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

ISSUE 36 - SPRING 2019

SCOTLAND'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

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COMMON GROUNDSDonald Smith looks forward to a year of TRACS activism

What can we learn in common fromthe Traditional Arts? Apart that is fromall the creative skills involved in music,dance, storytelling, folk drama, craftsand seasonal customs?

They show how people have goneon through times of crisis -environmental and political - byconnecting with sources of changeand continuity. Could that work for usnow as the planet heats up andcompetition for resources lads to wallbuilding, river damming and fear of'the other'?

Well, possibly, because planet earth isour shared home. There is only onefor us, and it functions as oneintegrated, dynamic organism.Tradition tells us this, but so doesscience and spiritual intuition.Everything is held together incommon.

So what is the cultural parallel? Youcan read all about it in a great weebook called Making Common Cause(ISBN 978-1-5272-3199-3),published by Voluntary Arts. Our ownDavid Francis is a contributor, and forme its like an autobiographicaljourney through decades ofcommunity arts activism. But the keyidea is 'Cultural Commoning'. That ismoving away from individualism,consumerism and media stereotyping,in order to connect with people,place and seasonal rhythms - allexpressed through shared creativeactions.

In 2019 and beyond, TRACS willforeground these connections. Wewill advocate for local culturalexperiences and value; promote thepeople's parish methodology, apply toUNESCO for recognition as an

international supporter of IntangibleCultural Heritage, and launch aGlobal Storytelling Lab in associationwith The Earth Charter Initiative. Thiswill involve all the arts of Tradition,reflection the Scottish InternationalStorytelling Festival's 2019 theme of'Beyond Words'.

Across Scotland artists, communityactivists, ecologists, educators andaware citizens are joining together tomake the changes that we all need. Indoing that we are connecting in turnwith a worldwide struggle to takedown the walls, unblock the energyflows, and recognise the stranger asour guest and friend.

It's time for us collectively to beactive, creative and committed totransformational change.

Be part of it!

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Photo: Folk Dance Remixed,courtesy of www.folkdanceremixed.com

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WAYFARERSDavid Francis reflects on a project linking young musicians with their own localities

Although we often talk about'Scottish traditional music' it iseasy to forget that every localarea has its own tradition ofmusic and song, some ofwhich has become part of thecanon, and some of whichstays closer to home.The Heritage Lottery Fund seemedto offer a tantalising opportunity toexplore some of that local repertoire,so in partnership with ten festivalmembers of the Traditional MusicForum across Scotland we devised aproject to take advantage of thatopportunity. The idea was that a'flying squad', named 'The Wayfarers'and comprising the finalists in the2017 Young Traditional Musician ofthe Year, would research music fromthe areas where the festivals are held,while the local festivals identifiedyoung musicians who would beinterested in taking part in the project.The Wayfarers would then visit thearea, workshop the material with theyoung people, and work it up, readyfor performance at their local festival.

Heritage Lottery didn't go for itunfortunately, but, after piloting thescheme in Innerleithen in theBorders, we had a good grasp ofhow it might work, which stood us ingood stead when the Royal

Edinburgh Military Tattoo offeredgrants for traditional arts developmentwork. This time we restricted ourpartners to two, Kirriemuir MusicFestival, which takes place inSeptember, and the Islay Sessions,which happens in November. Thistime we were successful, and ourwayfaring team of fiddler SallySimpson, guitarist Calum Morrisonand singer Josie Duncan set to workdigging out material for theforthcoming workshops, usingresources such as Tobar an Dualchais.

Co-ordinating three busy, early-career musicians was never going tobe the easiest of tasks but we finallymanaged to integrate the workshopdates with their gigging and teachingschedule. For Kirrie, Josie chose asong that is undeniably part of thecanon, 'Busk, Busk', a great travellerfavourite which references the Angusglens of Glen Isla and Glen Shee. Aswell as teaching the song, the groupalso worked with the youngsters onways of arranging it for fiddles, guitarand bass, and the whole groupperformed it, along with some localfiddle tunes selected by Sally, at theevening concert in the Airlie Arms.

