I was lucky enough to see more than my fair share of acts during the 5th Findhorn Bay Festival this year. As somewhat of a disclaimer, I was working at the event as a photographer, but that doesn’t preclude me from reporting my experience.
The last event in 2022 reached the remarkable achievement of 100 events over 10 days, to mark its 10th anniversary. You’d be excused for thinking that was a one-off, push-the-boat-out celebration. But it seems it was more like a benchmark, as this year’s event also had more than 100 shows over 10 days. Is this what we can expect from now on? I hope so.
Whether it is or it isn’t, the festival is evolving into a mature, regular occurrence in the arts and culture calendar, and to have this in the Forres area is not only welcome, but a siignificant boost for the town as a destination – People are travelling to Forres to see What’s On.
In all, I saw 23 shows, and these are my highlights
Window Wanderland – An illuminated, pop-up art gallery that used the windows of, largely, town centre businesses to create a fairytale experience. This is the second time we’ve seen this in Forres, and this time we had the added benefit of street performers to bring motion and sound to the proceedings.
The archaeologists – Watching a team of bone hunters scouring the town for archaeological finds might sound boring, but it was anything but. The Out of the Darkness Theatre Company brought the town centre to life with their one-word script, and effervescent take on the discovery of bones.
The Fantastic Life of Minnie Rubinski – What I love most about art and theatre is that it often leaves me with a desire to go and find out more about the snapshot it gives. Minnie Rubinski, who I admit I’ve never heard of, yet might not have been expected to, was a woman who perhaps should be more well-known, and this installation, serves that purpose. The show revealed the truly ‘fantastic life’ of this amazing 1950s mum-of-two, told through the medium of recorded puppetry. The setting was a dark, dimly-lit theatre in the Tolbooth courtroom, transformed for this show. It featured a large brain linked to five or six videos playing out scenes from Minnie’s life from selling high-value Japanese art, to becoming a successful investigative reporter and a celebrated concert pianist. A massively engaging way to tell a story
June Carter Cash – Charlene Boyd’s flamboyant portrayal of one of the biggest names in country music, felt like you were literally part of the act, and for many who chose a table near to the front, you were.
As she moved around the stage dipping in and out of the crowd, using audience members as props, she switched effortlessly between her native Glasgow patter and the Southern twang of Nashville.
This fast-paced act premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and having this kind of act sell out in Forres really demonstrates how significant the Findhorn Bay Festival has become.
Family Orchard — held exclusively for school audience, this show had a not-so-secret message — why do we buy apples from South America when Scotland is home to more than 100 varieties of its own.
Now before you say ‘seasons’, let’s look at what’s happening here. This was not only entertaining and engaging, but educational too.
Primary school age is the best time to get an important message across, so I wonder how many of the 60 or so children went home and asked where their apples came from!
Dopey Monkey — how utterly enjoyable to see two local people playing tuba and euphonium in the unexpected spaces that have become the ‘parameter’ for venues around the Findhorn Bay. I saw them in the high street during Window Wanderland, and in Cathay Nursing Home to a closed audience of residents.
Celtic Traditions Duncan Chisholm and Hamish Napier — probably the concert I most looked forward too. there’s something charismatically different about Duncan Chisholm. I find his fiddle playing absolutely superb, and quite different to the many fiddle players I saw in other shows, this I particularly looked out for. And when it comes with stories linked to the inspiration and composition of the piece I can relate to, that just makes it all the more meaningful. I’m looking at you ‘cold, November morning in Skye’ (can’t remember the actual name of the track).
Steppin’ Out – Now jazz isn’t particularly my thing, but I was pleasantly surprised. The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra and popular singer Kurt Elling made an impact on me and the entire audience.
The Big Band Sound was punctuated regularly with solos from trumpet, saxaphone and trombone, and it was refreshing to see youngsters in the orchestra.
Kurt’s passionate rendition of the songs made the evening much shorter than it actually was.
Family Portrait – The concept was relatively simple. A mum of three Natasha Gilmore films herself and her children while out and about in remote parts of Scotland. No acting, no script, just ‘raw’ footage of a mum enjoying time with her youngsters in the natural habitat. I have to say, this blew my mind a little.
But what seemed like raw footage was actually very cleverly split and edited to create a 360-degree immersion of that personal time.
Shown across four large screens in Edinkillie Hall, Typically, a ‘360’ would be four viewpoints from four different angles, but this was edited in a away to not necessarily be sequential or parallel, it was done in a way that kept you in the story, even though there was no visible story. It felt as if you were part of the action, and sometimes I was counting the children, like I was checking one hadn’t gone off somewhere and got lost.
