An evening with Donald WG Lindsay & Alasdair Roberts at Cafe No9

Event information

Scottish musicians Donald WG Lindsay and Alasdair Roberts have been friends for thirty
years, since their teenage days. In these three decades, their careers in music have taken them
down differing yet similarly unorthodox paths, and they’ve continued to make a lot of music
together, usually informally. They’ve only rarely appeared together in concert, but in autumn
2024 they will remedy this state of affairs with their first duo tour.
Donald WG Lindsay is best known as the creator of the ‘Lindsay System’ three-octave keyless
chanter for the Scottish smallpipes, as played by him on the critically acclaimed album History
of Sleep recorded in collaboration with Glasgow experimental legend Richard Youngs. Donald
is a former convenor of the Lowland and Border Pipers Society, with which he has a long
association. Although a traditional singer since his teens, Donald has rarely ventured onto the
stage as a vocalist, although he has recorded sporadically. In late 2020 he received airplay on
BBC Radio 6 Music from Iggy Pop, who described his music as “...beautifully played... the
whole record is really good.”
Alasdair Roberts is primarily known as a singer, guitarist, writer of songs and interpreter of
traditional songs from Scotland and beyond. Since the nineties he has released several albums,
mostly on the Drag City label, variously acclaimed both by aficionados of traditional song and
experimental music. He has toured extensively in Scotland and worldwide. A keen
collaborator, Alasdair has worked with many fellow musicians and practitioners from other
disciplines including theatre, film, poetry and puppetry. He is a member of the folk quartet The
Furrow Collective and the cult underground group Current 93.
For their duo tour, Donald and Alasdair will present a programme featuring a rich variety of
pipe tunes with guitar accompaniment, as well as a broad selection of songs both traditional
and original. The pipe tunes bring together a diverse range of influences, from Scots fiddle
tunes (Donald’s elder brother’s fiddling being an early influence), by way of Hungarian and
Romanian pipe music, to classic and contemporary Highland piping and Lowland, Border and
Northumbrian tunes. The songs range from variants (some rare, some more well-known) of
traditional ballads or ‘muckle sangs’, to songs from the Scots lyrical tradition from the early
modern period onwards, to contemporary songs written by both Alasdair and Donald.
In the company of Donald WG Lindsay and Alasdair Roberts, listeners can expect a thrilling
evening in which rare and splendid gems of Scottish musical history and tradition will be
brought to life in the hands of two unconventional masters, who invite you to join them in
celebrating thirty years of music and, just as importantly, of friendship!

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Please note this ticket price DOES include a BYOB fee should you wish to bring alcohol to the venue.

All additional purchases of drinks and sweet treats from the cafe counter are always very much appreciated.