Live Music, Theatre & Comedy

The Elmore String Quartet (formerly the Freeman String Quartet) is a driven young ensemble formed in 2017 at the Royal Northern College of Music and consists of Xander Croft (violin), Pijus Jonušas (violin), Ben Kearsley (viola) and Felix Hughes (cello). During their first year, the Elmore Quartet won the RNCM’s Nossek chamber music competition with their performance of Mendelssohn’s String Quartet Op. 12, and in their third year won the RNCM’s Hirsch prize for their performance of Beethoven’s String Quartet Op. 132.  ​Since forming in 2017, the Elmore Quartet have received coaching from some of the worlds leading chamber musicians including Donald Grant (Elias String Quartet), David Waterman (Endellion String Quartet), and Petr Prause (Talich String Quartet).  ​The Elmore Quartet have performed in the RNCM’s annual Chamber Music Festival since 2017, and in 2018 were invited to be Quartet in Residence at the South Downs International Summer Music Festival. There they had the opportunity to work with members of the Benyounes String Quartet as well as giving the closing performance of the festival performing works by Smetana and Haydn in St. Andrews Church, Alfriston Sussex.  ​The Quartet has performed at many venues across the U.K. and have given concerts for the Manchester Chamber Music Society and the Lake District International Music Festival.   ​In September 2020, the Elmore Quartet were appointed as the RNCM’s Studio Quartet and were also winners of the Tunnell Trust Awards later that year.  ​In May 2021, the Quartet was awarded second place at the CAVATINA Intercollegiate Chamber Music Competition in Wigmore Hall, and are delighted to have been appointed as Junior Fellows in Chamber Music at the Royal Northern College of Music for the academic year 2021/22.  www.elmorestringquartet.com  Programme in Cromarty: Franz Schubert Quartettsatz in C minor Benjamin Britten String Quartet No. 3 in G Major, Op. 94 Ludwig Van Beethoven String Quartet in A minor, Op. 132 Doors from 14.30.  Tea/coffee on sale at interval. Tickets: £14 / £10 students/unwaged / school kids go FREE Book tickets via email or tel 01381 600354.  This concert is kindly sponsored by   

Mirror Visions Ensemble (MVE) was founded from a desire to explore the relationship between music and text, initially through the creation of “mirror visions” — settings of the same text to music by different composers. The group's passion for storytelling has produced thematic concerts on surprising subjects, based on scholarly research and laced with humor, leading to the revitalization of art song programming. Featuring soprano, tenor, baritone and piano, often joined by other instrumentalists, MVE’s programs take audiences on an imaginative journey through song, showcasing both well-known and oft-neglected pieces, set to texts by poets and historical figures.   Journeys The Mirror Visions Ensemble sings its way to far-flung destinations, real and imaginary. Travel songs by Barber, Berlioz, Blangini, Duparc, Haydn, Poulenc and Hugo Wolf share the ride with MVE commissions by Tom Cipullo and Scott Wheeler, as well as Gilda Lyons' "Great Barrier Reef." The poetry of Baudelaire, Joyce and Metastasio is featured, as well as the correspondence of Paul Bourget, Isabella Stewart Gardner and Edna St. Vincent Millay. Doors open from 14.30. Tea/coffee on sale. Tickets: £12 / £8 students/unwaged / school kids go FREE Book tickets via email or tel 01381 600354. 

An evening of intimate, electro-acoustic songs with Sujatha Menon (singer) and John Herbert (guitarist), the songwriters of Midlands based indie-rock band Satsangi. Satsangi have collaborated with and supported many artists and musicians across the UK, have been broadcast on radio (BBC) and TV (MTV), featured in magazines such as Rolling Stone and have travelled internationally to share their music. Their music videos are filmed and produced by Paul Windridge who has exhibited and screened worldwide.  For more info on their work with Satsangi, songs and videos, please visit: www.satsangiband.com "Hailing from Leamington Spa (UK) and Kerala (South India), Satsangi are a solid representative for global music; a cocktail of Indian transience, ballsy rock 'n' roll and tripped out psych" Northern Star Records Doors open from 19.30. BYOB / tea & coffee on sale Tickets:  £10 Purchase in advance by emailing info@cromartyartstrust.org.uk or tel 01381 600354.  May be sales at the door if availability allows. We do not send out hard tickets but will have a record of your purchase to tick off on the door list.  

