Celtic Connections 2012 has been hailed a resounding success, as the 19th annual festival came to a close last night.
Over 100,000 people attended concerts and events staged as part of the winter music festival, with ticket sales topping a whopping £1.1 million for the fifth year running.
This year’s Celtic Connections boasted 18 days jam-packed with around 300 concerts, ceilidhs, talks, workshops, late night sessions and free events, held in 20 venues across Glasgow.
Highlights included a moving tribute to late Paisley-born singer and songwriter Gerry Rafferty, who passed away in January 2011 after battling liver disease, and a celebration of the centenary of American singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie.
Music fans also enjoyed performances from performers including Hue & Cry, Treacherous Orchestra, Bruce Hornsby and The Average White Band.
The 2012 line-up for Celtic Connections once again explored the links between Celtic music and cultures across the globe, and saw musicians travel from all over the world, with acts coming from as far afield as Australia, Greenland, Mali, Pakistan, Mexico, Serbia, Palestine, Senegal and Cuba, as well as across Europe, the USA and Canada.
Music lovers also travelled from every corner of the globe to enjoy the traditional, folk, roots, world and indie music.
The Celtic Connections Education Programme also celebrated a successful 15th year, with high profile festival acts including Gaelic band Mànran and singer-songwriter Laura Veirs performing free concerts for schoolchildren across Scotland.
Each year at Connections the cream of new musical talent perform at the Danny Kyle Open Stage, then panel of esteemed judges – from industry stalwarts to members of the general public – pick six winners from the 73 which took part.
The Danny Kyle Open Stage 2012 winners – all of whom will perform a support slot at next year’s festival – have now been selected. They are: Barluath, Realta, Rory Butler, Marit Fait & Rona Wilkie, The Black Diamond Express and Ben Church.
Speaking about this year’s festival, Donald Shaw, the Celtic Connections artistic director, said: “We’re delighted that this year’s Celtic Connections has been such a success - it’s an honour to be able to bring some of the world’s greatest folk, roots and traditional musicians to Glasgow.
”We encourage artists to embrace the festival spirit and try something new when they’re here, and I think we’ve witnessed some very special performances in our 19th year.
”We’re now very much looking forward to staging the Celtic Connections Big Top in Skye this March, when we’ll be joined by amazing acts like Rosanne Cash and The Civil Wars.”
MORE ON CELTIC CONNECTIONS:
- Video above: Rachel Sermanni talks to STV about Celtic Connections
- The latest news, reviews and interviews from Celtic Connections
- King Creosote and Jon Hopkins talk to STV
- Review of Woody Sez, marking the centenary of Woody Guthrie's birth
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