With the help of Fèis Ile as well as theIslay Sessions festival, the Wayfarersworked with the young people on a

Gaelic song this time, Ceann TráighGhruinneart, and a selection of tunesfrom the local piping tradition. Againthe fruits of their efforts were heardby a wider audience at an IslaySessions concert in Bruichladdich Hall.

The Wayfarers group showedimmense skill and sensitivity in theirwork with the young people. Whilewe should never neglect thecontribution of older tradition bearersthere is undoubtedly a place for thetransmission of traditional material toyounger people by skilled youngmusicians. Despite their relative youththe Wayfarers have amassed a greatdeal of experience in performing andteaching. The combination of thoseskills and the potency of local materialreferencing stories and landmarksfamiliar to young participants is onemeans of ensuring the continuity oftraditions in place.

TMF's thanks to Ellie Logan, AlySkidmore, Iona Fyfe, Scott Gardiner,Gráinne Brady and Ciara MacTaggartfor their help with this project, whichwas funded by the Royal EdinburghMilitary Tattoo Traditional ArtsDevelopment Fund, to which gratefulthanks is also due, and to Tracs whoprovided the back-up admin. You cansee a short film about the projecthere: https://bit.ly/2H3znrU

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The Scottish solo dance tradition is peppered with storiesattached to specific dances which appear in Highland Gamesand performance programmes, and today commonly alsoon the internet, These, range in content from:

The sword dance appearing in the eleventh-century withScottish King Malcolm Canmore dancing it;

Wilt thou go to the Barracks, Johnnie? being used as adance to recruit soldiers for the Scottish regiments;

The Highland Fling as imitating the strength and agility ofa leaping or 'curvetting' stag;

Various dances with connections with the 1745-1746Jacobite Rising and its aftermath;

The Seann Triubhas being linked to 1746 Dress Actprohibiting the wearing of tartan; and

Flora MacDonald's Fancy devised in honour of theJacobite heroine Flora MacDonald.

Most of these stories suggest an originfor a dance anchored in a distant past,but they may also form some level ofmeaning-making. Are they even true?In many cases not at all. It could bethat they were created to helpdancers perform certain dances withparticular images in mind.

This work questions whether there isany actual truth to the stories bytaking some of the facts apart. Themain questions are: What function didthe story have for dance teachers anddancers in the nineteenth andtwentieth centuries? Why was itnecessary to validate the dances bysetting them in antiquity? Are therestill purposes served by these storiesif and when they are applied today?Also, is it now, or even, was it ever,necessary for dancers to have acertain image, or story, in mind tohelp them perform these dances incharacter? By outlining anddeliberating on historical referenceson some of the best-known Scottishsolo dances, this overview placesthese associated stories against acontextual and historical framework.The analysis set out equally toinvestigate what was, and is currently,the meaning-making behind thesestories.

We first take a detailed look at severalstories of suggested meaning-makingrelated to the three main dances ofthe Highland dancing repertoire oftoday-Highland Fling, the SeannTriubhas and the Sword dance. Eachof these has at least one story, that onsome level, has lived on intocommon knowledge amongpractitioners of Highland dancingtoday. Three dances with storiesrelating to the Jacobite rising of 1745-1746 are discussed next, where weask if they have any real connectionwith this historical event. After that, Iexplore ten 'miscellaneous' dances(including Blue Bonnets, HighlandLaddie and Wilt thou go to theBarracks, Johnnie?) each of whichhave stories unrelated to each other,but which are in some way used toexplain the purpose of the dance orthe step pattern or style in which thedances are thought to have beendanced. Next, I discuss two

A STORY TO EVERY DANCEMats Melin reflects on his new book about the lore that enhances the Scottish solodance tradition

Character Dances found in theScottish solo dance repertoire, theIrish Jig and the Sailors' Hornpipe,which, both have particular sets ofstorylines associated with them.Lastly, it is also worth examining onegroup dance, the Reel of Tulloch,closely associated with thecompetitive solo dance scene in thelast 100 years or so. The HighlandReel, in its many manifestations[i],was at one time the most commondance of Scots and does not seem tohave any stories attached to it at all,with the exception of the later andspecifically named form, the Reel ofTulloch, mentioned above.

