Aly Bain
Encyclopedia
Aly Bain MBE
(born 15 May 1946 in Lerwick
, Shetland) is a Shetland fiddle
r who learned his instrument from the old-time master Tom Anderson
. Bain is now considered one of the finest fiddlers in the Scottish tradition. In the early days of his career he formed part of the band The Humblebums with two other ‘unknowns’ Gerry Rafferty
and Billy Connolly
. He became nationally prominent as a founding member of The Boys of the Lough
, with whom he played for over 30 years; receiving several honorary citizenships in the USA.
Simultaneously, Bain pursued a solo career in collaborative and television projects with Pelicula Films Director, Mike Alexander and Producer, Douglas Eadie, working on several international television series: 'The Down home Recordings', 'The Shetland Sessions', 'Aly Meets The Cajuns', and four series of the Transatlantic Sessions - in 2010 winning the BBC Radio 2
Folk
Awards, "Good Tradition Award". Since the early eighties Bain has regularly collaborated and recorded with prominent musicians from across the globe, including: Jerry Douglas
, Emmylou Harris
, Mark O'Connor
, Jay Ungar
, Mary Black
, Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh
, Dan Tyminski
, Rosanne Cash
, James Taylor
, Eddi Reader
, Paul Brady
, Darrell Scott
, Michael Doucet
, Martha Wainwright
, Kate and Anna McGarrigle
, John Martyn
, Danny Thompson
, Iris DeMent
, Karen Matheson
, Donal Lunny
, Joan Osborne
, Allison Moorer
, Bruce Molsky
and Allan MacDonald
, bringing traditional music to a constantly widening audience.
In 1993 his autobiography
"Fiddler on the Loose" was published by "Mainstream". It was written with Alastair Clark.
Bain has received many honours for his services to music: in 1994 he was awarded the MBE for his musical accomplishments. In 1989 he received a Silver Disc from the Record Industry Association for his 'Aly Meets the Cajuns' recording. A further Silver Disc followed in 1991 for The Pearl, recorded on his own Edinburgh Record Label, Whirlie Records. He also has received five honorary Doctor of Music
(DMus) degrees: Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama
; Stirling University; The University of St Andrews (2003); The Open University (2005) and Edinburgh University (2009). In addition, on the 27th November 2007, Bain - along with Phil Cunningham
- were awarded Doctor of Letters
from Glasgow Caledonian University
for their contributions to music and to the education and encouragement of young musicians.
In 2005, together with Edinburgh’s Phil Cunningham, he won the BBC
’s “Best Duo of the Year” award.
In 2006, a television programme celebrating his 60th year, documenting Aly Bain's life and works, was broadcast by the BBC.
In 2006, Bain was inducted into the Scots Traditional Music Hall of Fame.
In 2007, Bain and Cunningham celebrated their 20th anniversary of touring as a fiddle and accordion duo. Bain also tours with Swedish musician: (mandola
player), Ale Möller
, with whom he has recorded two albums.
In 2009 Bain collaborated with Nicola Benedetti
to create on an hour long television programme for BBC Scotland
: "When Nicola Benedetti Met Aly Bain", broadcast in 2009.
In 2010, together with Pelicula Films and Billy Connolly
, Bain made a further hour long television programme for BBC
: "Fishing for Poetry", celebrating the life and works of the Scottish Poet, Norman MacCaig
.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 15 May 1946 in Lerwick
Lerwick
Lerwick is the capital and main port of the Shetland Islands, Scotland, located more than 100 miles off the north coast of mainland Scotland on the east coast of the Shetland Mainland...
, Shetland) is a Shetland fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
r who learned his instrument from the old-time master Tom Anderson
Tom Anderson (fiddler)
Dr. Tom Anderson MBE, was a renowned Shetland fiddler and teacher. He was affectionately known to his peers as "Muckle Tammie" .Dr...
. Bain is now considered one of the finest fiddlers in the Scottish tradition. In the early days of his career he formed part of the band The Humblebums with two other ‘unknowns’ Gerry Rafferty
Gerry Rafferty
Gerald "Gerry" Rafferty was a Scottish singer songwriter best known for his solo hits "Baker Street", "Right Down the Line", "Days Gone Down", "Night Owl", "Get It Right Next Time", and with the band Stealers Wheel, "Stuck in the Middle with You". Rafferty was born into a working-class family in...
and Billy Connolly
Billy Connolly
William "Billy" Connolly, Jr., CBE is a Scottish comedian, musician, presenter and actor. He is sometimes known, especially in his native Scotland, by the nickname The Big Yin...
