‘.....Ryan’s music is inflected with a magical, lyrical quality. When he plays he radiates a hypnotic effect that is truly wonderful' – Duncan Chisholm
Award-winning Scottish fiddler Ryan Young will be performing music from his eagerly-anticipated third album, which he produced with Irish fiddle legend, Martin Hayes. Joining Ryan on stage are two hugely talented guitarists, Louis Campbell (Spafford Campbell, Sam Sweeney Band, Martin Simpson Trio, Sam Lee) and Stuart McCallum (The Breath, The Cinematic Orchestra).
Support artist: Acoustic guitarist Sandy Stanage (Pauline Alexander, Kentigern, Molendinar) will perform a solo set. “His playing is understated to the point of perfection, every single note counts and it is impossible not to warm to his stage persona too.” FATEA Magazine
Ryan Young brings new and exciting ideas to traditional Scottish music, receiving international praise and prestigious awards for his spell-binding interpretations on the fiddle. His musical collaborations feature celebrated professionals and artists including four-time GRAMMY winner Jesse Lewis (producer of Ryan’s debut album) and Martin Hayes (The Gloaming, Martin Hayes & the Common Ground Ensemble). Ryan realised his dream of working with his childhood hero, Martin Hayes, in the production of his third album, which also features Martin on the fiddle.
What to expect: Ryan’s playing is often described as poetry without words. A concert reviewer at The Scotsman awarded his live performance 5 stars and called Ryan “a force of nature”. Ryan’s music is brimming with fresh melodic ideas, an uplifting rhythmic drive and a great depth of dynamics and precision. His sound is very distinctive and takes the listener on an emotional and adventurous journey.
Ryan Young’s Awards and Achievements
Ryan was nominated for Musician Of The Year at the 2025 MG ALBA Scots Trad Awards; Album Of The Year at the 2024 Awards; Live Act Of The Year at the 2023 Awards, and Musician Of The Year at the 2022 Awards. He holds both a first class honours and a Masters degree from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, was twice a finalist in the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Awards, and twice a finalist in the prestigious BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of The Year. He was awarded ‘Up And Coming Artist Of The Year’ at the Scots Trad Awards in 2017. The following year, he was nominated for the Horizon Award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards and awarded Folking.com’s Musician Of The Year title. Ryan Young was also the only UK artist selected to perform at the prestigious World Music conference, WOMEX, in 2019.
Louis Campbell
Louis is a prodigious young guitarist and a first class graduate of the Royal Northern College of Music. He currently performs as electric guitarist for Martin Simpson, fiddle virtuoso Sam Sweeney, folk singer Sam Lee and as one half of Spafford Campbell.
Stuart McCallum
From jazz beginnings to alt-folk and electronica, Stuart is one of the most vital and creative musicians of his generation. An in-demand guitarist, composer, producer and educator. Stuart’s current projects include: The Breath (with vocalist Rioghnach Connolly), Solitude (solo acoustic guitar), Music for Imaginary Film (co-written with Mark Slater), and performing with drummer Richard Spaven.
This concert is promoted by Folk Inspiration, a not-for-profit organiser of live folk music events in Guildford, Farnham and the surrounding area.