Soft cover book and downloadablepdf available. Prices and shipping costsfor softcover book: €12.00 plusshipping €5.00 - see Shop tab. Pleaseemail info@lorg-press.com forsoftcover orders.

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For nearly 18 months now there havebeen weekly sessions teaching ceilidhdancing as an exercise class in threefitness centres (Perth, Dunfermline andCowdenbeath). These classes areproving a good way to get peoplemoving, and are popular in that theyactively encourage social interaction.All classes use live music, and thedances taught are by and large thosethat can be expected at weddings andsimilar occasions (Gay Gordons, StBernard's Waltz, Strip the Willow,Dashing White Sergeant) and otherstaken from the repertoire taught totraditional music students at theConservatoire in Glasgow.

A few other "fun" dances are alsoincluded, but the emphasis is onexercise and movement, usually in sets(to encourage teamwork) and thesocial interactions that generates,rather than footwork and exactformations. The only techniques taughtare those necessary for safety, forexample correct handholds in rapidturns. Dances where partners change

frequently (e.g. the Canadian BarnDance) are also used to enhance thegeneral sense of fun and sociabilitywhich quickly develops in each class.Participation always takes precedenceover performance. Light-heartedcomments are often made about thefrequent mistakes (and recovery fromthem), all adding to the sense of fun.

From an exercise viewpoint, the greatadvantage of these classes (apart fromeveryone having so much fun that theyforget they are exercising) is thateveryone can work at an intensity levelthat suits their own needs (and wants).Classes last at the most one hour andthere are frequent breaks to allowpeople to get their breath back aftertwo or three dances. This exercisemeets the Scottish Government'sdefinition of "vigorous" (results insweating and shortness of breath)which is maintained for a few minutes,five or six times in each class. There isalso at least one slower dance.

People obviously enjoy the classes,and for a few months were invited to

record their "wellbeing" scores (on ascale of 1-10) before and after everyclass. The results have beenaggregated into the charts shownbelow, and the shift from "before" to"after" is quite striking. Further work isbeing planned to refine these results,and perhaps get some indicationbacked up by hard evidence of whythis significant shift in mood takesplace.

The bottom line though, is that ceilidhdancing is fun, easily accessible to all,requires no special equipment ortraining and is a great way to enjoygenuine Scottish traditional music.What is sad in many ways is that thereare only limited efforts being madeacross the whole of Scotland topractice and preserve it; it is in dangerof becoming, for most people, littlemore than an excuse for an unrulyknees-up at other social events.Encouraging more people to get upand take part in what is a verytraditional form of Scottish dance isvital.

CEILIDH DANCING AS EXERCISE Bernie Hewitt advocates the Ceilidh Way to Fitness

I have just arrived back in Scotland after an amazing adventure in India. I was fortunate to beawarded Professional Development funding from Creative Scotland to attend the ChennaiStorytelling festival as principal artist and to undertake research in traditional forms ofstorytelling and music in India.

SOME TALES OF MY TRAVELSMarion Kenny reflects on an epic journey in India

I began my journey in the remotewesternmost corner of Rajasthan.The golden forted city of Jaisalmerrises like a giant sand castle out of thearid Thar Desert close to the Pakistanborder like a scene from Arabiannights.

Jaisalmer holds many stories of thecountless merchants passing throughas they transported fine materials,cotton, silks, spices, camels andopium amongst other goods. Itsposition on the overland routebetween Delhi and Central Asia-which ultimately led to the vastmarkets of the Middle East, North

Africa and Europe meant the citygrew rich on the proceeds, as themagnificent palaces and havelis ofmerchants bear witness.

The city is also hugely important toHindus, as it is closely associated withLord Krishna. Lord Krishna has alwaysbeen one of my favourite IndianGods as he of course plays the fluteas I do, although I am sure he wouldnaturally have been a far finer playerwith his Godly skills.

