Galloway was one of the last places in Scotland where a Brythonic language was spoken.  Until the 12th century it was spoken side by side with Gaelic and other languages in one of the most linguistically and culturally diverse areas of these islands.

In 2018, vocalists and musicians from across the UK and Ireland were invited to collaborate to create new music based on their respective languages, cultures and traditions.  The ancient Galloway Gaelic song Oran Bagraidh – ‘Song of Defiance’, acted as a springboard for further work exploring the commonalities and differences between their musical styles and languages.  Partly unintelligible to speakers of contemporary Celtic languages, the song contains Brythonic, Gaelic and hybridised place names.

The work feature five languages, medieval instruments: lyre and northern triple pipes as well as fiddle, harp, accordion, whistle, percussion, electric autoharp and electronics.   The extraordinary rosta of musicians involved includes: Josie Duncan (Hebrides), Lorcan Mac Mathuna (Ireland), Gwyneth Glyn (Wales) MacGillivray (Scotland), Doimnic Mac Giolla Bhride (Ireland), Conor Caldwell (Northern Ireland), Barnaby Brown (England), Rody Gorman (Ireland/Scotland) and Bragod (Wales).

£14 (£12)