Julie Fowlis with Scottish Chamber Orchestra at Celtic Connections 2026

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Julie Fowlis with Scottish Chamber Orchestra at Celtic Connections 2026

Review by Pauline Keightley

The touching, mystical and lyrical beauty of these well-crafted Gaelic songs surrounded by live trad folk music

Julie Fowlis performed with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra – Celtic Scots and Irish traditional folk voices were enhanced by the depth of sound of the classical orchestra. As well as Julie’s crystal clear voice – she has a clear, deeply felt, musicality, along with her were her husband Irish bouzouki (Greek mandolin) player, Emanon Doorley, Irish fiddler, Gaelic singer Zoe Conway and Irish musician John McIntyre. The quartet’s 2024 ALLT albums captures their authentic traditional music with that impactful live vibe and cohesive sound: with soaring pipes, fiddles, melodies, dynamic rhythm guitar, the emotional solo voice and the collective and caressing soothing vocal harmonies.

Glasgow Scotland. 21st January 2026. Julie Fowlis, Scots Gaelic singer, along with Irish singer Zoe Conway and Irish musicians Eamon Doorley, John McIntyre peformed their new album Allt, based on Gaelic poems, along with the Scottish symphony orchestra at Glasgow concert hall, as part of Celtic Connections 2026. Photo Pauline Keightley.

They played the range and depth of traditional music – and the long roots between Irish and Scottish music. Both intimate and powerful. All performers were clearly thrilled to have the impact and range of the SCO behind them, to enrich their music with strings, percussions, wind instruments. Creatively conducted by David Brophy.

They began with tunes with Julie Fowlis on small pipes. As well as their toe-tapping, uplifting tunes, there were several stand out ballads, namely the memorable Puthrag Nom Puth’r (Sister o sister, about love and loss), the haunting Cuimhne, the melodic Caim chaluim chille chaoimh specially commissioned for Ireland and the expressive Theid Mi Do Loch Alainn.

The live trad folk music worked so well alongside the live orchestra settings, perfectly backed by Doorley’s counter-melodies on bouzouki and with McIntyre’s dramatic melodic and rhythmic guitar, floated over with the perfect calming Gaelic voices. This was a high quality collaboration of kindred musical voices with Fowlis and Conway’s interwoven harmonies. These Gaelic songs were given heart-stirring, joyful, lyrical and uplifting musical settings.

Glasgow Scotland. 21st January 2026. Julie Fowlis, Scots Gaelic singer, along with Irish singer Zoe Conway peformed their new album Allt, based on Gaelic poems, along with the Scottish symphony orchestra at Glasgow concert hall, as part of Celtic Connections 2026. Photo Pauline Keightley.

Their song Faoiseamh was dedicated to the people of Ukraine. Conway spoke of how their music and songs were based on their personal inspirations of Gaelic poems, both old and new. Songs of the natural world, homelands – open hearted story-telling, with songs of place and time, love and loss.They finished their set with speys and reels and a couple of Polka tunes. For their encore they performed beautiful harmony singing on La Rouil. Followed by lively tunes, when they were joined on stage by Mairtin O’Connor on accordion.

Fowlis’s voice is a delight and her performances always have her audiences entranced. Her muisc expresses her Hebridean Uist roots, with her intimate and pure voice. Perfectly matched by the Irish voices of Conway and McIntyre’s counterbalancing Gaelic harmonies. A high quality, sublime, engrossing and enriching concert.

Glasgow Scotland. 21st January 2026. Glasgow. Máirtín O’Connor, Irish accordionist, performed with the Scottish Symphony Orchestra at Glasgow concert hall, at Celtic Connections 2026. He played with boys of the lough and Riverdance. Photo Pauline Keightley.

*Fowlis was very well supported by renowned Irish accordion player and composer Mairtin O’Connor, also backed by the orchestra on some powerful tunes. O’Connor has performed with Boys of the Lough and Riverdance.

** Julie Fowlis is an acclaimed Scots Gaelic singer and is well known for her vocals on films – recently on Outlander’s Blood of my Blood and on Disney’s Brave film. I’m personally a massive fan of the live album and I highly recommend both volumes of ALLT. Fowlis plays the Scottish small pipes, oboe, bagpipes and a melodeon shruti box, which provided a graceful surround to her voice. She has performed with James Taylor, KT Tunstall, Chris Thile, Nicola Benedetti, Le Vent du Nord, Mary Chapin Carpenter and more. Plus a TV and radio presenter and a voice artist, for The Lost Spells, and on the worldwide best-selling video game Assassins Creed Valhalla, with renowned Norwegian composer Einar Selvik.

Review and Photos Pauline Keightley – www.pkimage.co.uk