According to ancient mythologyKrishna and Bhima had come to thislocation for a ceremony, whereKrishna had prophesised that a

descendent of his Yaduranshi clanwould one day establish a kingdomhere. Lord Krishna created a springby casting a spear, which is still inexistence and his prophecy carved inrock. This tale was told to RawalJaisel, a descendant of the Yaduranshiclan by a sage called Eesul in the 12thcentury. Encouraged by the meetinghe moved his capital to the locationon the rock where the present citystands and named it after himself.

The people of the city took me totheir hearts when they heard mepracticing flute, and I was invited tothe palace to give a performance of

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flute music to Rani [Queen] MeghnaKumari Singh alongside her husbandMaharaj [King] Vikram Singh Ji Bhatiand their special guest the CrownedPrince of Uidapur amongst otherinvited guests.

The House of Nachana in Jaisalmer isa 300- year old sandstone haveli,which belongs to the descendants ofthe erstwhile ruling dynasty ofJaisalmer. The Nachana family areBhatis and they belong to the Lunarclan. The family traces their birth linelineage to Lord Krishna and way backbefore him to Rishi Attri from wherethe Lunar clan is known to havebegun.

Sure enough being part of LordKrishna's family music and dance playsa very integral part of their lifestyle,traditions, rituals, customs andfestivities. The family has givenpatronage and full support to its artistsand musicians and always entwinedrelationships between the two, whichcontinue to this day. The Nachanafamily is very involved in promotingthe Jaisalmer singers, musicians,storytellers and all kinds of local artiststo reach their full potential.

Meghna Kumari Singh with her nonprofit organisation called UttistnaFoundation [which means Arise,Awaken and perform consciousaction] is working with these artistcommunities to promote them andalso to involve the women and girlsof these families so they too can carryon their family traditions forward andbe on a world stage.

In the days that followed I visitedmany times while they shared tales ofthe regions fed me lots of food, and Iin turn shared stories and tunes fromScotland and Ireland. The family hadon a previous visit to the regionintroduced me to a flute player I hadbeen searching for but who had beenproving elusive.

Hailing from the Bheel community inRajasthan, Taga Ram Bheel is one ofthe most famous Algoza players in theregion. Coming from a family oflabourers and shepherds Taga Ramself taught himself the Algoza. As achild he would watch his fatherplaying and intrigued by the magicalinstrument he would steal his fathers

His mother and father in their 80'salong with his wife, many childrenand grandchildren all treated melike a family member. I was invitedto stay with Taga Ram and hisfamily in their village of Moolsager.They live in conical shapedhouses, which have thatchedroofs and are painted withtraditional artwork of the region.We spent our days playing flutestogether. At night we would sitaround a flickering campfirebeneath the twinkling stars sharingtales and tunes.

To read on and continue withMarion on her journey seewww.scottishstorytellingforum.co.uk

well- hidden flute and run away toplay with it while his sheep and goatsgrazed around him. He would start toplay along with any song that hewould hear on the radio or in theTemples around. He now performsall around the world and is presidentof the Algoza Society, recipient ofmany prestigious awards, as well asbeing a skilled instrument maker.

The moment I met Taga Ram Bheeland began playing together, weclicked. We effortlessly improvisedand couldn't stop laughing in betweentunes. Celtic music and the music ofthis region of Rajasthan have hugesimilarities.

He invited me to his villageMoolsager where a group ofmusicians where waiting to greet mewith welcoming songs.

BLETHERSMargaret Bennet reflects on some timely publications in this Year of Conversation

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is easier with electricity, plumbing,better roads and transport. But whatof the house-visits, the ceilis, wherehe sat around the turf fire and heardall those stories? There is heart-achein accepting they are completelygone. Glassie reflects that "thehardship of the old days drove peopletogether in conversational exchange,but the comfort of the present pullsthem apart into the isolation ofsilence". The Stars of Balymemone isa masterpiece throughout, in whichwe hear the voices of the fireside andcan reflect on the importance ofhaving a blether - or a blather, for thatmatter.

