This year’s Feis Nairn Caledonian Ceilidh Trail will launch on Saturday at Nairn Community and Arts Centre with a guest appearance from award-winning folk trio Assynt.
Glasgow-based Assynt were named Up and Coming Band of the Year in the Scots Trad music awards last year.
They will play alongside, and also tutor, the Feis Inbhir Narainn Caledonian Trail’s own young band.
Known as The Ceilidh Trail Band it is drawn each year from traditional musicians between the ages of 16 and 25 who have been attending Feis classes.
This year’s band features fiddle, flute, keyboard, ukelele, guitar, pipes, whistle, and Gaelic song in its repertoire.
Robbie Mackenzie, a fiddle player and tutor from Inverness is the band’s leader.
They will gig, busk and ceilidh their way round Highland venues for two weeks this summer, from village halls and museums to agricultural shows and music festivals, including Belladrum Tartan Heart, the Black Isle Show, The Gellions in Inverness, and supporting Saltfishforty at Croy Hall.
Rhona MacDonald of Feis Inbhir Narainn said: “Every year the Trail provides this fantastic opportunity for talented young Highland musicians to develop their skills and gain professional experience – not only of playing together as a group, but learning to engage with the audience, discovering new tunes and songs, handling PA equipment, and managing their own gigs.
“I’m delighted that Assnyt will be launching the Trail with us, they’re a highly talented trio and will be an inspiration to the ceilidh trail band.”
The Feis Inbhir Narainn Caledonian Trail runs this year from Sunday July 28 to Saturday August 10.