A MUSICAL celebration of the 20th anniversary of the island of Eigg's community buyout is to be part of Scotland's leading roots, Americana and traditional music festival.

Celtic Connections, which is itself celebrating 25 years of existence in its 2018 edition in January, is to stage the anniversary ceilidh to mark the community buy-out of June 12, 1997, when the Ilse of Eigg Trust took ownership of the island in the inner Hebrides.

The concert is part of the Celtic Connections festival, which will run between January 18 and February 4 in a series of Glasgow venues, including the SEC Hydro and, for the first time, The Pavilion theatre.

The 20th Annivesary Ceilidh will feature artists associated with the island, including Pictish Trail, Dàimh, Ja’Ma’Tha Ceilidh Band, Massacre Cave and DJ Dolphin Boy.

Donald Shaw, director of the annual festival, said: "I have always thought a festival like Celtic Connections as being a festival for the people - we focus a lot on folk idioms that have been with us for hundreds of year -and I think that is still close to the heart of a lot of people that come.

"We are not an elitist festival, we try as much as we can to keep prices reasonable, we have always seen it as a festival for people, and there is always a lot of social commentary and politics within the songs.

"So it is good for us to celebrate Eigg, quite an amazing achievement, in what the island has done in stabilising a community, and it is to be applauded.

"And they have used music in a powerful way - they make an effort to put gigs on, their use their hall, and kept it going."

The Hydro will provide the festival with its biggest audience yet, around 8000 tickets are on sale, for a live version of Bothy Culture, the late Martyn Bennett's second album, which is also 20 years old.

The show will feature a special appearance by Scottish stunt cyclist Danny MacAskill whose performance will be inspired by his 2014 film The Ridge, which has been viewed 55 million times on YouTube, and sound tracked by Bennett’s track ‘Blackbird’.

Ms Shaw said the event would bring an element of the circus and the spectacular to the festival.

The show will feature music arranged for orchestra by violinist Greg Lawson, who also conducts the performance.

Mr Shaw added: “Since the inception of Celtic Connections in 1994 the Scottish music scene has developed and diversified hugely.

"When the festival began there was still significant compartmentalisation of genres, which although has its place at times, has become less prevalent over the years.

"The influence and inspiration that the traditional music scene has had across the whole musical landscape in Scotland and worldwide has helped to make the journey of Celtic Connections all the more adventurous and exciting.

"As an internationally renowned festival we continually strive for better and the 25th edition is no exception."

Elsewhere in the festival, the American singer-songwriter Shawn Colvin will celebrate 20 years since the release of platinum-selling A Few Small Repairs at Celtic Connections 2018.

Shetland’s Fiddler’s Bid will headline a Main Auditorium concert at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall.

Mali’s Oumou Sangaré will perform, as will Kate Rusby, Blazin' Fiddles and the founders of Levellers, Mark Chadwick and Jeremy Cunningham.

It will present a night of symphonic arrangements of Gaelic repertoire under the title of Òrain nan Gàidheal: Songs of the Gael - featuring The BBC SSO & special guests.

The Celtic Connections 25th Anniversary Concert will take place on the opening night of the festival and will be a celebration of artists who have performed at the festival over the years. It will include Tryst, Saltfishforty, Cherish the Ladies, Eddi Reader, Sharon Shannon, String Sisters, Kris Drever, Ross Ainslie and Ali Hutton, among others.