Glassie's other motive for writing wasthat he "wanted to teach, sharing howfieldwork ought to be done whileadding what folklorists ought to do …interpreted in the community's ownterms". In teaching Folklore, there isalways the hope, the prayer, thatsome student will take on the mantleof inspiring the next generation toenjoy the richness of traditionalculture, the languages, dialects,stories, songs, tunes, and distinctivevoice and character of the people.

This year's summer of sunshine andfestivals also brought me a gift of TheSouth West Scotland Collection: 5volumes of bagpipe tunes, each withits own story, all told in the Scots leid.The books are the work of KarenMcCrindle Warren - forgive me forboasting she was a student in myFolklore class and also my Fieldworkclass a few years ago. Born and bredin Ayrshire, Karen is an award-winning piper and composer. For thepast decade she worked as a pipinginstructor, while collaborating withher fellow-piper and husband Paul toproduce a series of 36 tuition booksfor pipers and drummers. This year,to address the absence of musicteaching in schools in Ayrshire, theyset up EPIC East Ayrshire Pipe BandAcademy, and now tutor over 200children in Scotland's nationalinstrument.

Always on the lookout for tunes,Karen began to realise that apartfrom 'Scots Wha Hae' and a fewBurns songs, there was scarcely tobe found any pipe music from theSouth West of Scotland. Thus beganher new collection, not only of tunesfrom Ayrshire and Dumfries andGalloway but also the stories behindthem, written in the mither tongue.She gives the notation of a tune, forexample, 'The Lads o' Lendalfit',followed by the story: "Lendalfit wis asmuggler's cave atween Girvan an'Ballantrae. The smugglers alang theCarrick shore wur a formidable bodyo men. Muckle vessels wid land theircargoes in the Bay o Ballantrae, waehorsemen ermed wae pistols waitintae pinch their load…."

Volumes 1 and 2 of The South WestScotland Collection are devoted tothe past, and include 59 Burnsmelodies along with tunes from 18thand 19th century collections;Volumes 3 and 4 represent thepresent, each with 75 tunes fromtoday's composers, and Volume 5,with simpler tunes for young players,is dedicated to the future and goesby the title 'Wan fur the Weans'. Thecollection has 350 tunes and is asmuch an inspiration to storytellers asit is to pipers and, as fellow-storyteller Matthew Fitt put it, "This isa muckle project that demands amuckle roon o applause. In fact,lowp tae yer feet an gie it a stauninovation".

Henry Glassie, The Stars ofBallymenone, Indiana UniversityPress, 2016. 574 pages + CD

Karen McCrindle Warren, TheSouth West Scotland Collection, 5books, Elixir, 2018

"Let's meet for a wee blether" has afriendly ring to it, and folk can get alot out of a blether. Thoughblethering may not meet withapproval in the office or workplace,or (heaven forbid) the world ofacademia, I was delighted to find it inHenry Glassie's scholarly work, TheStars of Balymenone. Like Scotland'sHamish Henderson and CalumMaclean, Glassie is ranked amongAmerica's world-class folklorists.Passionate about collecting andrecording 'ordinary folk', hispublications reflect unstinting devotionto the traditions he records.

As an 'early career' academic with aPhD in Folklore and a young family, in1972 Glassie left a comfortableAmerican life-style to find out howpeople in Northern Ireland copedduring the 'Troubles'. He chose acommunity which didn't yet haveelectricity or modern plumbing, buthad wealth beyond measure instories, songs and music -Ballymenone. Using a battery-powered reel-to-reel tape-recorderhe recorded the likes of CathalMcConnell's flute teacher, PeterFlanigan, and other 'stars' of thefireside gathering and the pub. Dayafter day he wrote notes, detailingeverything he heard, saw andlearned. Then, one night, withoutwarning, his house was raided by thepolice. The children were petrified,and Glassie watched the cops seize allhis notebooks - a nightmare foranyone nearing the end of a project.Eventually, Glassie is told he can havethem back because they're just a loadof "idle blathers". Out of thosenotebooks and fieldwork tapes, in1982 Glassie published amonumental book, Passing the Timein Ballymenone, a treasure-trove ofstories, songs, local history andfolklore.

