Welcome Concert
Friday 28th April – 7:30pm
The Catholic Hall
The Paul McKenna Band open the 2023 Festival in fine style with support from a musician with many local connections, Davie Anderson and Glasgow’s Kin. Many members of an early lineup of the Paul McKenna Band met for the first time in the Girvan sessions and it’s a pleasure to welcome them back to the Festival this year.
£16 / £14
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Alistair McCulloch & Marc Duff with support from Binky Blue
Saturday 30th Apr – 3:00pm
The Catholic Hall
A demonstration that Ayrshire fiddling is in fine fettle as Alistair McCulloch – acknowledged as Ayrshire’s premier exponent of traditional fiddle – is joined by Capercaillie founder Marc Duff on whistles and bouzouki. Rianna Muir of Ayrshire-based brother and sister duo, Binky Blue (recent winners of a coveted Danny Kyle award at Celtic Connections) represents the next generation of Ayrshire fiddlers.
£8 / £5
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The Festival Folk Club
Saturday 29th April – 6:00pm
The Harbour Bar (upstairs)
The Festival Folk Club provides an opportunity for you to take a floor spot on the Festival stage – a folk open mic! Guided by host and MC Davie Anderson the Folk Club will also include impromptu performances from other Festival guests.
Please inform the Davie at the beginning of the evening if you’d like to do a turn, we’ll do our best to accommodate everyone!
The Kist o Riches
Saturday 29th April – 7:30pm
The Catholic Hall
BBC Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year Robyn Stapleton joins forces with singer and researcher Jo Miller and accordion and piano whizz Neil Sutcliffe to give us a sneak preview their forthcoming recording of traditional songs from Galloway. They’ll be joined on the night by the Isle of Skye’s Harta featuring three luminaries of the folk world: Jack Evans of Jock Tamson’s Bairns and Easy Club fame; leading folk music publisher Christine Martin and bagpiper and pipe maker Ross Calderwood. We’ll also have an opening spot from recent Celtic Connections Danny Kyle award winners Binky Blue.
Festival Club with The Barrstools
Saturday 29th April – 9:00pm
The Harbour Bar (upstairs)
Local heroes The Barrstools will play us into the wee small hours in the newly-renovated surrounds of the Harbour Bar’s upstairs function space. Songs and tunes with Carrick’s finest.
The Bobby Robb Memorial Concert – The Ballads and Songs of Carrick
Sunday 30th April – 2:00pm
The Catholic Hall
Have you ever heard the Ayrshire words to ‘Loch Lomond’?
…Or the Carrick words to ‘Auld Lang Syne’? The Ballads and Songs of Carrick is a historic collection of traditional song from Ayrshire revised and expanded from its first edition in 1893 and republished by the Girvan Traditional Folk Festival with financial assistance from the Scottish Book Trust. The book will be launched on Sunday 30th April 2023 at the 48th Girvan Traditional Folk Festival.
Our annual tribute to Festival founder Bobby Robb takes the form of a launch for the new book where Robyn Stapleton, Jo Miller, Davie Anderson, Beatrice Clark & Davie Hunter, Chris Miles, Kathy Hobkirk and local community choir the Strandline Singers sing the old songs back to life.
The songs and stories in the book were originally collected by Girvan native Rev. Roderick Lawson (1832–1907) and we’re delighted to be joined on Sunday by the Rev. Lawson himself to lead the proceedings!
The newly revised and expanded edition of Roderick Lawson’s The Ballads and Songs of Carrick, will be available for purchase.
£5
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The publication of The Ballads and Songs of Carrick has been made possible thanks to generous support from the Scottish Book Trust.
The Festival Folk Club
Sunday 30th April – 6:00pm
The Harbour Bar (upstairs)
The Festival Folk Club returns for a second day – a folky open mic guided by host and MC Davie Anderson.
Please inform the Davie at the beginning of the evening if you’d like to do a turn, we’ll do our best to accommodate everyone!
The Farewell Concert
Sunday 1st May – 7:30pm
The Catholic Hall
The farewell concert will feature a very special duo performance from master piper Fred Morrison joined by irrepresible guitar powerhouse Ali Hutton.
£16 / £14
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Fred performs at Glasgow’s Piping Live Festival
Festival Club with Binky Blue
Sunday 30th April – 9:00pm
The Harbour Bar (upstairs)
Ayrshire’s Danny Kyle award-winning brother and sister duo play us into the wee small hours upstairs in the Harbour Bar with their contemporary take on rip-roaring jigs and reels.