Morna
Young
Musician
Speyside Sessions
"Hogmanay 2011/12, actor Kevin Mckidd (Trainspotting, Rome, Greys Anatomy) along with his wife Jane, organised a shindig in a remote house they’d hired in the north east of Scotland; inviting family & friends to celebrate the New Year - particularly local folkies with a musical talent, including life-long chum Jamie Reid (The Little Prince).
Something strange & wonderful occurred. Mostly old school friends arrived with violins, guitars, cellos, drums, bodhrán’s - a whole eclectic mix of Celtic musical instruments. Over the course of the jamming session, as folk crammed into the room to participate or simply enjoy the rich traditional music; Jamie & Kevin realised they should in some way be capturing this fantastic sound.
And that’s exactly what they did. A couple of Hogmanay's later they returned mob-handed with producer Nick Lloyd-Webber & sound engineer Bryan Tolland (Del Amitri). In less than a week 29 tracks were recorded with a huge variety & mix of performers, from local budding musicians, phenomenal singers who’d never before recorded their voice & even jaded folkies whom until this session, thought they’d hung up their mandolins for good …
The joy, magic & spontaneity of this week has been captured forever on a soon-to-be released album for the international charity Save the Children."
Morna can be heard playing fiddle, flute and singing on the Speyside Sessions album. She was a delighted to be part of a project showcasing local musicians and fundraising for such a worthwhile cause.
For more information see: http://thespeysidesessions.com/
Fishwives Choir
Morna was delighted to join the Fishwives Choir in Hastings to record their charity single in aid of the Fishermen's Mission. After spending the last year writing Lost at Sea, singing with the choir seemed a fitting tribute.
"When the Boat Comes in / Eternal Father" was released in August 2013 and the subsequent album "Ocean Bound" was released earlier this year. Recent TV appearances include: The One Show and BBC Breakfast.
For more information, please see:
https://www.facebook.com/TheFishwivesChoir
Morna performs lead vocals on 'When the Boat Comes In'.
Folkify
FOLKIFY were in residence at The Tron in 2016. They have since become a much in demand event around Glasgow and beyond.
For future gigs, performances and recordings, please keep an eye on the NEWS section above.
Since singing in the Mòd and Moray Music Festival as a child, music has remained an important part of Morna's life.
A multi-instrumentalist, she plays fiddle, flute, clarsach, percussion and most other instruments thrown in her direction. Her most recent acquisition is a mandolin which she hopes to get to grips with soon...
Morna often combines music and acting and has played in several shows including Caledonia (National Theatre of Scotland) and Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off (Royal Lyceum / Dundee Rep). For the latter, she also co-composed the score with award winning composer/sound designer Philip Pinksy. She has also written scores for Out of the Darkness Theatre Company, contributed music to Ruby in the Dust and scored the music for the rehearsed reading of her own play Lost at Sea. Most recently, Morna was composer and musical director for Sunset Song (Sell a Door / The Beacon).
Album recordings include: SPEYSIDE SESSIONS and THE FISHEWIVES (more details below). She is also one half of FOLKIFY, alongside Sandy Nelson. The duo present 'folked up' spins on popular songs at this monthly night at The Tron. More info here.
Morna is a singer songwriter and can be found gigging at various folk events - this has previously included Speyfest, the Whisky Festival and several BIDS events. She is currently penning her first solo folk album.
Morna was also one of the initial team alongside ex-Peatbog Faeries, Iain Copeland and Rick Taylor to co-ordinate a music project in HMP Inverness through Eden Court (as part of the Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival). Nicky Marr gives a lovely review of the gig in the press section.