So why write another one over thirtyyears later? In returning, he knowsthe old folk have passed away, thereare no thatched houses now, and life

In Scottish folklore, First Footing is the custom of the firstperson to enter a household on New Year's Day, seen as abringer of good fortune for the coming year.

Rooted in collaboration across dance and music communities,traditional and contemporary practices, the residency spans artsorganisation, educational institutions and community groups tofoster deeper levels of engagement, connectivity and newsupport for traditional dance in Scotland.

Nic Gareiss is engaging with communities through partnerfacilitated dialogue, dance research, high-profile and communityperformances, workshops, masterclasses, knowledge andpedagogical exchange. Here is his account of an inspiring Stepdance day in Perth:

Sunday, I joined an intrepid contingent of artists, curators, andscholars to trundle from Edinburgh to the Perth Theatre by carfor an event we called Casting a New Vision for Step DanceEducation in Scotland: a Day of Conversation and ProfessionalDevelopment. The event was co-presented by the TraditionalDance Forum of Scotland, the University of Edinburgh's MorayHouse School of Education, Fèisean nan Gàidheal, andHorsecross Arts. In scheming up the proceedings, my co-organizers and I wanted it to feel like a day of delights, fuellinginspiration, encouragement, and solidarity. The programme waspacked!

The day included participatory step dance masterclasses, stepdance teaching feedback sessions (in which three teachers taughtshort 10-minute classes and received constructive feedback fromtheir peers), a seminar on safe and healthy dance teachingpractice delivered by Wendy Timmons, director of the MSc inDance Science and Education at the University of Edinburgh, aninterview with Halifax-based step dancer Harvey Beaton viaSkype, and facilitated group discussions around support andsustainability with Michelle Brady, coordinator of the TraditionalDance Forum of Scotland and Nicola Simpson, seniordevelopment officer for Fèisean nan Gàidheal.

In addition to programming designed to nourish, enrich, andcontinue the training needs of this unique group of traditional artseducators, step dance teachers from across Scotland also had therare opportunity to connect with their colleagues and cast a newvision for sustainability, preservation, creativity, and community-building for traditional dance in Scotland. Delegates fromInverness, Aberdeen, Islay, South Uist, Midlothian, Skye, Perth,Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dunfermline, and Fort William were inattendance. It was both incredibly exciting and immenselyhumbling for me to be in the presence of so manyknowledgeable and devoted traditional arts educators. Therewere so many lively discussions, connections, and conversationsaround step dance education that I hope will continue!! Drivinghome, I felt invigorated, inspired by the rich traditions andinspiringly devoted dancers here in Scotland, and filled with hope.

First Footing is delivered by the Traditional Dance Forum ofScotland in partnership with the University of Edinburgh -Institute for Sport, Physical Education & Health Sciences, MorayHouse School of Education & School of Scottish Studies, withadmin back-up from Tracs. The Residency is supported byCreative Scotland.

FIRST FOOTING A residency with international, percussive dance artist and dance researcher Nic Gareiss

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CONFLUENCEAAnnnnee EErrrriinnggttoonn recounts aweaving of Celtic andArabian Visions

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In November 2016, Laura HudsonMackay, a photographic artist based inScotland was exhibiting her work inMarrakech where she met Moroccanstoryteller, Mehdi El Ghali. Mehdi wasenjoying Laura's photographs and saidthey reminded him of stories heknew and began to tell her the tales.Laura knew at that moment she hadto work with the storyteller.

Laura then met Houssain Belabbes, aMoroccan photographer. Togetherwith Mehdi, the three of them met inMorocco to discuss 'Confluence', anew project that through storytellingand photography would seek tobridge cultures and highlight commonlinks within Arabian and Celticstorytelling traditions.

On her return to Scotland, Lauraapproached Anne Errington, aScottish storyteller and invited her tojoin the Confluence journey.

Through initial seed funding fromUpland Arts Development CIC, inFebruary 2017 Houssain came toScotland for a week-long artisticresidency. During that time Houssainand Laura visited the ScottishStorytelling Centre, driving throughsnow to get there. During theresidency Laura, Houssain and Annemet at The Stove, Dumfries, andsoon realised that the project'spossibilities were endless, so decidedto narrow down the stories and

photographs into themes. Followingthis and after an exchange of storiesand ideas on social media with Mehdiincluded, the agreed themesemerged as Money, Silence, Old,Happiness, Water, Time and theNumber 3. These became the 7Confluence themes.

