Since triumphantly bursting on to the folk scene at Celtic Connections 2015, Dosca - the energetic five piece ensemble of bagpipes, flute, guitar, bass and drums - are quickly making a name for themselves among some of Scotland's finest folk acts.

With influences from Scottish and Irish folk, as well as a hint of jazz, the band’s self-titled debut EP was launched early in 2015, leading them on to a number of prominent appearances throughout Scotland and further afield – including the MG Alba Scots Trad Music Awards, Piping Live! in Glasgow, Edinburgh's Fringe fetival and a return to Celtic Connections in 2016.

They have also made successful ventures to mainland Europe, none less so than when rapturously received at the Schots Weekend in Belgium in September last year, as well as a sold out concert at Celtica Valle D'Aosta in Italy during their highly attended 2016 summer tour. Collectively the band’s members also bring a wealth of touring experience (whilst still students), having undertaken tours to Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Qatar, Switzerland and Brazil.

"One of Scotland's most promising young acts"
- Orkney Folk Festival

" The recently-formed Dosca, comprising five RCS students from both the folk and jazz programmes, were on positively bangin’ form. "
- Celtic Connections 

"Dosca are taking the party up a few notches!"
- Folk Radio UK

"Just Incredible"
- STV Glasgow

"Unmistakable musical talent"
-TRADtv

"Fine up and coming talent, "
- Daily Record 

"A firm rythm section, tight solo’s, vivid arrangements...you can feel your heart starting to race with this band...they are now unquestioningly ready to conquer the mainland....starting with your bodies and souls!"
- Schots Weekend Festival, Belgium 


Guitarist, singer, songwriter and music producer based in Helensburgh, Scotland. I play with the traditional music duo Eilidh Steel & Mark Neal www.fiddleguitar.com as well as rock ceilidh band Teannaich www.teannaich.com

I also run the recording studio 'The Sonic Lodge' www.soniclodge.co.uk

 The multi-award-winning quintet Goitse, was forged in the white-hot creative crucible of Limerick University’s Irish World Academy. Recently crowned Live Ireland’s ‘Trad group of the Year’, Chicago Irish American News’ ‘Group of the Year’, as well as winning the prestigious ‘Freiburger International Leiter 2016’ award in Germany, they have made a name for themselves as one of the most sought after bands amongst connoisseurs of Irish Traditional music. Their third album, Tall Tales and Misadventures, has received rave reviews as the band continues to take the traditional Irish music scene by storm.  

AIDAN O'ROURKE

Aidan O’Rourke is a fiddler, composer, producer and curator. With his trio Lau, in multiple solo projects and in collaborations, he has pioneered a new sound in folk music and redefined traditional forms.

His roots are in Scottish and Irish folk music. He grew up in an Irish family in Argyll and studied fiddle in the West Highland tradition. By 14 he was touring with The Caledonia Ramblers; in 1998 he joined Blazin’ Fiddles; in 2010 he formed the quartet Kan with whistle player Brian Finnegan; in 2016 he formed a duo with the jazz pianist Kit Downes; in 2017 he joined the legendary Donal Lunny's new collective The Atlantic Arc Orchestra.

Lau came together in 2006 and their debut album set a precedent for new politically-charged folk music that expands the form and experiments with sound while staying rooted in tradition. Four further studio albums followed, plus a couple of live albums and a 2017 retrospective charting the band’s first decade. Lau collaborators include Karine Polwart, Fred Frith, Anais Mitchell, Joan as Police Woman, John Parish, Adem, Jack Bruce, Trilok Gurtu, Brian Irvine and the Royal Northern Sinfonia. The band have made multiple tours of the US and Japan and won Best Group at the BBC 2 Folk Awards an unprecedented four times.

As a solo artist, Aidan is always looking for new ways to articulate the tradition. He has released four solo albums – Sirius (2006), An Tobar (2008), Hotline (2013) and 365: Vol 1 (2018) – as well as the experimental EPs Music For Exhibition and Film (2015) and Imprint (2016). He was named Musician of the Year at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2014.

As a composer, Aidan threads his heritage into diverse settings. He is a three-time winner of the PRSF New Music Biennial commission at the Southbank Centre; other commissioners include the Scottish Ensemble, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Sage Gateshead, Celtic Connections, the Tolbooth in Stirling, An Tobar, Cottier Chamber Project and Capella Nova. In 2017 he wrote the official music for the opening of the Queensferry Crossing.

As a curator, Aidan has co-directed multiple editions of the Lau-Land festival featuring eclectic lineups, one-off collaborations and workshops. Other curations include Lucky Middlemass’s Tavern, recreating a hub of Edinburgh enlightenment music and debate.

As a teacher, Aidan is a regular tutor at Newcastle University and University of Limerick, and holds fiddle classes as part of Lau-Land.

As a producer, Aidan's interests are in stripping back to bare elements and appreciating the real qualities of instruments and voices – letting the nuances of the tune be at the forefront. In 2018 he produced Brighde Chaimbeul's debut album The Reeling.

His latest project is the immense tune-cycle 365. Aidan wrote a tune every day for a year in response to a short story collection by James Robertson. The result is a major new body of 365 tunes – a significant addition to the Scottish traditional music canon. Aidan’s fiddle tunes are sparse and emotive; his playing is renowned for its lyricism, here paired with bold harmonies from Kit Downes on harmonium and piano, guitarist Sorren Maclean and harpist Esther Swift. 365: Vol 1 was released in May 2018. 365: Volume 2 will be released in August 2019.

“Few contemporary musicians in any category can match either his artistic ambitions or his achievements in bringing them to fruition” (The Scotsman)

“O’Rourke’s music – both his writing and playing – is unfailingly strong and imaginative” (The List)

“Lau are a remarkable band - exquisite and hypnotic, musicianship at its best” (The Guardian)

www.garyclinton.com || Composer & Guitarist

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