. He became nationally prominent as a founding member of The Boys of the Lough
The Boys of the Lough
-The early years:Their first album, called Boys of the Lough consisted of Aly Bain , Cathal Mc'Connell , Dick Gaughan and Robin Morton ....
, with whom he played for over 30 years; receiving several honorary citizenships in the USA.
Simultaneously, Bain pursued a solo career in collaborative and television projects with Pelicula Films Director, Mike Alexander and Producer, Douglas Eadie, working on several international television series: 'The Down home Recordings', 'The Shetland Sessions', 'Aly Meets The Cajuns', and four series of the Transatlantic Sessions - in 2010 winning the BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
Folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
Awards, "Good Tradition Award". Since the early eighties Bain has regularly collaborated and recorded with prominent musicians from across the globe, including: Jerry Douglas
Jerry Douglas
Jerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
, Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
, Mark O'Connor
Mark O'Connor
Mark O'Connor is an American bluegrass, jazz, country and classical violinist fiddler, composer and music teacher. O'Connor's music is wide-ranging, critically acclaimed, and he has received numerous awards for both his playing and his composition...
, Jay Ungar
Jay Ungar
Jay Ungar is an American folk musician and composer. -Biography:Ungar was born in the Bronx , the son of immigrant Jewish parents from Eastern Europe. He frequented Greenwich Village music venues during his formative period in the 1960s...
, Mary Black
Mary Black
Mary Black is an Irish singer. She is well known as an interpreter of both folk and contemporary material which has made her a major recording artist in her native Ireland, and in many other parts of the world....
, Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh
Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh
Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh is an Irish fiddler and the lead vocalist for the Irish traditional band Altan.-Biography:Ní Mhaonaigh grew up in Gweedore , County Donegal, on the northwest coast of Ireland....
, Dan Tyminski
Dan Tyminski
Daniel John "Dan" Tyminski is a bluegrass composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist. He is a member of the band Alison Krauss and Union Station and has released two solo albums, Carry Me Across the Mountain , on the Doobie Shea Records label, and Wheels , on the Rounder Records label.He is best...
, Rosanne Cash
Rosanne Cash
Rosanne Cash is an American singer-songwriter and author. She is the eldest daughter of the late country music singer Johnny Cash and his first wife, Vivian Liberto Cash Distin....
, James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
, Eddi Reader
Eddi Reader
Eddi Reader MBE is a Scottish singer-songwriter, known both for her work with Fairground Attraction and for an enduring solo career. She is the recipient of three BRIT Awards and has topped both the album and singles charts...
, Paul Brady
Paul Brady
Paul Joseph Brady is an Irish singer-songwriter, whose work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age...
, Darrell Scott
Darrell Scott
James Darrell Scott known as Darrell Scott , the son of musician Wayne Scott with whom he has collaborated, is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He moved as a child to East Gary, Indiana. He was playing professionally by his teens in Southern California, later living in...
, Michael Doucet
Michael Doucet
Michael Doucet is a Cajun fiddler, singer and songwriter who founded the Cajun band BeauSoleil from Lafayette, Louisiana.In 2005 Doucet was one of 12 recipients of the National Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts. The NEA award, which recognizes artistic excellence, cultural...
, Martha Wainwright
Martha Wainwright
Martha Wainwright is a Canadian-American folk-rock singer-songwriter. She is the daughter of American folk singer and actor Loudon Wainwright III and Canadian folk singer-songwriter Kate McGarrigle...
, Kate and Anna McGarrigle
Kate and Anna McGarrigle
Kate and Anna McGarrigle, were a pair of Canadian singer-songwriters from Quebec, who performed as a duo until Kate McGarrigle's death on January 18, 2010.-Profile:...
, John Martyn
John Martyn
John Martyn, OBE , born Iain David McGeachy, was a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a forty-year career he released twenty studio albums, working with artists such as Eric Clapton and David Gilmour...
, Danny Thompson
Danny Thompson
Daniel Henry Edward 'Danny' Thompson is an English multi-instrumentalist best known as a double bassist and businessman...
, Iris DeMent
Iris DeMent
Iris DeMent is an American singer and songwriter. DeMent's musical style encompasses the genres country and folk music.-Early life:...
, Karen Matheson
Karen Matheson
Karen Matheson OBE is a Scottish folk singer, who frequently sings in Scottish Gaelic. She is lead singer of the group Capercaillie and was a member of Dan Ar Braz's group L'Heritage des Celtes, with whom she often sang lead vocals, either alone or jointly with Elaine Morgan...
