Julie Fowlis, Gaelic song
A profile of one of North Uist's most famous natives
When Scottish singer Julie Fowlis enthralled an American audience with a program of Gaelic songs, it was striking to me that language posed no barrier. In fact, only one song in English was performed that night, and that was in the encore. Familiar to many, it was “Touch the Sky,” which Fowlis recorded for the Grammy and Oscar-winning Disney movie, Brave. Its soaring melody touched the soul via Julie's beautiful voice.
But in the middle of the encore Julie disappeared, leaving the stage to the musicians. She then surprised the audience by sweeping back to center stage carrying her bagpipes for the first time that evening, and finishing the concert with a boisterous pipe tune.
Originally from North Uist in the Outer Hebrides, Julie Fowlis is best known as a Gaelic singer, but is also a fine piper, pennywhistle player, and oboist. She grew up surrounded by traditional music, competed as a singer in the Gaelic Mòd, and like many of her friends, learned to play bagpipes. She was even on the verge of becoming a Highland dance teacher, but decided instead to commit her time to music.
While in college in the 1990s, the exciting traditional music scene in Glasgow gave her a chance to participate. This was a welcome release from the formality and intensity of studying classical oboe and English horn. After completing her B.A. in music at the University of Strathclyde, Fowlis cast her lot with traditional music. She joined Dochas, a band of young women from the Highlands and Islands, and together they flourished, with concerts, tours, and in 2002, a self-titled album.
Well worth a listen for its quality and variety, the Dochas CD features Julie Fowlis singing and playing whistle, pipes and oboe; Jenna Reid, now of Blazin' Fiddles, on fiddle, and other members on harp, accordion and piano. In 2004 Dochas added its only male musician at the time, world champion bodhran player Martin O'Neill of Glasgow, and recorded a fine new album, An Darna Umhail (A Second Glance).
It was in Dochas that Julie Fowlis first became widely known as a Gaelic singer. Listen to her singing and you'll hear a voice of innocence and clarity, strong but gentle, never dark or brooding. She shares with us the sweet and passionate music of the Gaelic tradition. We hear waulking songs that inspire the working of the cloth; puirt a beule (mouth music) for dancers to step and leap; and lullabies, laments, and tales of woe or heroic deeds, which take us to another world. Rather than aiming songs at us with a commanding voice, Fowlis sings as if we were her community.
Taking off in new directions, Fowlis won “Best Gaelic Singer” at the Scots Traditional Music Awards in 2005 and 2007, the years of her first two solo CDs. Her first, Mar a tha mo chridhe (As My Heart Is), begins with several flowing songs, followed by a lively instrumental set with Julie on pennywhistle, and a selection of melodic songs that never get old. Great musicians joined her for this project, including John Doyle, Kris Drever, John McCusker, Iain MacDonald, and two members of the Irish band Danu – their lead singer, and Eamonn Doorley (Julie's future husband).
Her 2007 and 2009 CDs both won “Best Album of the Year” awards. The 2007 album, Cuilidh, spotlights songs from her native North Uist. The precision of her singing is a delight from the start, as we hear a set of lively puirt a beule songs. In this “mouth music,” Fowlis's voice is like an instrument, articulating every syllable with an unmistakable beat. A beautiful love song follows, telling of a man's pain upon learning that his love was emigrating to Australia. A nice variety of songs is here accompanied by impeccable musicians, including members of the bands Capercaillie, Altan, Solas, and Nickel Creek.
Julie has had the privilege of singing several times with Transatlantic Sessions, most recently in 2013. This long-running series of TV shows, CDs, DVDs and tours brings together great Scottish and American musicians. Julie was particularly thrilled to have a chance to sing with James Taylor. “I lost the power of speech, I was so in awe of him!” she says.
Fowlis's 2009 CD, Uam (From Me), features several musicians from the Transatlantic Sessions group, including Phil Cunningham on piano and accordion, box player Sharon Shannon, and dobro player Jerry Douglas. Piper Allan MacDonald plays on the album, in addition to Julie's regular touring musicians: fiddler Duncan Chisholm, guitarist Tony Byrne, and Julie’s husband, Eamonn Doorley, on bouzouki.
On one track of the CD, Julie is joined by Scots singer Eddi Reader. Together, they present a Gaelic waulking song followed by an American Irish song, sung in both English and Gaelic. Eddi Reader gamely learned to sing some of the Gaelic lyrics for the recording, and blends well with Julie Fowlis, although the two women have quite distinct vocal styles.
Two tracks on Uam feature vocal duets with Mary Smith, a Gaelic singer from whom Fowlis has learned many songs. Originally from Lewis, Smith lived and traveled in Uist and Eriskay, meeting well respected singers and learning songs and stories of the Gaelic community. She was awarded an MBE in 1999 for her services to traditional music, and made a fine solo CD, Sgiath Airgid (Silver Wings), backed by four other singers and an excellent studio band.
When Pixar Animation Studios was making the Disney film, Brave, they hoped to find one of Scotland's best young female singers for the soundtrack, and selected Fowlis. They gave her free reign to choose her musicians for this exciting and demanding project, but there was certainly pressure to get it done on time. This was not only due to the filmmakers' schedule, but also because Julie was 8 months pregnant at the time!
Fowlis earned a Masters degree researching Gaelic culture and was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Music; she has also worked as Artist in Residence for an ambitious project to digitally archive Gaelic music. Her broadcast projects have included a BBC Radio Scotland program called “Fowlis and Folk,” and narration for a BBC Alba TV documentary aired celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Gaelic band Capercaillie. She also co-hosted a TV show with Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh to spotlight Scottish and Irish traditional music by traveling to various sites and featuring the local musicians in each area. Despite the demands, Fowlis and her husband have managed to balance their musical careers with raising two children.
Her 2014 CD, Gach Sgeul (Every Story), features lush accompaniments and arrangements, and a new sound for Julie's voice. At that time she found that, since her previous CD, her voice had strengthened and matured as a result of becoming a mother. In 2017, she put out another beautiful CD, called Alterum.
Born in North Uist, surrounded by traditional music, a Gaelic-speaking mother and a Scots father from Pitlochry, Julie Fowlis says she never consciously chose to fly the flag of Gaelic culture; she just performs the music she knows and loves. But as she's become better known, she has taken up that flag to share the rich Gaelic tradition with the world, and possibly even help Gaeldom grow again after a long decline in native speakers. In 2008, she was appointed by the Scottish government to be the first official Tosgaire an Gàidhlig, or Ambassador for Gaelic.
In 2023, she was named “Musician of the Year” at the MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards.
With her crystalline voice and expressive musicianship, Julie Fowlis reaches across language barriers to a world that is delighted to enjoy the beauty of Gaelic song.
The above article is updated from a chapter in my book, MusicScapes of Scotland: Vignettes from Prehistory to Pandemic. This link provides info on how to find the book online, in a store, or as an ebook.
l