From Uig to Duluth
Scots Gaelic Music and Song
Laura MacKenzie - vocals, wooden flutes, whistles, Scottish smallpipes. concertina
Dáithí Sproule – guitar; Andrea Stern – harp; The North Star Gaelic Singers – additional vocals
- Featured on NPR's "Thistle & Shamrock" program, alongside field recordings of our Scots Gaelic source singer, John Matheson.
The songs and melodies were sourced primarily from field recordings made in Duluth, Minnesota in 1937 of Scots Gaelic singer John Matheson, who immigrated to Duluth from Uig, Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland in 1905. In both Scotland and North America, Matheson was held in the highest regard as a traditional singer, and his music gladdened the heart of many an immigrant Scot in Duluth and beyond.
- "Laura and her colleagues skillfully and subtly convey the songs’ essence with a gentle, light touch....it's easy to be won over by the creative flair of Laura's performances."- The Living Tradition
- "Fascinating musical project performing the Gaelic repertoire of singer John Matheson, who migrated from the Isle of Lews to Minnesota in 1905. Laura's clear Gaelic vocal has lots of expression. Guitar, smallpipes,harp and whistles provide sprightly, bright, smooth accompaniment" -- fROOTS (U.K.) (with a "Thumbs Up" rating!)