Graham MacKenzie - Faoinsgeul Loch Maruibhe - The Legend of Loch Maree and Claire Frances MacNeil
04
Sultain | September 2026
19:30
GMT
’S e Faoinsgeul Loch Maruibhe, The Legend of Loch Maree, coimisean Blas 2026 leis an fhìdhlear Ghàidhealach chliùiteach Graham MacCoinnich. Thainig bun-bheachd airson na h-obrach bho dhealbh a rinn Mairead NicDhonnchaidh nach maireann, a bha crochte san dachaigh far an do dh’fhàs Graham suas agus a thug a’ chiad eòlas dha air an sgeulachd.
Tha dealbh NicDhonnchaidh a’ sealltainn Faoinsgeul Loch Maruibhe: sgeulachd bhrònach Ghàidhealach mu bhana-phrionnsa a bhuinneadh dhan sgìre a bha ann an gaol le Olaf, prionnsa à Nirribhidh. Le cuspairean gaoil, mì-thuigse agus call, tha an sgeulachd gu tric air a mìneachadh mar dreach Gàidhealach de Romeo agus Juliet.
Bidh an ceòl ùr a chaidh a sgrìobhadh agus na h-òrain thraidiseanta a’ riochdachadh chuspairean dìlseachd, gaoil, cianalais, gaisgeachd, brathaidh agus dìomhaireachd.
Faoinsgeul Loch Maruibhe, The Legend of Loch Maree, is the Blas 2026 commission by leading Highland fiddle player Graham MacKenzie. The work is inspired by a print by the late Margaret Robertson, which hung in the home where Graham grew up and first introduced him to the story.
Robertson’s image depicts the Legend of Loch Maree: a tragic Highland tale of a local princess who falls in love with Olaf, a Norwegian prince. With its themes of love, misunderstanding and loss, the story is often described as a Highland echo of Romeo and Juliet.
The newly composed music and traditional songs will represent the themes of loyalty, love, longing, bravery, betrayal and mystery.
Graham has an amazing line-up of some of the finest traditional musicians, including Gaelic singer Kathleen MacInnes, Innes Watson (guitar), Rory Matheson (piano) and Conal McDonagh (whistle/pipes).
Award-winning Gaelic singer, Claire Frances MacNeil is a Traditional Gold Medallist from the Royal National Mòd and the first graduate of the MMus in Gaelic Song at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. In 2025, she was named a semi-finalist in BBC Radio Scotland's Young Traditional Musician of the Year, placing her among Scotland's leading emerging traditional musicians.
Rooted in Scotland's living song tradition, her performances draw on community knowledge, archival recordings, and oral history to bring Gaelic song to contemporary audiences with warmth, depth, and a strong sense of inheritance. Alongside her work with TEUD: The Hebridean Fiddle Project, recent highlights include the Canna House commission for the National Trust for Scotland, the live film score of FAODAIL, collaborations with Maggie MacInnes, and performances across Ireland, Germany, and France.