses Fionn from the literaryverse of his namesake James 'Ossian'MacPherson. This is an excitingdevelopment, especially if it leads toGaelic and Scottish culture taking a freshdaylight rather than Celtic twilight lookat these fantastic stories. This is a part ofour cultural heritage that has been sadlymisrepresented and is ready for a newdawn. - Donald Smith

SCOTTISH HISTORY- STRANGEBUT TRUE John and Noreen HamiltonThe History Press, 2016ISBN 9780750966306

HISTORY THROUGH STORIES:TEACHING PRIMARY HISTORYWITH STORYTELLING Chris Smith, Adam Guillan andNanette Noonan Hawthorn Press, 2016ISBN 9781907359446

THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE:HAMISH HENDERSON ANDSCOTTISH CULTURAL POLITICS Corey Gibson Edinburgh University Press, 2015 ISBN 9780748696574

THE OLD GREY MAGICIAN: ASCOTTISH FIONN CYCLEGeorge MacphersonISBN: 9781910745410

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