Kintyre Songwriters Festival 2019 - A festival to showcase Kintyre's song writing talent 3rd to 5th May 2019

Kintyre Songwriters Festival

Held in Campbeltown, located on the remote peninsula of Kintyre, the Kintyre Songwriters Festival has been hosting the best in songwriting talent from not only Kintyre but beyond since it's inaugural event in 2008.

Not only does the festival support local talent by giving them a showcase environment in which to perform to an appreciative audience, we also sponsor the Kenneth Gilchrist Memorial Quaich For Original Songwriting, an award given in conjunction with the local Grammar School.

The 2019 Kintyre Songwriters Festival marks a return to a traditional part of Kintyre songwriting heritage as the newly redeveloped Town Hall will be the venue for the Saturday and Sunday seated concerts.

The organisers try to accommodate as many local performers as possible, so if you write and/or perform songs, the festival wants to hear from you! The event has attracted performers from as far afield as Los Angeles, Barcelona and Berlin, with previous guests including top Scottish acts like Scott Hutchison (Frightened Rabbit), Louis Abbott (Admiral Fallow), Rachel Sermanni and Scottish Album of the Year award winner Kathryn Joseph.

Campbeltown Town Hall

What Others Have Said

"Definitely one of the finest gigs I've been involved in. Super people and good times! What more can u ask for?" Graeme Ferguson

"Probably one of the best gigs we have played" Amber Wilson

"Fantastic time. Possibly one of our finest gigs so far" Pete MacLeod

What's On

We have three amazing nights of entertainment lined up for your enjoyment

Kicking things off on Friday the 3rd May will be the "Rock Night" held in The Commercial Inn, where everyone lets their hair down ready to start the weekend off in style. This event is free entry

Then, during the afternoons of Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th May we will be hosting open-mic stages throughout the day at The Commercial Inn. These are open to all, and again are free, so why not come along and give us a song?

In the evening, we host the first of our main concerts in the Town Hall. This is a ticketed event.

And on Sunday the 5th May, we do it all again.

Besides the remote mainland location, and the sense of common purpose amongst artists, the festival has several other unique characteristics which make it supremely artist-friendly. It is a grass-roots cultural event that focuses on artistic development and to date has not sought grant funding of any kind. All organisers, graphic designers, web developers, local performers and sound crew give their time for free.

All performing local musicians are given free entry to all events to encourage mutual support, collaboration and networking.

A seminar programme allows locals to meet guest artists and learn about writing, performing and the industry, while open stage events provide a feeder to the more formal showcases. Each performer receives a unique artist pack with exclusive festival souvenirs including a CD of the best of the live performances from the previous year.

History

Besides the remote mainland location, and the sense of common purpose amongst artists, the festival has several other unique characteristics which make it supremely artist-friendly.

It is a grass-roots cultural event that focuses on artistic development and to date has not sought grant funding of any kind. All organisers, graphic designers, web developers, local performers and sound crew give their time for free.

The focus of the festival is to showcase the songwriting talent of Kintyre, however we also invite guest artists from outside of Kintyre to attend. Established in 2008, we have been bringing together a like-minded group of individuals to not only perform, but take part in organising the festival.

Below are the posters from previous events. Hover over them to find out the guest artists for that year.