大象传媒

Mark Radcliffe heads to Glasgow's famous winter festival, Celtic Connections, to introduce live music by three acts.

In front of an audience at the 大象传媒's Pacific Quay studios, we're treated to performances by Sarah Jarosz, The Paul McKenna Band and The Outside Track.

Sarah Jarosz was raised in Wimberley, Texas. After living in New York City, she's now based in Nashville. Renowned for her musicianship on mandolin and other instruments, she's grown in stature as a songwriter, winning multiple Grammy awards. Sarah's latest solo album, Polaroid Lovers, is due in 2024. She performs in an acoustic trio with Seth Taylor (guitar) and Jeff Picker (bass).

The Paul McKenna Band are led by Paul, a standout voice in modern Celtic music. Founded in the late noughties, they've released five albums and have a new EP due in 2024. Outside of the band, Paul has also performed with the famous Transatlantic Sessions. His own group features Robbie Greig (fiddle), Conal McDonagh (pipes and whistles), Conor Markey (banjo, bouzouki and guitar) and Ewan Baird (percussion). They draw on Scottish and Irish roots.

The Outside Track embody 'Celtic connections' by combining musicians from Scotland, Ireland and Canada. They include Mairi Rankin from Nova Scotia (fiddle and step-dancing), Teresa Horgan from County Cork (flute and voice), Ailie Robertson from Edinburgh (harp) and Fiona Black from Easter Ross in the Highlands (accordion). The band have released seven albums since forming in 2005.

Celtic Connections is shining example of both an urban festival and a winter festival. Founded in 1994, it now boasts 300 events in 25 venues around Glasgow. This year's festival runs from 18th January to 4th February, and Mark is joined by artistic director Donald Shaw to find out what's happening this year.

And, as Burns Night is close-at-hand, we'll hear some beautiful versions of Robert Burns songs.