Cantilena Festival
The Islay Cantilena Festival -
Sunday 5th July to Friday 10th July.
Cantilena is a famous Scottish string ensemble, which was founded
in the 1970s. The players, under the artistic direction of
violinist Angus Ramsay and cellist Adrian Shepherd, delight in
their annual escape from the city. They relish the opportunity to
play great music in a beautiful, relaxed atmosphere, and to embrace
the local community.
Concerts are held in different parts of the island: some of the
venues are music to a whisky drinker's ears: Ardbeg, Bowmore,
Lagavulin...This year's Cantilena programme, a delightful mix of
chamber music, concertos and works for larger string ensemble,
features music by Mendelssohn, Haydn, Bach, Elgar and others from
the classical repertoire. It also showcases the music of
18th-century Scottish composers such as the Earl of Kellie, and
specially composed new Scottish works.
Nearest Hostel: Port Charlotte Youth
Hostel
Local Information: The island of Islay
(pronounced 'Eye-luh') lies at the southern tip of the Hebrides'
chain. It is renowned for its ancient Christian sites, but it is
spiritual in another sense too. The island has eight distilleries,
producing some of the finest and most distinctive single malt
whiskies in the world. Combine this with some classical music and
you've got a summer festival like no other.
Island-lovers and whisky aficionados alike are drawn to Islay
throughout the year, but especially in the summer months, when the
days are long and light. Nothing quite beats the magic of the
islands of the remote Scottish Hebrides: the wild grandeur of the
mountains, the vast skies, the miles of empty white sand stretching
from island to island down the western coast, carpets of glorious
wild flowers in summer.
