The North Atlantic Fiddle Convention 2010 will be the largest event of its kind in the UK. Following the great success of the previous two Conventions in Aberdeen in 2001 and 2006, and in St. John's Newfoundland in 2008, the Elphinstone Institute will again be celebrating the excellence of traditional fiddlers, fiddle music and dance from countries around the North Atlantic in partnership with the Scottish Culture and Traditions (SC&T), the Aberdeen based community education project. From 14-18 July 2010, NAFCo 2010 will combine an international festival with a conference to create an event devoted to the exploration of Roots and Routes from local traditions to transnational movements.

Over the five day event, NAFCo 2010 will showcase more than 40 world-class traditional musicians and dance artists from countries around the North Atlantic including: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, Canada, and the USA. With over 100 events, including workshops (some expressly for the young), sessions, concerts, ceilidhs/dances, and an academic conference, NAFCo 2010 will have something for everyone.

Through our unique format of festival alongside academic conference, the Convention will highlight the way the fiddle, fiddle music, and associated dance styles transcend boundaries of all kinds – geographical, political, and cultural – creating new traditions and fresh musical insights. The conference theme focuses on the way in which local traditions have impacted on the wider cultural scene, such that to be 'local' is also to be 'global'.

Appropriately based in North-East Scotland, which is noted for its outstanding tradition of fiddle playing and composing, NAFCo 2010 will mark centuries of cultural exchange, in which the northern seas were and are the corridors through which distinctive but related cultures and musical traditions were developed. This creative process continues apace as styles and influences ebb and flow between the old world and the new, between the north and the south, between time-honoured custom and modern innovation. This idea is encapsulated in our theme – 'Roots and Routes'. Aberdeen, as seaport, airport, and high-tech centre occupies a pivotal position in this dynamic interchange.

The North Atlantic Fiddle Convention is about cultural exchange, developing new audiences, partnerships, learning opportunities for both young and old, future international links, and celebrating artistic excellence and diversity.

Please see http://www.abdn.ac.uk/nafco for more info about the festival and artists.

Hope to see a few of you there!

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