Peaks - Album launch

Doors open 30 mins before start time

Chamber Music Scotland (CMS) is delighted to announce the release of ‘Cladach / Mullach’ the debut album from Peaks.

Peaks is a musical partnership between violinist George Smith and cellist Duncan Strachan, founder members of the Maxwell Quartet. Incorporating both electronic and acoustic mediums, Peaks weaves together an eclectic range of musical strands, with much of the duo's work focusing on aspects of Scottish traditional culture, recontextualised in a post-minimalist and post-modernist aesthetic.

Their debut album ‘Cladach / Mullach’, (releasing September 25th with Chamber Music Scotland) is a two-part musical reflection on folk tales and legends from various parts of the Western Isles of Scotland. Blending string textures, traditional music forms, Gaelic song and storytelling, the album features guest vocals from acclaimed piper Brìghde Chaimbeul. Smith and Strachan have taken this story and woven together a magical 50-minute soundscape which describes the landscapes of the western isles, both bleak and beautiful, through music. Incorporating traditional music forms and post-minimalist string textures, the piece is a mesmerising journey which reflects on tradition, the passing on of stories and the connection of music to the land.

Album Note

The first part, titled 'Tir/Mar' (Land/Sea) is a collection of short pieces based on folk tales from the outer isles of Mingulay, Barra, South Uist, North Uist and Lewis and Harris. The second part, titled ‘Cladach/Mullach’ (Shore/Summit) is a through-composed work for acoustic instruments and recorded samples, based on an old folk tale from the Isle of Skye describing how music first came to the Western Isles of Scotland. The story tells of how a young man discovers a stringed instrument washed up on the shore, which makes a beautiful sound when the wind blows across the strings. He is unable to play it himself, so his mother turns to a sgoil-dubh (place of black magic) to give her soul in exchange for her son’s ability to play it. However, upon learning that this is what she has done, the boy can only ever play melancholy music on the instrument.

Pianodrome Bruntsfield is at The St.Oswald's Center at 41 Montpelier Park, Bruntsfield, Edinburgh EH10 4NB, just parallel to the main street and next to the primary school.

The Pianodrome is based in a 130 year old ex church building, and currently the space is unheated, so please remember to wrap up warm.

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Accessibility

There is ramped access to the main hall of the Pianodrome. We have an accessible toilet and space for wheelchairs. Most of our performances are relaxed performances. If you have any access requirements please feel free to email us at boxoffice@pianodrome.org.

Babes in arms

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Non-human visitors

Pets are welcome if they are well behaved.