Sara Colman, Liane Carroll and Sophie Bancroft, three established singers and songwriters in their own right, draw on their deep friendship and history of collaboration spanning over a decade to present a very special live show in which they will be joined by phenomenal jazz pianist Brian Kellock. With a repertoire consisting of familiar jazz songs seamlessly blended with original tunes, their stunning musicianship, spontaneity and humour creates a captivating, emotionally charged and powerful yet intimate musical event. “The love in the room was tangible, the talent top drawer and the sense of fun and playfulness infectious. But behind it all lay two qualities which elevate the great from the good: fearlessness and honesty.“ Reviewsphere Doors open from 19.30. BYOB / tea & coffee on sale Tickets:  £14 / £10 student/unwaged Purchase in advance by emailing info@cromartyartstrust.org.uk or tel 01381 600354. May be sales at the door if availability allows. We do not send out hard tickets but will have a record of your purchase to tick off on the door list.

We're delighted to welcome back the local talented musicians that make up The Aurora Quartet - Simon Evans, Ian Sharp, Rachel Farmer and Adam Csenki.  With several recitals at the Stables under their belts in various guises (and previously featuring Eleanor Cameron) you're guaranteed a lively, varied and quality performance - what a wonderful way to spend Easter Sunday!       Programme Sibelius : Andante Festivo Wolf : Italian Serenade Schubert : Quartettsatz Interval Beethoven Quartet Op 59 Rasoumovsky No 2 in E minor Doors open from 15.30. Tea/coffee and an Easter treat on sale at the interval! Tickets: £10 / £6 students/unwaged / school kids go FREE Book tickets via email or tel 01381 600354. 

Scotland-based singer-songwriter Lizabett Russo merges her native traditions with elements of contemporary jazz, avant garde folk and world music, a range of influence effortlessly spanned by her powerfully versatile voice. The BBC have championed her work - featuring on both BBC Radio 3 and Radio 6 as well as the BBC stage at Latitude Festival. She has also toured extensively around Europe, Canada and Asia. Musically Russo's influences are wide ranging. Echoes of her native Transylvania (Romania) are beautifully interwoven with avant garde folk, contemporary jazz and world music. Lizabett will be accompanied by the award-winning jazz guitarist Graeme Stephen. Today he leads and contributes to a multitude of musical projects in Scotland and overseas, playing a wide array of styles from free improvised jazz to Scottish folk. Stephen's peerless improvisational skills and talent for composition make him one of Scotlands most exciting and prodigious musical talents. "This is simply world-class work, by any standard" - Tom Robinson, BBC Radio 6 Doors open from 19.30. BYOB / tea & coffee on sale Tickets:  £12 / £8 student/unwaged Purchase in advance by emailing info@cromartyartstrust.org.uk or tel 01381 600354. May be sales at the door if availability allows. We do not send out hard tickets but will have a record of your purchase to tick off on the door list.  

Established in late 2017, the Fyrish String Quartet is a young, vibrant ensemble featuring violinists Joe Hodson, Emma Donald, violist Sarah Leonard and cellist Tim Cais. Each member excelled during their studies and collectively they have received tuition from some of the UK's leading musicians. The quartet has performed across Scotland, presenting varied programmes often combining classical and folk music. Programme details to follow...   Doors open from 15.30. Tea/coffee on sale at interval. Tickets: £10 / £6 students/unwaged / school kids go FREE Book tickets via email or tel 01381 600354. 

