A list of our artists/events from our festivals since 2019
To date we have produced more than 50 events in Paisley in 14 different venues in the town.
To date we have produced more than 50 events in Paisley in 14 different venues in the town.
Tommy Smith OBE
Born in Edinburgh, Smith began his prolific career at 14 when his quartet won Best Band, and he received Best Musician Trophy at the 1981 Edinburgh Jazz Festival. At 16, he released his first two albums, Giant Strides and Taking Off! and studied at Berklee with financial assistance from Sean Connery.
He joined Gary Burton’s quintet after a recommendation from Chick Corea at 18, toured worldwide, and recorded on ECM’s album Whiz Kids. Smith has documented over thirty solo albums for Blue Note, Linn, ECM and his own Spartacus Record label; toured 50+ countries.
He fought to establish the first full-time jazz course in Scotland. In 2009 Smith was appointed head of Jazz at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and became Professor in 2010.
He has received honorary doctorates from Glasgow Caledonian and Edinburgh Universities. In 2019 he was given an OBE for services to Jazz from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Born in Edinburgh, Smith began his prolific career at 14 when his quartet won Best Band, and he received Best Musician Trophy at the 1981 Edinburgh Jazz Festival. At 16, he released his first two albums, Giant Strides and Taking Off! and studied at Berklee with financial assistance from Sean Connery.
He joined Gary Burton’s quintet after a recommendation from Chick Corea at 18, toured worldwide, and recorded on ECM’s album Whiz Kids. Smith has documented over thirty solo albums for Blue Note, Linn, ECM and his own Spartacus Record label; toured 50+ countries.
He fought to establish the first full-time jazz course in Scotland. In 2009 Smith was appointed head of Jazz at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and became Professor in 2010.
He has received honorary doctorates from Glasgow Caledonian and Edinburgh Universities. In 2019 he was given an OBE for services to Jazz from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Script To Stage
Venue: St George's Church and Online
Originally formed to organise a performance night of local script writers at St George's Church in Paisley as part of the Tannahill Arts Festival September 2019, they have just kept going from strength to strength. That first event was followed it up with a mass reading of scripts at Comicrazy in February 2000 followed by a performance of 3 of these scripts by local actors in the UWS Union in March 2020 and 2 further scripts as audio works.
To date everything is done on a voluntary basis and any charge is to cover the cost of venue and photocopying. Their primary focus has been to build relationships with other local writers and performers and become part of a network of opportunities to learn and have fun through new writing.
Venue: St George's Church and Online
Originally formed to organise a performance night of local script writers at St George's Church in Paisley as part of the Tannahill Arts Festival September 2019, they have just kept going from strength to strength. That first event was followed it up with a mass reading of scripts at Comicrazy in February 2000 followed by a performance of 3 of these scripts by local actors in the UWS Union in March 2020 and 2 further scripts as audio works.
To date everything is done on a voluntary basis and any charge is to cover the cost of venue and photocopying. Their primary focus has been to build relationships with other local writers and performers and become part of a network of opportunities to learn and have fun through new writing.
Luca Manning
Venue: Paisley Abbey
Luca Manning is an award winning Jazz vocalist from Glasgow, voted as 'Rising Star' in the 2018 Scottish Jazz Awards. Luca Manning is an award-winning Jazz vocalist and songwriter from Glasgow, Scotland. He is inspired by a wide range of artists and musical styles, as well as being firmly rooted in the tradition of jazz.
Venue: Paisley Abbey
Luca Manning is an award winning Jazz vocalist from Glasgow, voted as 'Rising Star' in the 2018 Scottish Jazz Awards. Luca Manning is an award-winning Jazz vocalist and songwriter from Glasgow, Scotland. He is inspired by a wide range of artists and musical styles, as well as being firmly rooted in the tradition of jazz.
Fergus McCreadie
Venue: Paisley Abbey and Brew Coffee Shop
Since he burst onto the national scene with his self-released debut album Turas in 2018, Fergus has racked up awards including Album of the Year at the Parliamentary and Scottish Jazz Awards, the shortlist of cross-genre Scottish Album of the Year Award 2019, finalist in the 2018 BBC Jazz Musician of the Year and more recently, in October 2020, he was awarded Best Instrumentalist at the Scottish Jazz Awards and in 2022 he was nominated for a Mercury Music Prize.
We have presented Fergus twice in our festival once, in 2019, at Brew and, with Luca Manning, at Paisley Abbey in 2021.
