Lochaber Jolly Nice Time/Linlithgow-ing South/West Linton the way home

West Linton

Another pleasant surprise when we reached the venue – a perfectly set-up projector, screen and PA awaiting us. This was fortunate because the trusty Citroen had got stuck in the car park. Ian was eventually rescued by some kind locals, and we were able to set up and perform an emotional but very enjoyable final concert.

We would have been more nervous before we played had we known that the audience was made up of some kind of MENSA-on-steroids, consisting as it did of a dizzying collection of poets, musicians, artists, architects, professors and to top it off an expert in instrumental acoustics.. Fortunately we were ignorant of this until afterwards, but were then able to enjoy their fascinating company over dinner, and try out an amazing array of obscure wind instruments into the bargain. A highly memorable end to the tour.

So some final thanks: To all our hosts for their hospitality; to the many music societies for having us and battling through terrible weather to see us; and of course to the Tunnell Trust for their sponsorship which made the whole thing possible. See you again Scotland.

 

Linlithgow

 

Unfortunately, with it being day 6 of our tour, I have run out of new words to describe the Scottish countryside. So here are some photos instead.

In the course of our journey down to Linlithgow we also hit temperatures of -7, which caused the condensation on the inside of Sally and Ian's windows to freeze.

The return of 4G network to our phones signalled our departure from the Highlands, and arriving in Linlithgow we retired to a pub for a meal and a brief internet binge. We then made our way to our venue, the local academy, and made the delightful discovery that the hall had its own PA and projection facilities, as well as ex-BBC techie John to man it all, meaning we could leave most of our gear in the car and concentrate on the playing.

After a lovely veg-filled meal (much needed after our marvellous run of Highland cooked breakfasts) we really enjoyed playing to our largest audience yet. The evening finished with a drink and a chance to chat with the audience, including a number of Tunnell trustees (we were extra nice to the treasurer). It was then time to return with our kind hosts for the night Nora, John and Janet and get some sleep in preparation for the trip to West Linton, our final stop of the tour..

Lochaber

The weather on the morning of our trip to Fort William was somewhat changeable.

By the time John had returned from a fruitless amp search in nearby Kyle the snow had closed in, so we set off south at a tentative pace. Fortunately the trusty Picasso laughs in the face of snow and ice, and our only stop was to stretch our legs and set up a snowball ambush for Ian.

The Ben Nevis Hotel had one feature that particularly excited us after our snowy drive – a swimming pool complete with sauna, steam room and hot tub. An hour of pure bliss ensued, reclining in hot bubbles while watching the snow fall outside the window.

Fortunately John's magic amp had repaired itself on the journey, so we could proceed straight to the venue for a relaxing set up, and a picnic featuring Ian's trademark corned beef sandwiches.

 

Having managed to forget my black socks, I was forced to swap with John (he could hide them under his longjohns), which gave rise to the highly unusual sensation of putting on socks which are residually warm from another man's feet. John and I overcame our discomfort and we enjoyed another successful concert with a great audience, with the highlight for us being Ian mischievously stealing Sally's demonstration tune of Somewhere Over the Rainbow without warning, forcing her to come up with another on the spot. Many thanks to Jim for his help at the venue, Clare for her administrative and organisational help, and Elaine for waiting patiently to lock up while we packed down our endless equipment after the concert.

We retired to the hotel for an epic game of hearts in which the inebriated did battle with the inexperienced, with the latter sadly losing out at the close. Our last night in the Highlands .

Lochan Load

It was a refreshingly short journey from Skye across to our next stop, Balmacara Mains Guesthouse. Even by the ridiculously high standard set previously on this tour, the view from outside our room was amazing. 

After a short wi-fi binge we adjourned to Beth's Cafe for some food, enjoying the unfortunate misuse of quotation marks in the cafe's request for donations for people in 'need'..

Upon reaching Dornie Hall, two things became clear: firstly, that the hall was superbly kitted out and featured a lighting rig, stage and sound system; and secondly, that John's trusty amp had tired of its bohemian existence and had packed up, resisting all his attempts to revive it and feebly flashing 'protect' in small font on the screen. It took an epic effort by John to rig his gear to the existing system but we managed to be ready on time, and once again thoroughly enjoyed the concert and the support of all who braved the weather to be there.

Unfortunately all this excitement had left us rather peckish, and we had forgotten that we couldn't rely on the London-style 24 hour takeaways to give us a post-concert meal. After some frenzied calculations and some sweet-talking on the phone from Ian, we dispatched the luckless John to the nearest Chinese takeaway with the vague direction of 'somewhere near a swimming pool'. Aided by divine guidance he returned some time later with a boot full of nutritious goodness, and we retired to the guesthouse to feast and enjoy a nightcap by the fire with the excellent Norman.

