REVIEW FROM www.livingtradition.co.uk

SCOTTISH MUSIC OF THE RSAMD - The Future Of Our Past
Greentrax CDTRAX357

Including all four dozen students from the 2010 Traditional Music degree course at Glasgow's Royal Scottish Academy, this recording is probably the first you'll hear of some performers destined to become household names in Scottish music. As such, it's strangely anonymous: most tracks don't list who plays what, and are simply attributed to one of the four year-groups on the course. There are no names of emerging bands, few of the students' own compositions, and hardly any notes on the performers: in fact, as a marketing exercise, I think there are improvements to be made here. Musically the standard on this collection is very high, if slightly variable, providing a fine hour or so of Scottish music. The style is very traditional, more traditional than I would have expected, and there's a strong focus on piping, singing and accordion music which obviously reflects the students' backgrounds. Not so much fiddle, whistle, flute, bouzouki or banjo: maybe those young players all head for Limerick.

Five songs, two in Gaelic, account for one third of The Future Of Our Past. The stand-out song for me was Moladh Uibhist from Katherine MacLeod, in a strong and pleasant voice with plenty of expression and a lovely natural tone. Also worth watching for are Robyn Stapleton and Ainsley Hamill, singing as first-year students still with a marked classical edge to their technique, but maybe that will get rounded off. Six piping tracks fill another two-fifths of this CD, all good, some very good indeed: I particularly enjoyed the opening jigs and polkas, the solo set from Alasdair Henderson, and the final Ali's Big Reel where the mellow buzz of Alasdair's smallpipes is balanced by the border piping of Cameron Drummond. Special mention should also go to Hazen Metro: piper, composer, arranger and electronic wizard on his track Not Enough Time, probably the most radical and innovative piece here. Maybe Hazen is the piper with two heads and four arms in the photo?

With three accordion-led tracks, two showing the sure touch of co-producer Phil Cunningham as he sits in with years 1 and 2, that only leaves two sets where the fiddles, flutes, whistles and harp can shine - and shine they do. The Almost Reel Set and Meg McRae's are both highlights of this recording, ranging from reels to slow airs and combining a wide range of sounds in arrangements which are complex yet fresh and exciting. The accompanists on piano and strings are an important ingredient here, and both these tracks come from year 2 students which bodes well for the future. I hope we will get another recording in two years' time to see how these youngsters have progressed, because after all the kids are the future - and these kids already seem to have a handle on our past.

Alex Monaghan