Venue: Paisley Abbey and Brew Coffee Shop
Since he burst onto the national scene with his self-released debut album Turas in 2018, Fergus has racked up awards including Album of the Year at the Parliamentary and Scottish Jazz Awards, the shortlist of cross-genre Scottish Album of the Year Award 2019, finalist in the 2018 BBC Jazz Musician of the Year and more recently, in October 2020, he was awarded Best Instrumentalist at the Scottish Jazz Awards and in 2022 he was nominated for a Mercury Music Prize.
We have presented Fergus twice in our festival once, in 2019, at Brew and, with Luca Manning, at Paisley Abbey in 2021.
Anne Scriven
Venue: Gatehouse Coffee Roasters
Anne M Scriven is a writer of narrative non-fiction. She holds a PhD in Scottish Literature — a field she also lectured in — and has been an Honorary Fellow for Scottish Cultural Studies at the University of Strathclyde. She was series editor for the publishing company of Kennedy & Boyd and was instrumental in bringing various Scottish literature titles back into print. In 2010, Anne produced a new annotated edition of Kirsteen by Margaret Oliphant (the focus of her doctoratal studies), published by the Association for Scottish Literary Studies (ASLS). She left academia to become a freelance writer.
Venue: Gatehouse Coffee Roasters
Anne M Scriven is a writer of narrative non-fiction. She holds a PhD in Scottish Literature — a field she also lectured in — and has been an Honorary Fellow for Scottish Cultural Studies at the University of Strathclyde. She was series editor for the publishing company of Kennedy & Boyd and was instrumental in bringing various Scottish literature titles back into print. In 2010, Anne produced a new annotated edition of Kirsteen by Margaret Oliphant (the focus of her doctoratal studies), published by the Association for Scottish Literary Studies (ASLS). She left academia to become a freelance writer.
Alison McNeil - soprano
Venue: Paisley Abbey
Alison McNeill graduated with a Masters in Performance from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in 2013 with scholarships from the RCS Trust and ABRSM. She has performed as a soloist all over the UK, Holland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Japan, Pakistan, America and Mexico and has been broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland, BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio nan Gaidheal and Spanish, Pakistani and Mexican TV.
Venue: Paisley Abbey
Alison McNeill graduated with a Masters in Performance from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in 2013 with scholarships from the RCS Trust and ABRSM. She has performed as a soloist all over the UK, Holland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Japan, Pakistan, America and Mexico and has been broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland, BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio nan Gaidheal and Spanish, Pakistani and Mexican TV.
The Corbin Miles Memorial Prize
Venue: Callum's Cavern
A cross-arts prize who's judges have included the Emmy Nominated Rie Sinclair and the Ivor Novello nominated songwriter Boo Hewerdine.
Venue: Callum's Cavern
A cross-arts prize who's judges have included the Emmy Nominated Rie Sinclair and the Ivor Novello nominated songwriter Boo Hewerdine.
Scots Opera Project
Venue: Paisley Abbey
Formed in 2014 by Creative Director & Tenor David Douglas, their first summer school project culminated with a performance of a Scots language production of Charpentier's Acteon, the company has continued to develop and grow, becoming the first company to present an operatic performance at the globally respected Robert Burns Humanitarian Awards in 2015.
A mixture of professional singers, instrumentalists and a community ensemble makes AOE & SOP a unique company that aims to bring opera to the wider public.
Performance highlights include: Ae Spark O’ Nature’s Fire, The Genius of Robert Burns, Alloway Session 2015, North Ayrshire’s Fusion Festival, The Two Brigs, Acteon tour, live performance's on BBC Scotland's Classics Unwrapped and STV Glasgow's The Riverside Show, street theatre as part of TamFest, Burns Aflame, Burns Alicht, performance's of a newly created opera at the Largs’ Viking festival and the premier of a new Scots language version of Charpentier’s The Descent of Orpheus to the Underworld. Recently the group created and performed a new Scots version of Mozart's The Magic Flute. This summer sees the creating of a Scots and Gaelic version of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas and producing a revival of their 2014 production of The Descent O' Orpheus Tae The Underwarl.
The Scots Opera Project presented the world premiere of "Tannahill; the opera" at the festival in 2019.
Venue: Paisley Abbey
Formed in 2014 by Creative Director & Tenor David Douglas, their first summer school project culminated with a performance of a Scots language production of Charpentier's Acteon, the company has continued to develop and grow, becoming the first company to present an operatic performance at the globally respected Robert Burns Humanitarian Awards in 2015.
