INTERVIEW: Michael Pellegrotti, co-founder of Skye Live Festival

We interviewed Michael Pellegrotti, co-founder of Skye Live Festival, Skye Live, who this Thursday, July 8 at 8:00 p.m. m. is featured with a carefully selected selection of the most impressive Scottish artists and acts.

The awe inspiring harmonies from Gaelic trio SIAN will kick the festival off before we travel to Sligachan where award winning small piper Brìghde Chaimbeul teams up with fiddler Aidan O'Rourke of Lau-fame; then there is a super special bespoke piece of music from Lord Of The Islesfeaturing poetry by fellow Edinburgh-based artist Ellen Renton. Inspired by, and set at, the Old Man of Storr, this audio-visual piece showcases one of Skye's most photographed locations like it has never been seen before with a light show to transform the landscape into an ethereal dreamscape. Closing the festival is the Skye Live's resident band and Gaelic electronica pioneers Niteworks, who will be performing at the Quiraing.

We spoke with Michael about his leadership and criteria for the eminent festival. This has been the result.

How was Skye's proposal born?

As we were unable to do a physical event this year we wanted to try and capture some of the magic of the normal festival for everyone to enjoy at home! So we pulled together some of our favourite acts and scouted some locations on Skye and it went from there.

What concept do you want to convey with this proposal? We wanted to try and represent what we do at the normal festival, putting on great musicians in picturesque surroundings. Given the year it's been, we also wanted to give something back - so we've made it free for everyone!

What is your criteria as artists? We try to fuse contemporary Scottish traditional music with electronica. We feel there's similarities to them, rhythmically and in the way people enjoy them - people like to party to both of them! How would you define your proposal to an audience that does not know you? Unique musical curation in a stunning location. An essential experience!

How are you dealing with this proposal with the covid? We've moved to a digital festival for this year, and we've just been planning for a full return in 2022. We'll be releasing details on next year's festival and going on sale *VERY* soon! What more projects can you reveal to us?

The festival will return in person 13-14th May 2022! Lineup and tickets will be revealed VERY soon.