Hail, Hail, The Scots Are Here!

By Mike Fitzpatrick

On February 28th, PBS will begin broadcasting 'Highland Heartbeat', (in New York on WLIW21 at 8pm) a fifteen-song specially recorded live performance, featuring some of Scotland's finest vocalists. Led by the acclaimed singer/actress/television presenter Fiona Kennedy 'Highland Heartbeat' also features stunning renditions of songs both current and historic, from such artists as Jim Malcolm, Daisy Chute, Jilian Isbester, Maureen MacMullen and Darren MacLean.

A celebration of all things Scottish, the production features songs old and new, interspersed with wonderful readings of classic Scottish poetry from the brilliant mind of Robert Burns, by the acclaimed actor, Brian Cox ('The Ring', 'The Bourne Supremacy', 'Frasier').

The concert, shot in high definition at the historic Theatre Royal in Glasgow, features the men donning traditional Scottish kilts, while the women wear modern designs that hint of ancient Scottish themes.

Opening with the haunting wail of the distinctive Scottish bagpipe, the music and song throughout 'Highland Heartbeat' reminds the viewer of the glorious and often tragic history and passionate feelings of immense national decorum that have kept Scottish hearts pumping with pride for centuries.

Featuring the more traditional Scottish compositions such as 'Loch Lomond' and 'Down in the Glen', through to more up to date popular hits, made famous by Carly Simon, Bette Midler and Simon and Garfunkel, ''Highland Heartbeat' is a performance which will stir Celtic pride not only among first generation immigrants, but also those removed from their homeland for decades.

Fiona Kennedy, undoubtedly the most well-known of the performers, spoke with the Irish Examiner last week about her involvement with 'Highland Heartbeat'.

Originally from Aberdeen (though born in Belfast), Fiona is one of five daughters of acclaimed Gaelic singer, and Mod gold medal winner, the late Calum Kennedy (The Golden Voice of the Highlands) and Anne Gillies, also a Mod gold medal winner.

With her parents and her four sisters (Kirsteen, Morag, Morven and Deirdre), Fiona appeared on British television dozens of times, and toured with the family before packed houses for years.

Winning countless awards, the family continued performing until shortly before Anne tragically died in 1974, leaving her husband with five young daughters. Documentaries on Calum Kennedy's life have since been produced and broadcast by BBC Scotland.

Mike Fitzpatrick (MF): You grew up as part of a musical family, do you think you were destined to follow in your parents footsteps?
Fiona Kennedy (FK): I think there was absolutely no question that I would follow in their footsteps, because when I even suggested when I was at school that I would like to study law. My dad told me that I couldn't possibly do that, as I'd be letting the family down!

MF: Your dad Calum was a very well-known singer, was he a major influence on your early career?
FK: Definitely, (my parents) were both singers, as was my uncle Alistair, he's a dentist who studied in Belfast, and all three were Mod gold medalists. We grew up a bit like the Von Trapp family, my sisters and I. We sang as kids, and we sang altogether, my dad ran theaters, and he also represented Scotland in the World Ballad Championships in Russia in the '50s, beating something like 500 competitors, and won the gold medal. So Dad's, and Mum's, influence was enormous, not just musically, but in every way really.

MF: So all your sisters sang as children then?
FK: They did, but they're all normal now! I'm the only one (still singing), but Morven, one of my sisters, she's very involved in 'Highland Heartbeat', she runs the business side of it. Although she has a very good voice herself, she went into business early on. My sister Kirsteen worked for the BBC for a long time, but they all do their own thing, and love music. We enjoyed it while we did it, but it wasn't going to be a career for them.

MF: You've had quite a varied career, acting, television presenting, but most notably singing, is this where you feel you're most at home?
FK: Yes, definitely, I mean, at the end of the day, the music is what drives me the most, and in many ways touches me the most. I did a lot of kids programs and presented 'Record Breakers' with Roy Castle and Norris McWhirter, and that was great fun, as it incorporated singing, dancing, acting and presenting, and that was really a dream job. The music though, is unquestionably the one for me. At the end of the day, when you sit down with a glass of wine and the fire's on, it's all about the music. It's what touches you, and what connects people around the world regardless of anything, you know, a good song, a good tune, is a fantastic thing.

MF: Working with Tartan TV, you've interviewed some of the great Scottish personalities, such as Sean Connery, Ewan McGregor, Alan Cummings, Billy Connolly and Brian Cox. Tell me about that.
FK: That was brilliant as well, because you'd get such an insight into the way that other people in the industry work and think. Because I guess I've been involved on both sides of it, I just think it's really important to respect what other people do. It was just fantastic to be given access to people like Ewan McGregor and Billy Connolly. There's something about these Celtic guys that's special!

MF: Which brings us to Highland Heartbeat, where did the idea for such a production first formulate?
FK: It was there in my mind for a very long time, you know, why are the Scots actually not getting the platform that maybe they deserve, when you know, we've got such a rich culture, a Celtic culture, and we've got great things in common with the Irish and the Bretons, but I just thought that there wasn't much of a platform for young performers in the way that there was when I was growing up. Television doesn't really provide that platform anymore, and there's always talent out there, and it's not really even seen on our screens at home much, so I think PBS is the perfect place to be showing this, because PBS, unlike so many other channels, really does highlight music of all cultures. While in the States, I was so impressed by the quality of the programming (on PBS). And having done the Tartan TV presenting, and having spoken with the powers that be at PBS, they said to me, you know, we'd really love to have a music programme that reflected Scotland, but also embraced the whole Celtic music scene, and also if you could include some well-known classics, and popular songs, even if they were just arranged with a Celtic flavor, they'd be really interested in that. So, it came together, here was an opportunity that brought together music that I was passionate about, and felt I really had to bring it about. So, it's being launched next week, then we'll be touring it coast to coast.

MF: So, who else is involved?
FK: We've got some great young performers, one of the girls (Jilian Isbester) had never been out of the UK before. She's a joyful girl, a huge talent, just a dream of a girl to work with, because she's unspoilt, delightful and talented, and she's so proud to be part of this. There's a real buzz about this, when you gather together sixty in the choir, young enthusiastic kids, and Darren, Jilian, Daisy, Maureen, Jim. There's just something really exciting about it. I'd worked with Jim before, because I used to present a radio show, and he's a tremendous performer, and played in a number of bands. He's had a very full career. I was also trying to reach out across the ages and styles, so it wasn't just going to be a kind of one-dimensional. Jim is so experienced, he writes, he's a terrific live performer. So it was just trying to get a blend of voices and singers that would work well together.

MF: Tell me about Brian Cox's involvement, I believe he'll be narrating, and reading the works of Robert Burns?
FK: Well, Brian I've known for a few years and of course he comes from Dundee, and I'm a great admirer of his, but he's got this fantastic speaking voice, and he's ferociously proud of being Scottish. It seems to me that we needed a voice with his kind of gravitas and there's something about his voice, you know, when you hear it, you hear the depths of his soul. I was really delighted when he said that he'd do it and I just wanted a voice that said Scotland, and for me, Brian is that.

MF: It certainly augers well for the future of Scottish entertainment?
FK: I hope so, because you know, there's room for everything musically, I mean I'm a fan, I've got very broad musical tastes. I sat on the board of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, I was brought up in the theater, and you know, I love Franz Ferdinand and the Scissor Sisters, I love a huge range of music, I love Van the Man! I hope this will really resonate with a broad audience, and I don't think it's only for Celts. It's good family viewing, and there are songs in there that everybody will know, and we hope that we've done them justice and that we've done a good job.