And they're back!  After a hugely successful gig in the Old Brewery in 2019, we welcome The Shackleton Trio  - Georgia Shackleton (fiddle, vocals), Aaren Bennett (guitar) and Nic Zuppardi (mandolin, banjo) - back to Cromarty, this time to play the bigger Stables venue. Natural talents of the folk tradition, their self-penned material blends seamlessly with their imaginative yet authentic re-workings of traditional folk standards, influenced by British, American and Scandinavian folk traditions, with a regional twist from the group's native East Anglia. With a highly original and energetic musical style, the trio has been a tour de force on the UK and international folk scene over the last six years. They have been featured on Mark Radcliffe's BBC Radio 2 Folk Show and BBC Radio 4, with five star reviews, and an appearance on Cambridge Folk Festival's main stage alongside a host of UK and European festivals and international tours. ★★★★★ ‘Beguiling. Holds your attention and isn’t afraid to make you think’ - Northern Sky ‘Sparky, charismatic and intensely assured’ - fRoots ★★★★ - R2 Magazine ‘A voice entirely of their own’ - Mike Harding www.shackletontrio.co.uk  Doors open from 19.30. BYOB / tea & coffee on sale Tickets:  £12 / £8 student/unwaged Purchase in advance by emailing info@cromartyartstrust.org.uk or tel 01381 600354. May be sales at the door if availability allows. We do not send out hard tickets but will have a record of your purchase to tick off on the door list.

Scottish singer-songwriter and leading acoustic fingerstyle guitarist Simon Kempston has toured the world performing his highly original, contemporary acoustic folk/blues songs and music, and is a unique talent. His beautifully crafted folk-tinged material showcases his incredible, distinctive and intricate finger style guitar work – an exciting blend of the folk-baroque, blues and classical styles, and his gently nuanced, compelling tenor vocals. An inspiring, poetic lyricist, Simon’s live performances are intense and impassioned, the subject matter chiefly Scottish, yet with universal appeal. This first ever Cromarty concert is not to be missed. ‘One of Scotland’s very best singer-songwriters’ (Sunday Herald). ‘Stunning talent’ (STV). 'Beautiful tunes, infinitely talented’ (BBC Radio 3).     Doors open from 19.30. BYOB  Tickets:  £10 / £7 student/unwaged Purchase in advance by emailing info@cromartyartstrust.org.uk or tel 01381 600354. May be sales at the door if availability allows. We do not send out hard tickets but will have a record of your purchase to tick off on the door list.

“A breathtaking acoustic fusion of blues, jazz, classical and Spanish guitar from a stunning guitar virtuoso…” Altadena News, USA Ready for a unique and talented take on a wide range of musical traditions? Claude Bourbon is known throughout Europe and America for amazing guitar performances that take blues, Spanish, and Middle Eastern stylings into uncharted territories.  Claude’s inimitable style incorporates all five digits on each hand dancing independently but in unison, plucking, picking and strumming at such speed and precision that his fingers often seem to melt into a blur. Thousands of people in the UK, Europe and USA have enjoyed listening to this virtuoso and for the majority of his audience it is an experience that compels them to return again and again to hear and watch him play, as his fingers lightly dance over the strings of his guitar and create a unique sound that is ’Claude’. Some of this guitarists’ influences allow us a fascinating insight into this remarkable musician; Paco De Lucia: Deep Purple’s Richie Blackmore; Joaquin Rodrigo; JJ Cale; JS Bach…. Claude has played countless venues, including Glastonbury Festival, Isle of Wight Festival, Colne Great British & Blues Festival, Rock O'Z Arene, Avenches, Switzerland, among others. He has shared the stage in Europe and the USA with countless musicians, Calvin Russel, Charlie Morgan (Elton John, Gary Moore), Jan Akkerman (Focus), Steve Grossman (Miles Davis), Herbie Armstrong ( Van Morisson), Jose barrense Dias and many more. "Claude Bourbon weaved his songs through the audience as if on a journey through life taking in different flavours of Europe and beyond... from classical openings, across a whole continent of cultural roots, holding audience attention under a musical spell, his music would not have been out of place in the courts of Emperors and Kings." (G. Munn) “ Claude Bourbon is a unique figure today… his playing is almost indescribable“ The Hook, Charlottesville, USA www.claudebourbon.org   Doors open from 19.30. BYOB / tea & coffee on sale Tickets:  £12 / £8 student/unwaged Purchase in advance by emailing info@cromartyartstrust.org.uk or tel 01381 600354. May be sales at the door if availability allows. We do not send out hard tickets but will have a record of your purchase to tick off on the door list.      