Ideas, stories and images flowed backand forth across the internet untilLaura was invited to bring Confluenceto the Wigtown Book Festival inSeptember 2017 as artist inresidence. Houssain managed toattend but sadly Mehdi's visa wasdenied. It was a busy 10 days withworkshops, events and time spentgathering research from authors andfestival guests on the 7 themes.

In October 2017 Confluencetravelled again to Marrakech. Theteam held workshops in storytellingand photography with various agegroups. They hosted 'An Evening ofConfluence' at the Heritage Museumwith live storytelling performancesfrom Anne and Mehdi and anexhibition of photography from theproject.

From the residency came the idea ofa Confluence book and after a lot ofdesign work and a successful crowdfunding campaign to fund and print250 copies, The Confluence book:Celtic and Arabian Visions and Storieswas launched, firstly at Wigtown,

Scotland's National Book Town, inMay 2018 during the Spring FlingOpen Studio's event in Dumfries andGalloway and secondly with a booklaunch taking place in October 2018in Rabat, Morocco at the BritishAmbassador's residency!

A further Confluence residency inMorocco saw two storytellers fromNorway join the team, Ine MarielSolbakken and Karla Suzanne Ofjordfrom 'StorySquad' in Oslo. It was avery busy time with the launch of athree-month photography exhibitionat cross-cultural venue, Café Clockand with the trained storytellersrunning workshops and workingtogether with Master Moroccanstoryteller Haj Ahmed Ezzarghani.

From this last residency came ideasfor exploring further culturalconnections, this time linking Nordicand Celtic stories and photographyand therefore it is hoped that furtherartistic exchanges/residencies andevents will take place betweenScandinavia, Scotland and Morocco.Initial research has also begun intolinks between Australian Aboriginaland Arabian stories with newconnections being forged betweenthe two cultures.

Further reading:www.confluencetheworld.com

All lovers of traditional storytelling havebeen saddened by the sudden deathof Fiona MacLeod. For most of herworking life Fiona provided a bridgebetween her Scottish, Perthshire rootsand the culture of Brittany. She wasinvolved at the very start of theScottish Storytelling Festival and hasbeen mainstay of continuing Bretontraditions.

Fiona was a winsome and dedicatedartist, whose deep respect for traditionand its ecological values pervadedeverything she did. Resistingperformance fashions in storytelling,Fiona made her storytelling practice aninclusive community, working in allsituations alongside children, families,those with disabilities, and olderpeople. She radiated love and joy inher work and personal life.

It is unsurprising that Fiona's passinghas been marked by tree-plantings,blessings and music in Finistère inBrittany and Comrie Croft in Scotland.She was brought home to herbeloved Perthshire and buried inStrowan Woodland. She is survived byher son Jovan and a baby grandson.

It is some comfort that Fiona was able to be a full part of the 2018 ScottishInternational Storytelling Festival in which she took great delight. The followingwords were spoken at the Brittany commemoration:

HOMECOMING

And the Great Mother said:Come my child and give me all that you are.I am not afraid of your strength and darkness, of your fear and pain.Give me your tears. They will be my rushing rivers and roaring oceans.Give me your rage.It will erupt into my molten volcanoes and rolling thunder.Give me your tired spirit. I will lay it to rest in my soft meadows.Give me your hopes and dreams. I will plant a field of sunflowers and archrainbows in the sky.You are not too much for me.My arms and heart welcome your true fullness.There is room in my world for all of you, all that you are.I will cradle you in the boughs of my ancient redwoods and the valleys of mygentle rolling hills. My soft winds will sing you lullabies and soothe yourburdened heart.Release your deep pain.You are not alone and you have never been alone.

Linda Reuther

FIONA MACLEOD

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I have just returned from the weeFestival with the big heart and myword does it live up to its reputation!

