Displaying items by tag: festival

A quiet region of Scotland is building a reputation (and tourism) through art that connects nature and community.

When I heard about the Environmental Art Festival Scotland (EAFS) it stuck me as curious that this was the first time that there had been one. After all Scotland's environment has always been important as an inspiration for artists, writers, composers, scientists whether that's Edwin Landseer, Margaret Tait, Robert Burns, Hugh McDiarmid, Felix Mendelsshon, Martyn Bennett, James Hutton or Patrick Geddes.

The landscape is rich in folklore and mythology and articulated by prehistoric monuments and signs of thousands of years of inhabitation. In fact even the word 'environment' was coined by Thomas Carlyle when he was living in Ecclefechan in 1828.

Bert Mulder reviews the Latvian Song and Dance Festival:

The 2013 Latvian song and dance festival wasn't remarkable because its final concert lasted from 7 PM to 1.15am (!), but because after that singers and audience sang together until four in the morning. It wasn't remarkable because of the size of the audience with 20,000 people seating and 20,000 standing, but because of the 15,000 singers on stage that were singing. It wasn't because of the 15,000 singers on stage, but because they were the very best performers selected from the 10% of the Latvian population tested and selected in contests. It wasn't because of the newer compositions, but because of the many century-old songs that the audience knew by heart.

We are delighted to announce that Professor Gayle McPherson has joined our Editorial Board. Gayle holds a Chair in Events and Cultural Policy within the School of Creative and Cultural Industries at the University of the West of Scotland (UWS). Her research interests revolve around the interventions of the local and national state in events and festivity of all types and the social and cultural impacts of events and festivals on communities. She was cultural advisor to the 2014 bid team and co-wrote Theme 16 of the bid and has conducted research with the volunteers who were part of the Delhi Flag Handover Ceremony on behalf of Glasgow Life. She is currently working on an evaluation of the impact of the London 2012 Cultural Programme in Scotland. She has also conducted various other evaluations of events and festivals over the years. She is on the Board of Glasgow East Arts Company and PACE Youth Theatre and is a previous Board Member of Creative Scotland.

Professor Gayle McPherson holds a Chair in Events and Cultural Policy within the School of Creative and Cultural Industries at the University of the West of Scotland (UWS). Her research interests revolve around the interventions of the local and national state in events and festivity of all types and the social and cultural impacts of events and festivals on communities. She was cultural advisor to the 2014 bid team and co-wrote Theme 16 of the bid and has conducted research with the volunteers who were part of the Delhi Flag Handover Ceremony on behalf of Glasgow Life. She is currently working on an evaluation of the impact of the London 2012 Cultural Programme in Scotland. She has also conducted various other evaluations of events and festivals over the years. She is on the Board of Glasgow East Arts Company and PACE Youth Theatre and is a previous Board Member of Creative Scotland.