THE Eastgate Theatre in Peebles has landed a major coup and is anticipating a sell-out when Karen Matheson, the voice of Capercaille, appears in concert next Friday, June 15, at 7.30pm.
Matheson will perform songs spanning a remarkable career, from the unaccompanied airs which saw her deemed the Best Gaelic Singer in Scotland to the haunting, ethereal vocals which made Capercaillie a household name and saw her earn an OBE in the 2006 New Year’s Honours List.
Her last solo album Downriver was a simple, mainly acoustic affair, produced by Donald Shaw and featuring the likes of Donal Lunny, Ewen Vernal and the Scottish String Ensemble. Critics claimed it was the perfect platform for vocals that have stunned audiences throughout the world and introduced the Gaelic language to countless thousands.
Nine of the 11 songs were sung in Gaelic, with two penned by long-term collaborator James Grant who, himself, will be at the Eastgate tonight (Thursday).
With Capercaillie, Matheson, now 49 and hailing from Taynuilt, has enjoyed a stellar career and the band has sold more than a million albums and performed in over 30 countries. In 1995, they appeared in the movie Rob Roy, starring Liam Neeson, in which Matheson performed a moving solo rendition of a Gaelic lament.
As a solo performer, she appeared on the award-winning BBC television series Transatlantic Sessions, recording tracks with Emmylou Harris, The McGarrigle Sisters, Nanci Griffith and Rufus Wainright.
Matheson comes to Peebles on the back of yet another sell-out show at Glasgow’s Celtic Connections in January.
Tickets for the Eastgate show are £15. Call the box office on 01721 725777.