Scotland : January 28 and 29, 2009
Wednesday
It was smooth flying for the first group of Spotlight Québécois heading to Showcase Scotland on KLM Montréal to Amsterdam, including an onboard concert (at the request of the crew) by members of La Bottine Souriante during the flight from Amsterdam to Glasgow (watch it here on YouTube : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxfRqGiW1zA ). 22 of us picked up at the airport and driven (on the left) to our various hotels, followed by check-in at the gorgeous Glasgow Royal Concert Hall where they sell folk, trad and world music ALL THE TIME at the Coda music store. Showcase Scotland has planned very full days for us and we needn’t have worried about putting on any weight drinking good beer and whisky because we’re walking it off up and down the hill from our lodging to the concert halls, several times a day!
Next, off to a reception at the Scottish Music Centre to meet and greet; a quick and delicious supper and then time to catch some of the amazing talent at the UK’s largest winter festival. SOME of us went to bed at a reasonable hour so we could get up in time for breakfast! Photo: Gilles Garand and Réjean Brunet ( Le Vent du Nord)
Thursday
Made it to breakfast with 5 minutes to spare, prepared the Folquébec team’s daily plan of attack, then headed out for a briefing at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. Up next : a reception at City Hall where we squeezed through a picket line (school and daycare budget cuts) and shortly thereafter hopped a classic, red double-decker bus for a very nippy but impressive tour of a beautiful, historic city that is bustling with culture. Photo : Serge Paré (Productions Serge Paré) and Françoise Boudrias (La Pruche Libre).
At dinner, our team was joined by Pierre Boulanger, Colin Hicks, Catherin Devost and Marie Morin from the Québec Government Office in London. Tonight’s shows included stunning performances by Le Vent du Nord and La Bottine Souriante – both Glasgow favorites – in the main auditorium at the Royal Concert Hall, followed by a night of jamming (and a fair amount of refreshment) in the Festival Club where Le Vent du Nord performed once again for frenzied fans. Bedtime around 3:30 am. Photo : Dana Whittle, Catherine Devost, Marie Morin, Heidi Fleming, Marion Vitrac, Colin Hicks, Pierre Boulanger, Françoise Boudrias.