The Soundhouse Organisation returns to its favourite venue for weekly gigs this autumn following its successful return to live events at the Edinburgh International Festival. Soundhouse will present a season of ten live shows at the Traverse Theatre, featuring the very best in live performance from Scotland’s finest musicians, and a sprinkling of those from further afield.
Thanks to continued support from Creative Scotland and the William Grant Foundation, Soundhouse’s Back @ the Trav season will kick off on Monday 4 October in a socially distanced Traverse 1 with The Noushy 4tet, featuring young jazz trombonist Anoushka Nanguy and her band. A recent graduate of Glasgow’s Conservatoire, Anoushka regularly plays with the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, Astrosnax and the corto.alto collective.
The Soundhouse Organisation’s gigs at the Traverse are well loved by followers of Scottish traditional music, and audiences will not be disappointed with the fantastic line-up of folk musicians from Scotland and beyond, that co-producers Douglas Robertson and Jane-Ann Purdy have put together for their first gigs back at the venue.
Following on from The Noushy 4tet, Leveret made up of three of England’s finest folk musicians, Andy Cutting (button accordion), Sam Sweeney (fiddle) and Rob Harbron (concertina), bring their unique collaborative musicianship to the Trav. Closer to home, hailing from between Inverness-shire and Shetland, Salt House brings us their celebration of song from three of Scotland’s foremost performers; Jenny Sturgeon (guitar, harmonium), Ewan MacPherson (guitar) and Lauren MacColl (fiddle, viola).
Two of Scotland’s most revered multi-instrumentalists, Mairearad Green (accordion, bagpipes) and Anna Massie (guitar, banjo, fiddle) will captivate the Traverse audience with their high energy performance and warm stage presence; and twice BBC Radio 2 Folk Award Musician of the Year winner, Martin Simpson will present a masterclass of fingerstyle guitar playing in a remarkably intimate solo performance.
From the world of Americana, the inimitable Cera Impala will fill the Traverse with her whisky-honeyed voice and her self-defined “hillbilly noir”; from the high desert of Northern New Mexico, Cahalen Morrison will present songs from his new album, Wealth of Sorrow; and one of brightest rising stars of the UK roots music scene, Edinburgh-born Adam Holmes will showcase his masterful songwriting and mellifluous, enchanting voice.
Launching their brand new album Modern Traditions, Brian Molley Quartet will bring their own exhilarating blend of jazz and world music as reflected by their wide and varied travels to the Traverse, with Brian Molley (saxes, flute), Tom Gibbs (piano), Brodie Jarvie (double bass), and Stuart Brown (drums). And Soundhouse Spotlight Sessions alumnus Rachel Duns (sax) debuts the newly formed Rachel Duns Quartet.
Douglas Robertson and Jane-Ann Purdy, Founders of The Soundhouse Organisation and co-producers of Soundhouse Spotlight said: “We can’t wait to get back to live events, and are delighted to be welcoming audiences back to The Traverse. Our programme is a typical Soundhouse mix, drawn from the very best in folk, jazz and Americana. We have a strong line up of Soundhouse favourites and some very exciting new discoveries that we’re sure you’ll love”
Alan Morrison, Head of Music at Creative Scotland said: “During lockdown, the Soundhouse Organisation kept music flowing into our homes with their Spotlight Sessions, providing top-quality concerts for audiences and much-needed income for artists when in-person performance was impossible.
“Now that the doors to venues have reopened, Soundhouse’s perfectly balanced programme of folk, trad, jazz and Americana returns to its spiritual home on the concert calendar – Monday nights at the Traverse Theatre – welcoming back some much-loved musicians and bringing exciting new names into the fold.”
Nick Addington, Chief Executive of William Grant Foundation said: “Connecting audiences, artists and venues is crucial to a thriving cultural scene, so we’re delighted to be supporting Soundhouse to present such a diverse and high quality programme of live concerts at The Traverse this autumn.”
The Soundhouse Back @ the Trav season will run 20:00, Mondays and Sundays, from 10 Oct to 8 Nov. Performances will be live at a socially distanced Traverse 1. Fans of Soundhouse who are unable to make the in-person performances will be able to enjoy a highlight video at the end of the season, featuring songs from all ten gigs.
For full programme information and to book tickets visit www.soundhouse.org.uk.
All images – Musicians Cera Impala and Adam Holmes © 2021 J.L. Preece