, Donal Lunny
Dónal Lunny
Dónal Lunny is an Irish folk musician. Lunny has been at the forefront of the evolution of traditional Irish music for more than thirty-five years and has participated within the renaissance of traditional Irish music in that time period...
, Joan Osborne
Joan Osborne
Joan Elizabeth Osborne is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her song "One of Us". She has toured with Motown sidemen the Funk Brothers and was featured in the documentary film about them, Standing in the Shadows of Motown.-Biography:Originally from Anchorage, Kentucky, a suburb...
, Allison Moorer
Allison Moorer
Allison Moorer is an American alternative country singer and the younger sister of Shelby Lynne. She signed to MCA Nashville in 1998 and made her debut on the U.S...
, Bruce Molsky
Bruce Molsky
Bruce C. Molsky is an American fiddler, banjo player, guitarist, and singer. He primarily performs old-time music of the Appalachian region.Molsky was born in 1955 at New York Infirmary in Manhattan, and grew up in The Bronx...
and Allan MacDonald
Allan MacDonald
Allan Nicoll MacDonald was an Australian politician and government minister.MacDonald was born at Lochee, Forfarshire, Scotland and educated at Arbroath High School. He migrated to Western Australia in 1911 and worked at Collie before moving to Perth in 1914, where he was employed as an accountant...
, bringing traditional music to a constantly widening audience.
In 1993 his autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
"Fiddler on the Loose" was published by "Mainstream". It was written with Alastair Clark.
Bain has received many honours for his services to music: in 1994 he was awarded the MBE for his musical accomplishments. In 1989 he received a Silver Disc from the Record Industry Association for his 'Aly Meets the Cajuns' recording. A further Silver Disc followed in 1991 for The Pearl, recorded on his own Edinburgh Record Label, Whirlie Records. He also has received five honorary Doctor of Music
Doctor of Music
The Doctor of Music degree , like other doctorates, is an academic degree of the highest level. The D.Mus. is intended for musicians and composers who wish to combine the highest attainments in their area of specialization with doctoral-level academic study in music...
(DMus) degrees: Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama
Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama
The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland is a conservatoire of music, drama, and dance in the centre of Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1845 as the Glasgow Educational Association, it is the busiest performing arts venue in Scotland...
; Stirling University; The University of St Andrews (2003); The Open University (2005) and Edinburgh University (2009). In addition, on the 27th November 2007, Bain - along with Phil Cunningham
Phil Cunningham (folk musician)
Phil Cunningham, MBE, born 1960 in Edinburgh, Scotland is a Scottish folk musician and composer.-Biography:Phil played accordion and violin from a very young age. He attended school in Portobello, and was raised Mormon, attending church regularly and playing organ...
- were awarded Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters is a university academic degree, often a higher doctorate which is frequently awarded as an honorary degree in recognition of outstanding scholarship or other merits.-Commonwealth:...
from Glasgow Caledonian University
Glasgow Caledonian University
Glasgow Caledonian University is a public university in Glasgow, Scotland.The university was constituted by an Act of Parliament on 1 April 1993 as a result of a merger between Glasgow Polytechnic and The Queen's College, Glasgow....
for their contributions to music and to the education and encouragement of young musicians.
In 2005, together with Edinburgh’s Phil Cunningham, he won the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
’s “Best Duo of the Year” award.
In 2006, a television programme celebrating his 60th year, documenting Aly Bain's life and works, was broadcast by the BBC.
In 2006, Bain was inducted into the Scots Traditional Music Hall of Fame.
In 2007, Bain and Cunningham celebrated their 20th anniversary of touring as a fiddle and accordion duo. Bain also tours with Swedish musician: (mandola
Mandola
The mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola , a fifth lower than a mandolin...
player), Ale Möller
Ale Möller
Ale Möller is a Swedish musician and composer.He was born and grew up in Scania in southern Sweden and started in music as a jazz trumpet player...
, with whom he has recorded two albums.
In 2009 Bain collaborated with Nicola Benedetti
Nicola Benedetti
- Early life and the Yehudi Menuhin School :Benedetti was born in West Kilbride, North Ayrshire to an Italian father and a Scottish mother. She started to learn the violin at the age of four...
to create on an hour long television programme for BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland is a constituent part of the British Broadcasting Corporation, the publicly-funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. It is, in effect, the national broadcaster for Scotland, having a considerable amount of autonomy from the BBC's London headquarters, and is run by the BBC Trust, who...
: "When Nicola Benedetti Met Aly Bain", broadcast in 2009.
In 2010, together with Pelicula Films and Billy Connolly
Billy Connolly
William "Billy" Connolly, Jr., CBE is a Scottish comedian, musician, presenter and actor. He is sometimes known, especially in his native Scotland, by the nickname The Big Yin...
