Inverness Hogmanay Party 2009 Line Up

In the past Inverness have had small Hogmanay celebrations and have often left it to Dornoch ,Drumnadrochit and Granton on Spey to put together the street parties. This year,the Highland Council have an exciting line up featuring three of Scotland’s favourite festival bands for the 2009 Hogmanay Party which will take place in Northern Meeting Park Arena in Inverness on December 31st.

The free show will open with the award winning winning group, Blazin' Fiddles, who will showcase the distinct flavour of fiddle music from various regions of the Highlands and Islands in a fiery blend that is guaranteed to get the party off to a rousing start.

Blazing Fiddles will be followed by the Skye based Peatbog Faeries who are one of Scotland’s best known names in contemporary folk music. Their music embodies many styles and influences, including rock, jazz, electronica, and folk - but their main influence is traditional Celtic music. The band's unique sound is created through a mix of programmed effects and traditional Celtic arrangements, played on bagpipes, fiddles, and whistles.

Taking the party up to the Bells will be The Red Hot Chilli Pipers who starred at the 2008 Inverness St Andrew’s Days celebrations. Winners of BBC one primetime show ‘When Will I be Famous’ and voted ‘Live Act of the Year 2007’ at the Scots Traditional Music Awards, The Red Hot Chilli Pipers have a huge following in the Highlands and are guaranteed to ensure that Inverness welcomes 2010 in style.

Councillor Glynis Sinclair of the Inverness Festivals Working Group said: “We are absolutely delighted to have signed up Blazin Fiddles, The Peatbog Faeries and The Red Hot Chilli Pipers for our Hogmanay Party. All three bands are guaranteed to ensure that Inverness is going to have one of the most enjoyable traditional Hogmanay parties staged in Scotland this year and we are really looking forward to what should be a tremendous night.”

THE RED HOT HIGHLAND FLING

Bringing the second Inverness Winter Festival – and 2009 – to a close will be our Hogmanay Party in Northern Meeting Park Arena – the Red Hot Highland Fling.

We are absolutely delighted, thrilled, excited and to be perfectly honest chuffed to bits with the three bands that will be taking to the stage in Inverness and we already know that you are to.
Bagpipes with attitude. Drums with a Scottish accent. Topping our bill from the middle – more about that later – are The Red Hot Chilli Pipers – a blazing rock band with a show so hot it carries its own health warning.

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers have been rocking the world from New York to Beijing with musicianship of the highest order and when we sat down to discuss which band we wanted more than any other for our Hogmanay Party, they were at the top of a short list of one.

Now we have no idea how many of you own red coats, red scarves or red wigs but we want you to help us paint the town red by turning out in force all dressed up to enjoy a band with a passion for pipes that will leave you breathless.

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers will be joined by two of Scotland’s favourite bands creating what we think will be the best Hogmanay party the Highlands has ever seen.
Opening our show at 8.30pm will be the wonderful Blazin' Fiddles, who have taken the distinct flavour of fiddle music from the various regions of the Highlands and Islands and created something very special indeed.

From solo to ensemble sets, they all come together in a fiery blend that would raise the roof at Northern Meeting Park Area if we had one. Winners of the "Best Folk Band" at the 2006 Scottish Traditional Music Awards, fiddlers Catriona Macdonald, Bruce Macgregor, Allan Henderson and Iain Macfarlane are joined by Anna Massie on guitar/fiddle and Andy Thorburn on keyboard to form one of the best live acts around today.

Now this is where it could get complicated for those of you not paying attention.

The first thing that happened when we announced that we had signed The Red Hot Chilli Pipers was that we were bombarded with messages from families all around Inverness who wanted to take their children to see the show. So we rang The Red Hot Chilli Pipers and asked them if they would mind helping us out. Not a problem. They could not remember the last time they were able to see in the New Year with a dram in their hands.

So please tell everybody that you know that The Red Hot Chilli Pipers will be on stage at around 9.45 pm which is about an hour earlier than some of you might have expected.

Which leads us to the band who have been given the job of bringing our Festival and 2009 to a memorable close.

Based on the Isle of Skye, the Peatbog Faeries have become one of Scotlands best known names in contemporary folk music. They have taken their own individual brand of Scottish tunes to audiences around the world, from European Festivals, to Asia, Africa, America and Australia.

The Peatbog Faeries are a celtic fusion band. Formed in 1994, they are based on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. Their music embodies many styles and influences, including rock, jazz, electronica, and folk - but their main influence is traditional celtic music. The band's unique sound is created through a mix of programmed effects and traditional celtic arrangements, played on bagpipes, fiddles, and whistles.

Peatbogs won 'Live Band of the Year 2008' at the Scottish Traditional Music Awards and we expect them to have you dancing your way in 2010.

Our show will be hosted by Moray Firth Radio’s legendary DJ Ken Kelman which leads us finally to the question that is on the lips of every single member of the 10,000 Hogmanay 2008 party goers.

Will the Councillors be back to dance “The Time Warp” again?

To discover the answer to that question you are going to have to come to The Red Hot Highland Fling.

Our gates will open at 8.00pm and you don’t need a ticket, just a smile, to get in.
with thanks to
http://www.invernessfestivals.com