Heather Yule and I were the invitedguests and as Heather had been aguest previously and knew what wasin store she ran around the housewith excitement when she heard shewas to return to the festival. Thefestival ran from Thursday 26th toSunday 29th October in a range ofvenues from a graveyard in Harray toa theatre in Hoy which was worthy ofthe West End.

Fran Flett Hollinrake began the festivalby guiding us around the St MichaelChurch Cemetery in Harray. Sheexplained that all churches of StMichael are found in elevatedpositions (Mont St Michel in Francebeing the most well known) asMichael the Archangel is the defenderof heaven. Fran's tour was beautifullyresearched and presented. Wevisited the grave of Bessie Skea,known as 'Countrywoman' who wasa friend and contemporary of GeorgeMackay Brown and wrote in the localpaper alongside him. Hergranddaughter Sarah Jane Gibbonread us one of her poems and spokein awe of her encylopaedicknowledge of nature from the stars tothe birds.

I was struck by how beautifully keptthis graveyard was with not a toppledheadstone on site. I had a verystrong sense of connectedness andcommunity seeing the Orkney namesincluding Fran's own name of Flett.Fran's telling of the stories of thosewho have gone before reminded meof the late John Fee whodemocratized storytelling by bringingthe stories of ordinary folk into being.

As a festival guest I got to marvel atthe shelves full of beautiful books inTom Muir's dining room whilst eatinghis delicious fish pie. Tom has everycolour of Fairy Book that was everpublished. Which was apt as ournight in South Ronaldsay at StMargaret's Hope was on the theme

of "Away with the Fairies". Thecommunity hall was lit with fairy lightsand we were hosted by Marita Lück,a local to this part of the Orkney. TomMuir gave due warning in theprogramme that the Festival could notbe responsible for any fairyabductions!

The venues that this little festival takeplace in are a huge part of whatmakes it so special. One of the mostintimate venues is Betty's ReadingRoom which is run on a voluntarybasis by Jane and Craig two retiredteachers originally from London. Ourhosts were careful not to tell thestory of Betty until we visited herroom as it is best heard in situ. Untilthat afternoon, I had always thoughtthat a traditional cottage with its tinywindows would be dark, but thesunlight streamed through thewindows that afternoon enhancingthe stories we imbibed.

One of the highlights of the Festivalfor me was hearing local tellers tellingtheir stories from the heart. Thesestories emerged from a eight- weekcourse facilitated by Fran last winter.The diversity of the tellers and theirthemes from a Danish elven queen toa London orphan was unified by avery high calibre of storytelling.

Some of the best stories are whathappen to us. On the first night ofthe festival Chris Perry introducedherself and told me that she had beenstorytelling for the last eleven yearsfollowing workshops that RuthKirkpatrick and I ran for staff workingin residential units in SouthLanarkshire. Kris found that TomMuir's collections of Orkney storieswere enjoyed by the young people inthe units (so much so that the bookssometimes went missing!) Chrisfound her way to Orkney to meetTom and, now that she is retired,splits her time between Edinburghand the island of Shapinsay. She isthe creator of the much sought afterstorytelling hare who is the festivalmascot.

THE ORKNEY STORYTELLING FESTIVAL Claire McNicol describes a special festival experience

STORYTELLINGFESTIVALBeyond WordsThe 2018 Scottish InternationalStorytelling Festival was the mostsuccessful in its thirty years history.The Growing Stories themeseemed to work for the communityevents programme, and forinternational audiences. Alsopopular was the Festival's inclusionof music and dance, showing howall these elements are involved intraditional oral storytelling.

So, appropriately, the 2019 themeis Beyond Words and Tracs will bewelcoming storytellers from CanadaCoast-to-Coast, in locations acrossScotland, as well as the capital city.This international exchange issupported by the ScottishGovernment's Festival Expo fund,and was announced by FirstMinister Nicola Sturgeon on arecent visit to Canada.

A massive thanks to Fran, Tom andthe excellent festival committee whomake this festival happen. They makeit look effortless but that belies thehuge amount of strategic planning andwork which goes on behind thescenes!

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