Many thanks to all at Balmacara for their hospitality, and to Melanie, Mary, Kate and Di at Lochan for their help and tireless promotion of the concert (and a retweet from Charles Kennedy!). We leave you en route to Fort William - more soon.

Skye-high

The early highlight of our drive to Skye was an extended encounter with the fabled Loch Ness, which was so stunning that our progress slowed to a crawl as we kept stopping for non-negotiable photo spots. 

John tried calling for Nessie but to no avail – fortunately technology filled the gap, with a stunning new image which will give heart to conspiracy theorists across the globe. 

We stopped in Kyle for fish and chips, while John made friends with the guys in the local hi-fi shop and we enjoyed spotting the classy posters up around town for our Dornie Hall concert. The drive across the Skye Bridge, accompanied by KSQ choir's predictable soundtrack, was the precursor to some of the most remarkable scenery yet, prompting further speculation about whether a freelance music career might somehow be sustained from a remote hut in the hills.

Our trusty satnav got highly confused about the location of our host Bill's house, but we finally tracked it down and were soon installed in front of a roaring fire with hot drinks, watching the downpour outside smugly. Sadly this could not continue for long as we had to get on to Portree and our venue for the evening, the beautiful St Columba's Church. Again we were thrilled with the turnout, as many braved the frankly horrible conditions to hear us – very much appreciated.

After packing down we were led back to Bill's, where we were treated to an incredible meal featuring homemade soup, home-grown vegetables and fish caught by the man himself. Wine, whiskey, memorable anecdotes and after-dinner games made us ready for bed.

Many thanks to Bill and Dierdre for their incredible hospitality, and to all the friendly islanders who made us feel welcome. Onwards to Dornie!

A Very Inver-Ness Time

Our welcome to the Highlands came in the form of the biggest snowfall for two years. Fortunately we avoided the jack-knifed lorry on the A9 and made it to Inverness in good time, with some expert heavy weather driving from John (we have to be nice to him sometimes). After recovering feeling in our fingers and toes with some incredible local hot chocolate, we got our gear into the imposing Town House, making excellent use of the catering trolleys.

The hall had a very fine acoustic and, after eating our way through a monstrous picnic provided by the excellent James, we very much enjoyed playing to an appreciative audience, which included some saxophone buffs who kept us on our toes!

Many thanks to our hosts James, Alfie and Joan who looked after us so well, with Alfie kindly indulging my curiosity (purely academic of course) about the Scottish whisky-making process. A sound night's sleep ensued.

As I write we journey past Loch Ness towards the Isle of Skye, so stay tuned for another update soon.

Kaleidoscope Saxophone Quartet Day 1 - A Perth-fect Start

We reached the beautiful town of Perth after a relatively uneventful nine-hour drive from London, with the highlight being a fiercely contested game of Monopoly, won by arch-capitalist and quartet leader Sally, who asserted her authority with a terrifying array of hotels on the pinks, browns and reds. Further amusement was provided by born and bred Londoner John's pitiful lack of countryside knowledge, as he pointed out animals, barns and haystacks with undisguised fear and confusion. 

 The next day was spent seeing the sights of Perth, and after a late lunch of cheese and haggis paninis (yes, really) we got our first look at the venue, the stunning St John's Kirk. With kind help from Jim, Ian and Lucy from Perth Chamber Music we prepared our sound and visuals, managing to get the enormous 8x6 screen set up with only mild bruising. The sound in the church was perfect: resonant but not too washy, and we could hear each other very clearly which made performing so much easier – a great venue for chamber music. 

A highly enjoyable first concert ensued with a warm and friendly local audience, as well as some intrepid souls journeying from as far afield as Arbroath. A very impressive turnout for a cold and windy Monday evening in January.

 

Many thanks to all in Perth who made us so welcome – we are now journeying through the beautiful and snow-blanketed Cairngorns for our next stop in Inverness, with a mind-blown Londoner at the wheel. Wish us luck!

 Ishizuka/Ji Liu - violin & piano duo

Kaleidoscope Saxophone Quartet

Total Brass - brass quintet

Welcome to the Tunnell Trust Awards Scheme 2015 Tours Blog.

We will feature Blogs from all three wonderful groups as they Tour Scotland this winter and spring.

Click on the photos or here to see Concert dates 

Enjoy!