The New Hampshire Scottish Music Club was founded in 1988 as The Strathspey & Reel Society of New Hampshire. Our goal is to foster an appreciation for the culture and history of Scotland through the performance of Scottish music. Our monthly gatherings at the Concord Community Music School are always free and open to the public.
We welcome all ages, all instruments, all levels of experience!
We meet on the second Sunday of every month from 1 - 4:30, at the Concord Community Music School. Our gatherings often start with a workshop led by a special guest musician who teaches us new tunes and helps us focus on playing techniques and arrangements. After a hearty tea break, we reconvene for an informal jam.
We perform several concerts each year, at the New England Folk Festival (NEFFA) in Massachusetts in April and at the NH Highland Games in September. We’ve also put on annual concerts at the historic Bass Hall in Peterborough and at the Portsmouth Public Library. We are always looking for new places to perform.
While we encourage our members to participate in our performances, it is not a requirement. Occasionally a gathering will be a read through or rehearsal of our concert music. When that is the case, we encourage anyone to come and participate as well.
If you are a newcomer, you can find the music we will be playing on our Music page. We will also have extra copies of the sheet music and our session books available.
In the beginning….around 1981, Barbara McOwen and Ed Pearlman started up the Boston Scottish Fiddle Club. That was run by Ed until he moved to Maine around 1999. Now it is run by a Board of Directors.
Then, in September 1988, because New Hampshire also seemed to have a potential musical community, Barbara had the idea for the Strathspey & Reel Society of New Hampsthire. She corralled Evelyn Murray, Lezlie Webster, Marianne Taylor, Viveka Fuchs and Sylvia Miskoe to help out. Sylvia found the original hall (the Annichiarico Music Theater on Thompson Street, Concord) where we were for 20 years. Since 2008 we have been welcomed at the Concord Community Music School.
Barbara was our founding Music Director, followed by Sylvia until 2007 when Betsy Woodman took over the post. In 2009, Emerald Rae took on the Music Director job, leaving in 2011. Since then a Music Committee, made up of member volunteers, has chosen the tunes for annual concert sets. Visiting musicians from New England are frequently invited to present workshops for the first part of the monthly gatherings.
