HillGigs

Name: HillGigs
Address: Stirling, FK8, GB
Telephone: 07846296832
Price range: $

Who says the sticks is a cultural backwater? With HillGigs we bring brilliant musicians to the small rural Stirlingshire village of Thornhill. Performers!!

For house concerts, we put the hat round and people give what they can as a donation: best to be paper money as artists need to eat too. Just think how much a trip to a gig in Glasgow or Edinburgh or even Stirling would cost - not everyone can afford a tenner, but the more tenners the better. We can accommodate about 30 in the house. Anybody is welcome - just let Charlie know by phone or via the HillGigs page. Folks bring their own drink and we do the snacks. We can feed you if you want to join us beforehand.

14/09/2026

Hi folks
This is an earlier than usual mailing about HillGigs. I’m delighted that Attila the Stockbroker will be playing here as part of his first ever full Scottish tour. He’ll have support from the excellent Calum Baird. I expect there to be a lot of interest, so get in quick.
Here’s a wee bit more about Attila and Calum.
Attila the Stockbroker is a punk poet, dub ranter, singer-songwriter, early music punk pioneer, writer and social commentator. He is a multi-instrumentalist and has released over forty recordings. He’s been making music and sharing words for many decades.
Calum Baird’s music is characterised by its honesty and authenticity, with lyrics that are often introspective and personal. His songs explore social commentary, modern life, relationships, alienation and social change.
What they say about Calum...
“Contemporary, contemplative and thoughtful” – Iain Anderson, BBC Radio Scotland
“Echoing early Billy Bragg with his dogged optimism” – Tom Robinson, BBC 6 Music
The show will begin at 20.00 in the house at 33 The Hill, so please get in sharp for what will be a great night. As usual, get in touch with me directly to book your place by messaging Charlie Gracie on fb, calling me on 07846 296832 or emailing me at [email protected]
(It's BYOB and we can supply glasses.)
DOSH: as always, we don't have a specified ticket price - we rely on honest donations and all the money goes to the artists. We ask you to pay what you can or what you feel the gig is worth, but we hope for an average of £15.00 per person so we can continue to support wonderful professional musicians like Atilla and Calum – this is what they do for their living.

On the socials, etc…
https://www.facebook.com/attilathestockbroker
https://attilathestockbroker.bandcamp.com/merch
https://open.spotify.com/artist/6MpFXOAwEfGuJFB4xa9Dl5?si=mE25nvLlSReEQeknfksQ0Q
https://www.instagramattilathestockbroker/
https://www.instagram.com/calumbairdsongs/
https://calumbaird.com/about/
https://www.facebook.com/CalumBairdSongs
https://soundcloud.com/calum-baird-songs

08/09/2026

Full details to follow on the next HillGig on Saturday 7 November: the wonderful Attila the Stockbroker with support from the superb Calum Baird. When it opens, get ready to sign up quick!

01/08/2026

Hannie in full tilt this evening. Magic!

31/07/2026

The HillGig with Hannie (Saturday 1st August) starts at 20.00. Feel free to rock up from 19.30.
Remember — BYOB

26/07/2026

Hi folks
Only a few seats left for the Hannie event at HillGigs this coming Saturday, 1st August. It all kicks off at 20.00.
Get in touch if you want to come.
Charlie

18/07/2026

Hi folks
We’re running a special HillGigs (I know, they’re all special!) on Saturday 1 August. All the money collected on this occasion will go to a special project of WAFAS – support for women who are asylum seekers or refugees to spend some time in our beautiful Scottish countryside. A group of local women have been volunteering to support this project – please come along for a superb night in a great cause.
Please come along to hear wonderful tunes. As usual, please get in touch with me by email or on the number below or face-to-face to book a place. We will be accepting donations on the night.
Look forward to seeing you there. Starts at 20.00.
Charlie

