Stewart Hardy and Frank McLaughlin

(double-bill concert with Brian McNeill)

Friday 19 September, 19:00

Gardner Memorial Church

Tickets (see bottom of page)

'A richly talented duo with a deep knowledge of their craft'

Fiddle virtuoso Stewart Hardy and Scottish guitarist/piper Frank McLaughlin posses a rare musical kinship, holding listeners spellbound with their interplay as they explore music rooted in the traditions of Scotland, the Borders and Northumbria while incorporating sensibilities from the worlds of classical, blues, klezmer and jazz.

Stewart Hardy is one of the most exciting fiddle players in the North East of England. Much in demand as a session player and fiddle tutor, he spent six years as an influential member of the very popular John Wright Band and has performed throughout the world in other contexts, playing many genres of music. He was Folkworks’ Artist in Residence for the Year of the Artist millennium project and currently works as a core tutor on Newcastle University’s Folk degree course.

Frank McLaughlin is a first-class guitarist and piper who has worked with many top musicians in the Scottish scene. He is regularly in demand as a session player and teacher and has worked on numerous recording projects including The Complete Songs of Robert Burns (Linn Records) and The Complete Songs of Robert Tanahill. He also performs with the celebrated Mick West Band and traditional singer Gillian MacDonald. He delivers specialist guitar workshops in traditional music throughout the UK.

Stewart and Frank have recently completed a recording of mainly self-penned material.
 

Visit Stewart and Frank's homepage here and Frank's place at MySpace here
 

Masterclasses and Workshops

Saturday 20 September

Gardner Memorial Church Hall

Guitar Masterclass with Frank McLaughlin (Tickets £6.50 )
This masterclass for intermediate players will cover a range of techniques used in accompanying traditional music and song and will include flat picking a tune and exploring chord voicings, rhythms and dynamics. The second part of the workshop will look at finger-picking ideas for accompanying voice, using traditional songs as examples.

Fiddle Masterclass with Stewart Hardy (Tickets £6.50 )
Explore the repertoire of the North East of England from seventeenth century to the present day, with a special focus on the work of James Hill. The workshop will look at bowing styles and ornamentation with a view to their wider application and also at general considerations such as tone production and improvising around a tune.

Mixed-Instrument Workshop with Frank McLauglin and Stewart Hardy (Tickets £5)
For all levels. This workshop will examine arranging tunes and songs and will be divided into melody instruments (Stewart) and chordal or accompanying instruments (Frank). There will be an investigation of what each instrument can do and how to create different effects and textures in music. Suitable for players from most musical genres.

Performance-Skills Workshop with Stewart Hardy and Frank McLaughlin (Tickets £5)
For all levels. This will be an informal workshop looking at tips and techniques for improving your musical performance and enhancing your confidence as a performer. Suitable for players from most musical genres.