Celtic Connections

Freeland Barbour: The Music and the Land

Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow

Rob Adams

FOUR STARS

It might have been the Glasgow launch of Freeland Barbour’s mighty musical compendium, The Music and the Land, but the Perthshire-born accordionist still found time to let his guests promote their own Celtic Connections shows, with Ross Ainslie contributing an exhilarating tribute to his piping mentor, Gordon Duncan, that was worth turning up to hear in itself.

Barbour’s book covers much more territory than could be condensed into the concert section of this event; the ensuing dance gave him further opportunity to air his compositions. The potted version, however, still managed to travel far and wide geographically and range stylistically from the emotional to the entertaining to the experimental.

Jane Gardner’s keyboard improvisation behind Cailean Maclean’s recitation and translation of Oran Badantarbairt complemented the poem’s dark atmosphere superbly, words and music in turn setting the scene for Barbour’s similarly titled air inspired by Ross & Cromarty, and by contrast a tune Barbour wrote for his Faroe Islander friends, Spaelimenninir I Hoydulum, positively danced along with marvellous colourful vigour.

Entertaining diversions to Hawaii, from compere Billy Kay, and Redcar, where Barbour passed the Silly Wizard accordion baton onto Phil Cunningham, followed the somehow both sorrowful and cheering Remember Them with Gladness, Barbour’s dedication to the aforementioned Gordon Duncan and fiddler Johnny Cunningham, with the recently departed Andy M Stewart added to its roll. There were sobering moments also in special guest Martin Carthy’s cameo as he sang songs for the fallen but this Thelonious Monk of the guitar’s reading of the Harry Line Theme, as with Barbour and Cunningham’s squeeze box summit meeting, emphatically restored the smiles.