Edinburgh’s Tradfest commissions a piece each year, and this time around, author and historian Ashley Douglas worked with folk singer, songwriter and composer Josie Duncan. Duncan is from Lewis and writes and sings in both English and Scottish Gaelic. Douglas translates from and into Scots – notably translating Mary Queen of Scots’ last letter from its original French into Scots, which Mary would have spoken when in Scotland.
Resurrecting Marie Maitland: The Sixteenth-Century Sappho
Douglas has written a fascinating account of the life of Marie Maitland, whom she calls ‘The Sixteenth Century Sappho’, as a result of having discovered lesbian erotic poetry written by Maitland, interspersed with work that she scribed for her father when he went blind.
The collaboration culminated in a series of songs in either Gaelic or English alluding to various elements of Marie’s life and work as a lesbian poet in a time when not only would this have been unthinkable, but when women’s lives were entirely the domain of first their father and then their husband.
Douglas has written a fascinating account of the life of Marie Maitland, whom she calls ‘The Sixteenth Century Sappho’…
Fittingly, the theme running through the whole body of Duncan’s work for this evening’s performance is A’ Chiad Litir, which is Scottish Gaelic for ‘The First Letter’.
Kisna and Rae Impress at Tradfest
Setting the stage for this historical and musical journey, the concert began with a support act – Kisna (Panesar) and Rae (McIver), the former playing concertina and the latter piano. They played several sets of Scottish and Irish folk music, interspersed with some very sweet chat about their inspirations. They have a lovely rapport, and the combination of instruments works really well together. The concertina punches above its weight: it’s tiny and yet produces plenty of sound. Kisna found light and shade, and the interaction between the two women felt almost intuitive. It was a fabulous start to the evening, and the level of applause suggested the audience felt that too.
Josie Duncan Shines Through Technical Hiccups
Josie Duncan is a real songbird. She has such a beautiful voice – pure and clear. Her set had a few technical issues from the outset, but she smiled throughout, and it certainly didn’t put her off her stride. Before she and her fellow musicians came on stage, a film was shown featuring, I presume, Lennoxlove, which was Marie Maitland’s home, as well as beautiful shots of nature. The first attempt had no sound, so it was restarted as the band came on stage.
Josie Duncan is a real songbird. She has such a beautiful voice – pure and clear.
No matter – Josie used the hiccup to break the ice. There was also a bit of an issue with sound for the percussionist, which was a bit more distracting, but was fixed satisfactorily after a couple of attempts.
A Captivating Collaboration of Music and Spoken Word
Duncan’s voice was without doubt the star of the show for me, but her band was excellent too. Duncan plays the harp as well as singing, and accompanying her were Chloe Bryce (fiddle and vocals), Jenny Clifford (guitar and vocals), Charlotte Printer (bass and vocals) and Eilidh Rogers (percussion). This was the first performance of these songs, and I think I’m right in saying that the band got together for this gig too, so a series of firsts. Very successful at that. Douglas joined the band on stage to read Maitland’s ‘Poem 49’ in traditional Scots (with just some minor tweaks for clarity). Spoken word accompanied by specially composed music is an absolute winner in my book – so evocative and from the heart. Haunting.
A Well-Deserved Standing Ovation
The standing ovation at the end of the gig was thoroughly deserved. Duncan came back on stage and seemed genuinely surprised and touched by the rapturous response. She’d used up all her new Maitland-related material, so sang us a Skye song in Gaelic a cappella. Utterly perfect, it provided a stunning and fitting conclusion to a truly memorable Tradfest commission.
Featured Image: Josie Duncan credit Douglas Robertson
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