Liz Clark has been involved in one format or another with music all her life. Her passion for Scottish traditional music started when at six years of age when her parents moved to the North East of Scotland.
Between the women singing in the fishing sheds at Stonehaven and the bothy ballads of Aberdeenshire to the travellers with their stories and songs, she learned a new language or languages through these songs which she used to good end on her Rutherglen aunt who she had ‘words’ with from time to time and was able to say extremely rude things to and no one knew what she was saying! That was the start.
She was also brought up with the Blues and old 78’s recordings of Bessie Smith, Ledy Belly, Henry Thomas and Blind Willie Johnson listened to avidly on her own ‘wind up’ record player.
From the first Glasgow folk club she attended in 1966 to the Danny Kyle club in The Attic in Paisley, it sealed her fate as a ‘folkie’. Political and protest songs and the emerging new tradition, any music, as long as it was good.
Always a good organiser, Liz was soon helping with the arranging of concerts, competitions and festivals throughout the UK and in later years working with Danny Kyle on festivals such as The Isle of Bute festival and the Killin Folk Festival.
On Danny’s passing in 1998, then Celtic Connections festival director Colin Hynd asked her and performer Gibb Todd to take on and organise The Danny Kyle Open Stage during the Celtic Connections festival.
Liz also co-ordinated The Festival Club at Celtic Connections during which time she got to know Celtic Music Radio.
She has compared for the last few years at Orkney Folk Festival and is on the Committee for Girvan Folk Festival in Ayrshire and Newcastleton Folk Festival in the Borders.
Along with Isla Duncan, Liz runs the Chorus Cup at Stonehaven Festival in Aberdeenshire.
A director and staunch supporter of the TMSA (Traditional Music and Song Association of Scotland) Liz also loves the emerging music by our talented young musicians. She has seen them come through the Danny Kyle Open Stage and promotes these singers and performers where ever she can.
Liz Clark presents ‘Travels with my Aunt’ on Celtic Music Radio every Tuesday night 8.00-10.00pm. Repeated on Wednesday at 1.00pm.
Email Liz Clark: liz.clark@celticmusicradio.net