The 16th and 17th Century Scottish Witch Trials were one of the darkest periods of Scotland’s history. An estimated 2500 people were executed, 80% of which were thought to have been women. In this new project, Rachel Newton and Lauren MacColl, both no strangers to performing in Cromarty, pay a humanising tribute to these women while also exploring historical beliefs in the supernatural and modern day parallels in our society. Each piece of music is based on specially commissioned works by celebrated author Mairi Kidd - tales inspired by and in remembrance of real women who were persecuted and tried as witches, and characters from the folkloric tales and mythology enshrined in our oral culture. Rachel (The Shee, The Furrow Collective, Spell Songs) and Lauren (Salt House, Rant) are firmly established as two of the country’s most celebrated folk musicians. They have collaborated on each other’s projects for many years, and this project is a perfect and timely opportunity to work together as a duo for the first time. Their performance will feature newly composed music with accompanying visuals to highlight this fascinating and important subject. Not to be missed! https://www.healandharrow.com/ Doors open from 19.30. BYOB / tea & coffee on sale Tickets:  £14 / £12 student/unwaged Purchase in advance by emailing info@cromartyartstrust.org.uk or tel 01381 600354. May be sales at the door if availability allows. We do not send out hard tickets but will have a record of your purchase to tick off on the door list.

Formed under the midnight sun in Lofoten in 2006, the Engegård Quartet has rapidly become one of Norway’s most sought after ensembles. Their bold, fresh interpretations of the classical repertoire combined with a deep attachment to their Scandinavian roots has attracted international acclaim, and inspired some innovative partnerships and programming. The quartet’s debut CD was praised as ‘breath-taking’ in The Strad, while their second release won Pizzicato magazine’s ‘Supersonic Award’. Their CD of works by Grieg, Sibelius and Olav Anton Thommessen was praised by Tully Potter in Music Web International as ‘what Grieg lovers have been waiting for’. Recent CD releases include Mozart’s ‘Prussian Quartets’ and the complete string quartets of Schumann.  The Engegård Quartet has a busy concert schedule throughout Scandinavia and further afield. They have performed in some of Europe’s finest venues including the Mozarteum in Salzburg and Prague’s Rudolfinum, and have travelled to South America for concerts in Bogotá and Sao Paolo. Festival performances include the Delft Chamber Music Festival, SoNoRo Festival in Bucharest, and Heidelberg’s Streichquartettfest. Members of the quartet are also deeply involved in bringing superb chamber music to Norway – Arvid Engegård as founder of the Lofoten International Chamber Music Festival, and Juliet Jopling as artistic director of the Oslo Quartet Series. The Engegård Quartet has had the honour to work with (among others) András Schiff, Leif Ove Andsnes, Christian Ihle Hadland, and Emma Johnson. They also love to collaborate with colleagues from different musical traditions, including a folk/classical fusion with Hardanger fiddler Nils Økland, a collaboration with jazz-violinist Ola Kvernberg, and a programme of Ibsen and late Beethoven with actor Bjørn Sundquist. The Engegård Quartet’s own ‘1-2-3 mini-festival’ has proven immensely popular and is now a regular event each fall. The Engegård Quartet is supported by the Norwegian Arts Council.  Programme for Cromarty: Mozart - String quartet no.20 in D major KV 499 “Hoffmeister” (1786) 1. Allegretto 2. Menuetto. Allegretto - Trio 3. Adagio 4. Molto allegro Grieg - String quartet no.1 in g minor op.27 (1878) 1. Un poco andante - Allegro molto ed agitato 2. Romanze. Andantino 3. Intermezzo. Allegro molto marcato - Più vivo e scherzando 4. Finale. Lento - Presto al saltarello Debussy - String quartet in g minor op.10 (1893) 1. Animé e tres décidé 2. Assez vif et bien rythmé 3. Andantino, doucement expressif 4. Tres modéré Doors open from 19.00. Tea/coffee on sale at interval. Tickets: £15 / £11 students/unwaged / school kids go FREE Book tickets via email or tel 01381 600354.