That was the spatial effect. The cast, if you can call it that, sometimes in front of you, sometimes behind you, and with some of the screens on and some off, you’d be constantly spinning on your rotating seat to keep up with the action.
Kings of the Blues – A thoroughly stomping night of traditional blues music from three masters, BB King Freddy King and Albert King. But actually what made this evening for me was the local support band.
Every bit as competent as the lead, borne out of Covid and people I could pass in the street on an average day.
The nine-piece Soul Food Cafe gave us a collection of piano, drums, guitar, saxophone and male and female vocals. Oh, and harmonica!
Out and About – Unpretentiously named Out and About, you have to read the description to know what you’re getting into. The first half was a circus act featuring hula hoops. What surprised me most is the number of adults taking part equalling the number of children. A nice bit of exercise in Grant Park on a Saturday afternoon. This was followed by a samba band made up largely of locals with just a few weeks experience. You can’t beat a bit of samba whether close up or far away, and the piece de resistance was the walk of the drummers (led by a sax player) through the tree-lined avenue to the sunken gardens.
Scotland in Song – The variety of acts in this ten-day festival means there was something for everyone, and I can’t help wondering what shows I would pick if I weren’t working. I spent many of my formative years listening to Gaelic songs, and this was a pleasant throwback. I’ve not had the same immersive experience when it comes to Doric, but Scott Gardiner’s mainly humorous ditties were a very pleasant addition to the night.
I sometimes think Forres (or perhaps Nairn more so) is where the division between Gaelic and Doric, if it were to be drawn, would be, so to have the two sung alongside each other felt very much like a meeting of minds.
Shorelines – A walk as a cultural experience? You bet. Who better to lead the way than well-known local stortyteller Margot Henderson.
Starting at the pier in Findhorn, we were treated to several stops along to the beach, where traditonal tales of fishing, ancient coastal routines, her own personal stories and those of myth and legend were consumed by the pack before a gentle stroll back to base.
Ninety uplifting, enriching and educational minutes that will stay in my mind for a long time.
Story in the Song – three acts here, but I only really got to see two and a bit of the third, as I had to leave early. Greenshanks, gave us a simplistic guitar and fiddle with a lovely traditional set, with a special mention for the recording of the storm petrel into his act. The best musical act by far for me, was Harry, a singer-songwriter who exceeded my expectations. Learning an instrument for me has always been an effort, but effort is what I think stood out in Harry’s performance, an effort to be different amongst ten days of, admitted varied, acts. But there was something about Harry that made me feel he wasn’t inspired by anyone, he was just doing his own thing, creating a vibe of his own, and nailing it. He certainly inspired me to have yet another go at playing the guitar!
Last but definitely not least, I want to give a special mention to Jean-Luc Thomas and Gab Faure, the two Breton musicians that popped up seemingly everywhere. In many ways, I think these two were the stars of the show.
I saw them at the Makers Merkat in Forres High Street, Rafford Village Hall, the Town Hall and Cathay Nursing Home, and I know they played several other venues too.
Jean-Luc played flute, and Gab was on the violin. Their act iver much a personal one, they play best when close to the audience.
However I’ve never heard a violin mimic a fire engine or a speeding car, which was part of their ‘roundabout’ tune, and, although admittedly I don’t listen to a lot of flute music, I was intrigued by Jean-Luc’s ability to use blowing techniques to interrupt the typical sounds of this instrument. They brought a definite ‘enchantment’ to all proceedings.
So, the Findhorn Bay Festival is now over. My programme, which before the event was something I rifled through as a ‘look forward’ to what was coming, has now become a historical memory of the whole event. I find myself looking at the events I missed wishing I was there as well. I guess there is no limit to the amount of art and culture you can consume. What a shame this ‘extravaganza’ only happens once every two years.
We can’t expect the effort, expense and cultural capacity of artists to be there to fulfill our senses all the time, so it’s nice to have this 10-day focus on local, national and international artists, right in the middle of our town.
Now in its fifth outing and 12th year, I call it ‘mature’ because I think we are seeing acts that are coming as a result of feedback. It’s becoming a more cultured cultural event. I think the festival is, either by accident or design, establishing itself as the ‘fringe of the north’.
We’ll no doubt hear about the economic impact, but let’s just think for a moment about the social and cultural impact that this kind of event has on a town our size. By population, it’s probably bigger than the Edinburgh Fringe. it’s an incredible feat by organisers, volunteers and venues to make this happen… repeatedly. And I’m not just saying that because I was involved, I’ve said it from day one. This event is a gift to the Forres area.