Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Countdown on for return of Speyfest – as organisers vow to do founder James Alexander ‘proud’

speyfest tribute to James alexander
Speyfest 2022 to return for its 25th year.

A hugely popular festival will make an “emotional” return this weekend.

Speyfest will bring a host of traditional and Celtic musical talent to the town of Fochabers from Friday to Sunday.

Organisers are keen the 2022 festival is bigger and better than ever to make its 25th year all the more special – and a fitting tribute for founder James Alexander.

Mr Alexander – a mainstay of the festival and an accomplished fiddler himself – died earlier this year after braving fighting against illness.

He was described as an “advocate and ambassador” for traditional music his whole life.

Continuing his legacy through Speyfest will be a priority for organisers, and this year’s line up of the Red Hot Chili Pipers, Skerryvore, Duncan Chishol and Milne’s High School Fiddlers will do just that.

Over its 25-year history, the festival has grown from a 300-person event in a tent into an internationally-recognised celebration of traditional music with 1,500 attendees.

‘We aspire to do him proud with an incredible lineup for Speyfest 2022.’

Speyfest Association chairwoman Ashleigh MacGregor said: “This year’s festival will be an emotional one as we make our long-awaited return and also stage the first Speyfest since the passing of our dear friend and founder, James Alexander.

“The impact James had on all of us through his love of music and his incredible talent is hard to express.

“James was a celebrated musician, well-known as the frontman of the Fochabers Fiddlers and his undeniable Celtic flair.

James Alexander, who died in May 2022, founded the Speyfest in 1995. Picture by Daniel Forsyth

“This year, we aspire to do him proud with an incredible lineup for Speyfest 2022, and we hope to emulate his passion for Celtic music and culture over the course of the weekend.

“On the last day of the festival, some of James’ closest musical colleagues, including Charlie McKerron, Douglas Lawrence, Paul Anderson and Gregor Borland, will pay tribute to him by sharing some of the musical numbers they played together over the years.

“It is sure to be an emotional but very beautiful performance that honours this great man.”

To find out more about the Speyfest 2022 line-up click here.

Conversation