Ceòl Cholasa is a fledgling festival that takes place every September on the small Hebridean Island of Colonsay which measures only 8 miles by 3 and has a population of 120 islanders. The festival was started by two islanders due to the difficulties in attracting musicians to the island despite it’s rich heritage. The festival has continued to be a large focal point of the island calender attracting in some big names from the folk world.
Artists that have played on Colonsay in previous years include: Aly Bain, Phil Cunningham, Karen Mathieson, Donald Shaw, Karine Polwart, Kris Drever, John McCusker, Roddy Woomble, Kathleen MacInnes, Iain MacDonald, Iain MacFarlane and Ross Martin. The festival has attracted music lovers from as far afield as Germany, USA, Canada and Australia.
The festival takes kicks off on the afternoon of Thursday September 15th, concluding early evening on Sunday the 18th, just in time for the ferry, of which there are only five per week. Like most good festivals the local hotel serves as the festival club where plenty of sessions take place.
Names confirmed so far for 2011 include Lau, Nick Keir and Stephen Quigg, The Poozies and Joy Dunlop. As you can imagine, tickets for a festival like this go fast. Advance bookings for non-islander tickets have already been spoken for but there is a ‘waiting list’ which is still continuing to grow. The release of actual physical tickets is set for March 1st. If you would like your name added to the waiting list, visit the website link below for further details. Ticket pricing has remained at last years price of £60 for a full Weekend Pass, which allows entry to all events.
more details here: www.ceolcholasa.com
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