, Bain made a further hour long television programme for BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
: "Fishing for Poetry", celebrating the life and works of the Scottish Poet, Norman MacCaig
Norman MacCaig
Norman MacCaig was a Scottish poet. His poetry, in modern English, is known for its humour, simplicity of language and great popularity.-Life:...
.
Solo albums
- Aly Bain First Album (1984)
- Lonely Bird (1992)
- The Best of Aly Bain:Volume One:A Fiddler's Tale (2008)
From television series
- The Legendary Down Home Recordings
- Aly Bain Meets The Cajuns (1994)
- Aly Bain and Friends (1994)
- Aly Bain and Young Champions (2005)
- The Shetland Sessions [Vol. 1] (1992)
- The Shetland Sessions [Vol. 2] (1993)
The Transatlantic Sessions
- Transatlantic Sessions 3 [Vol.1] (2007) (with Jerry DouglasJerry DouglasJerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
and various artists) - Transatlantic Sessions 3 [Vol.2] (2008) (with Jerry DouglasJerry DouglasJerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
and various artists) - The Original Transatlantic Sessions [Vol.1] (2008) (with Jay UngarJay UngarJay Ungar is an American folk musician and composer. -Biography:Ungar was born in the Bronx , the son of immigrant Jewish parents from Eastern Europe. He frequented Greenwich Village music venues during his formative period in the 1960s...
and various artists) - The Original Transatlantic Sessions [Vol.2] (2008) (with Jay UngarJay UngarJay Ungar is an American folk musician and composer. -Biography:Ungar was born in the Bronx , the son of immigrant Jewish parents from Eastern Europe. He frequented Greenwich Village music venues during his formative period in the 1960s...
and various artists) - The Original Transatlantic Sessions [Vol.3] (2009) (with Jay UngarJay UngarJay Ungar is an American folk musician and composer. -Biography:Ungar was born in the Bronx , the son of immigrant Jewish parents from Eastern Europe. He frequented Greenwich Village music venues during his formative period in the 1960s...
and various artists) - Transatlantic Sessions 4[Vol.1] (2009) (with Jerry DouglasJerry DouglasJerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
and various artists) - Transatlantic Sessions 4[Vol.2] (2010) (with Jerry DouglasJerry DouglasJerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
and various artists) - Transatlantic Sessions 4[Vol.3] (2010) (with Jerry DouglasJerry DouglasJerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
and various artists)
With The Boys of the Lough
- The Boys of the Lough (1973)
- Second Album (1973)
- Recorded Live (1975)
- Lochaber No More (1975)
- The Piper’s Broken Finger (1976)
- Good Friends-Good Music (1977)
- Wish You Were Here (1978)
- Re-Grouped (1980)
- In The Tradition
- Open Road (1983)
- Far From Home (1986)
- Welcoming Paddy Home (1986)
- Farewell and Remember Me (1987)
- Sweet Rural Shade' (1988)
- Live at The Carnegie Hall (1989)
- The Fair Hills of Ireland (1992)
- The Day Dawn (1994)
- The West of Ireland (1999)
With Phil Cunningham
- The Pearl (1995)
- The Ruby (1997)
- Another Gem (2000)
- Spring the Summer Long (2003)
- Best of Aly and Phil (2004)
- Roads Not Travelled (2006)
- PortraitPortraitthumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
(2010)
With Tellef Kvifte, Henning Sommerro, Hanne Kjersti Yndestad and Leiv Solberg
- North Sea Music (2006)
DVDs
- Another Musical Interlude (2004) (with Phil CunninghamPhil CunninghamPhil Cunningham may refer to:*Phil Cunningham , Scottish accordionist with the folk group Silly Wizard*Phil Cunningham , English guitarist, member of New Order, Bad Lieutenant and Marion...
) - Transatlantic Sessions Series 3 (2007) (with Jerry DouglasJerry DouglasJerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
and various artists) - The Original Transatlantic Sessions: Series 1 (2008) (with Jay UngarJay UngarJay Ungar is an American folk musician and composer. -Biography:Ungar was born in the Bronx , the son of immigrant Jewish parents from Eastern Europe. He frequented Greenwich Village music venues during his formative period in the 1960s...
and various artists) - Transatlantic Sessions Series 4 (2009) (with Jerry DouglasJerry DouglasJerry Douglas may refer to:*Jerry Douglas , actor, who was on The Young and the Restless for 25 years*Jerry Douglas, country/bluegrass musician*Jerry Douglas , director and writer of adult films such as, Score...
and various artists)