Mentally and physically exhausted but two great nights of Magfest in Jewsons Shed with the Bester Quartet from Crakow and Andy Cant. I say Andy Cant, but it was a cast of dozens with our stage proving just big enough for Kirkwall City Pipe Band, Liberty, Billy Jolly and Mixemup.
A small hiccup with heating (again). With a northerly gale blowing directly onto our front door and a huge drop in outside temperature, the heating system struggled to cope, but it has improved as the weather warmed slightly. Still wrap up warm. Midsummer in Orkney eh?
The Bester Quartet were more cool than cold. A wonderful Klezmer band from Crakow, they displayed breathtaking musicianship and are clearly well-respected by the other Polish musicians around the venue. Precise and controlled, with the stage smoke swirling in the wind, the atmosphere was tremendous.
Andy's show was a much less minimalist event: even featuring guest appearances by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Nicola Benedetti. Sadly they were unavoidably detained at the last minute, but their stand-ins performed magnificently. There was plenty of audience participation and Andy was ably supported by his two backing bands: KCPB and Liberty. This was home-grown entertainment of the highest order.
The BBC turned up on Saturday to film Andy for a BBC2 Series to be screened in October.
More Photos Here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2059673&id=1069925290&l=5f6616aa11
Sunday will be spent setting-up for The Table. More sometime.
Excellent stuff Les, wish I could have been there! Guess I'll have to wait for the BBC2 programme. I had tickets for Andy Cant and The Table but will miss both due to being struck down with flu. Hoping to make Circulous on Tuesday...
ReplyDeleteThere's lots o things gaan aboot but bad timing. Look forward to seeing you recovered on Tuesday.
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