Big thanks to Thornhill’s Hazel Imrie for her offer of playing for us that night, with some friends. Here’s some information from Hazel about Hannie.
Named after Dutch resistance fighter Hannie Schaft (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hannie_Schaft), Hannie are an all-female 3-piece band hailing from the Central Belt of Scotland. Comprising of clarsach, fiddle, guitar, and voice, Hannie weaves intricate melodies with groovy rhythms in both self-penned and traditional pieces. Having played together for many years in different groups, the members are brought together by their love of traditional music, activism, and having fun with music.
Bio of Jo (guitar):
Johanna Kirkpatrick is a singer, songwriter and guitarist from Glasgow. She currently plays with Chanterelle, Sersi and Hannie. Johanna writes big songs with big emotion behind them, combining catchy choruses with compelling lyrics. She’s played in venues ranging from Glasgow’s Glad Cafe, King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut and Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre.
Bio of Lori (clàrsach)
Lori is a diverse musician with their fingers in many pies, playing mainly Clarsach and vocals in a range of settings from folk and traditional to improv poetry and ecstatic dance. They enjoy blending the boundaries between exploring musicality and connecting with people and currently play in the groups Hannie and Clown Town Necromancy.
Bio of Hazel (fiddle):
Hazel Imrie is a (Thornhillian!) fiddle player, based in Glasgow. While her origins lie in traditional music, over the years she has enjoyed playing in bands with a range of styles, including funk, bossa nova, blues, metal, pop, and folk. She currently plays in the bands Raj Mahal, Seannòta and Hannie, and has played in venues such as Kelburn Garden Party and King Tut's Wah Wah Hut.
Here's a link to Madderam, the band that Hazel and the others used to be in together: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1G49cEFiybkXdkQxjwIi6x?si=Ia1lLb6mRWulzgs-53cbug&utm_source=copy-link

12/01/2026

We now have a waiting list for the Alastair Savage and Alice Allen gig. If spaces become available, I’ll post here.

06/01/2026

HillGigs is bursting into 2026 on Saturday 7th February.

The wonderful news is that we have a return for with two of Scotland's finest traditional music players, Alastair Savage and Alice Allen. These are two highly regarded Scottish musicians, who blew us away at their first HillGigs show in 2022. See below for more details.

The show will begin at 20.00 in the house at 33 The Hill, so please get in sharp for what will be a great night. As usual, just get in touch with me to book your seat by messaging Charlie Gracie on fb, calling me on 07846 296832 or emailing me at [email protected]

(It's BYOB and we supply glasses.)

As always, we don't have a specified ticket price - we rely on honest donations and all the money goes to the artists. We ask you to pay what you can or what you feel the gig is worth, but we aim for an average of £15.00 per person so we can continue to support wonderful professional musicians like Alice and Alastair – this is what they do for their living.

This will be a great night of traditional Scottish music with a twist.

Here's more about Alastair and Alice...

Alastair Savage is originally from Ayrshire and has performed traditional and classical music throughout his life. He was winner of the ‘Land O’ Burns’ Scots fiddle competition in his youth and studied classical violin at the Royal Scottish Academy Of Music And Drama (now the Royal Conservatoire) and at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He has been a member of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra since 1997 with whom he has toured Japan, South Korea, China, USA, South America and throughout Europe, as well as appearing as traditional fiddle soloist on BBC Radio 3, Radio Scotland and on national radio in the USA. As a composer, his music has been used by BBC Alba for documentary purposes and in 2021 he was shortlisted for a Scottish Award In New Music. As a session musician, Alastair has worked with many top artists crossing different musical genres, including Belle and Sebastian, Karen Matheson, Justin Currie and Ricky Ross. Other folk music projects include working with the Grit Orchestra and the legendary Scottish band ‘The Whistlebinkies.

Alice Allen is well established on the Scottish cello scene. She lives in Gartmore, though from Aberdeenshire originally. She was formerly young artist in residence with the Scottish Ensemble. Her playing style is deeply rooted in both the Scottish music tradition and the classical music tradition and she is tutor of Scottish traditional cello at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Now one of the country’s top freelance classical musicians, Alice works with many of the country’s leading performing groups including the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and as a member of the folk group Lyre, Lyre. Alongside this she has studied traditional cello with leading instrumentalist Natalie Haas and has recorded with former BBC young traditional musician of the year Robyn Stapleton.

Here's what the critics say...

‘a must for aficionados, a primer for anyone with a notional interest in Scottish traditional music’ ( Keith Bruce, The Herald)

‘spectacular in simplicity, scope and delivery’ ( Tim Carroll, Folkwords)

‘There is a breathtaking effortlessness to Savage’s musical art: technical and

intricate without ever overshadowing the music itself’ ( Su O’Brien, Bright Young Folk)

‘Alastair Savage is a master of the instrument, both in theory and practice’ ( Ellie Willis, Edinburgh Three Weeks)

‘panache, grace and affection’ ( Jim Gilchrist, The Scotsman)

Address

Stirling
FK8

Telephone

07846296832

Website

http://www.charliegracie.co.uk/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when HillGigs posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Want your business to be the top-listed Event/venue in Stirling?