There can be few poets whose work resonates as widely as that of the Ayrshire ploughboy and philanderer Robert Burns.  His influence has been felt from Bengal to Massachusetts and beyond.  Celebrating that influence was the the point of Confluence Concerts’ Robert Burns – A Passion for Freedom curated by Alison Mackay which played at Heliconian Hall on Friday and Saturday evenings.

It was brilliant and there was so much that I did not expect.  Alison and RH Thomson had created a programme and script that took us on an uninterrupted 75 minute journey through space and time.  There was Burns’ poetry of course, including a memorably dramatic reading of parts of Tam O’Shanter by Thomson, plus well known settings to traditional tunes of pieces like My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose.  But there was much more.  We heard texts by Rabindranath Tagore, inspired by Burns, set to tunes we associate with him and sung beautifully in Bengali by Suba Sankaram.  There was poetry by Ukraine’s national poet Taras Shevchenko set to music by Mykola Lysenko sung with great emotion by Alina Kuzma showcasing Burns’ influence in that troubled land.

Burns’ influence on Frederick Douglas was celebrated in Beau Dixon’s setting of A Slave’s Lament. There were some superb performances of traditional tunes that Burns knew and collected including stunning traditional fiddling by David Greenberg.  Throw in some superb lute playing by Lucas Harris, Dylan Bell on bass and vocals and wonderfully evocative projections by Ed Hanley and it couldn’t get much better.

All in all it was a fine example of what Confluence Concerts can do.  It was genre bending but true to the spirit of everything performed which made for a musically satisfying and rather emotional experience.  And may it go on.. ’til all the seas gang dry.

Photos courtesy of Confluence Concerts.