A mixture of professional singers, instrumentalists and a community ensemble makes AOE & SOP a unique company that aims to bring opera to the wider public.
Performance highlights include: Ae Spark O’ Nature’s Fire, The Genius of Robert Burns, Alloway Session 2015, North Ayrshire’s Fusion Festival, The Two Brigs, Acteon tour, live performance's on BBC Scotland's Classics Unwrapped and STV Glasgow's The Riverside Show, street theatre as part of TamFest, Burns Aflame, Burns Alicht, performance's of a newly created opera at the Largs’ Viking festival and the premier of a new Scots language version of Charpentier’s The Descent of Orpheus to the Underworld. Recently the group created and performed a new Scots version of Mozart's The Magic Flute. This summer sees the creating of a Scots and Gaelic version of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas and producing a revival of their 2014 production of The Descent O' Orpheus Tae The Underwarl.
The Scots Opera Project presented the world premiere of "Tannahill; the opera" at the festival in 2019.
The Urban Historian
Stephen Clancy, as the Urban Historian, has been delivering short courses in history and family history along with Heritage Walks in Paisley for many years. He graduated from the University of Glasgow with a degree in History, and went on to complete a Masters in Multimedia from the then University of Paisley. Stephen has worked as an archaeologist on many archaeological digs in Paisley, Renfrewshire and beyond, and has taught local history, archaeology and family history at the University of the West of Scotland and the University of Dundee.
Stephen is a former chair of Paisley Thread Mill Museum, and a member of the Renfrewshire Local History Forum. In addition to this the Urban Historian has also advised the Renfrewshire Tapestry Group on historical aspects of the old County of Renfrew along with other historical projects for Renfrewshire Council.
Stephen has recently been involved in the publication ‘ Conquered by No One: People’s History of the Scots who made the Declaration of Arbroath in 1320’. Stephen wrote a chapter on Walter Stewart, 6th Hugh Steward of Scotland, looking at his life and family history. The book was published In October 2020.
Stephen Clancy, as the Urban Historian, has been delivering short courses in history and family history along with Heritage Walks in Paisley for many years. He graduated from the University of Glasgow with a degree in History, and went on to complete a Masters in Multimedia from the then University of Paisley. Stephen has worked as an archaeologist on many archaeological digs in Paisley, Renfrewshire and beyond, and has taught local history, archaeology and family history at the University of the West of Scotland and the University of Dundee.
Stephen is a former chair of Paisley Thread Mill Museum, and a member of the Renfrewshire Local History Forum. In addition to this the Urban Historian has also advised the Renfrewshire Tapestry Group on historical aspects of the old County of Renfrew along with other historical projects for Renfrewshire Council.
Stephen has recently been involved in the publication ‘ Conquered by No One: People’s History of the Scots who made the Declaration of Arbroath in 1320’. Stephen wrote a chapter on Walter Stewart, 6th Hugh Steward of Scotland, looking at his life and family history. The book was published In October 2020.
Campfire Storytelling Club
Venue: WeVolution and St George's Church
Join Sue Kirkwood around our special indoor campfire for some traditional storytelling and sing-alongs.
Children (and grown-ups!) will love getting creative and making their own stories, exploring fantastical themes and courageous characters! Children aged 3-5 are welcome and parents can join in with the fun or enjoy a nice coffee
Venue: WeVolution and St George's Church
Join Sue Kirkwood around our special indoor campfire for some traditional storytelling and sing-alongs.
Children (and grown-ups!) will love getting creative and making their own stories, exploring fantastical themes and courageous characters! Children aged 3-5 are welcome and parents can join in with the fun or enjoy a nice coffee
"Captain Noah and his Floating Zoo"
Venue: St Luke's Church
With words by Michael Flanders, Captain Noah and his Floating Zoo has become an established favourite with choirs world-wide and sung in six languages; it has been danced as a ballet, broadcast, televised and made into an animated film. A light-hearted work based on the biblical story, it won an Ivor Novello award in 1975 for best British work for children.
Venue: St Luke's Church
With words by Michael Flanders, Captain Noah and his Floating Zoo has become an established favourite with choirs world-wide and sung in six languages; it has been danced as a ballet, broadcast, televised and made into an animated film. A light-hearted work based on the biblical story, it won an Ivor Novello award in 1975 for best British work for children.
Silver Threads
Venue: Paisley Abbey
'Silver Threads' is a unique collection of Folk songs from the historic weaving town of Paisley, covering its heritage, culture, people and traditions. No collection like this currently exists, and considering the impact of Paisley’s weaving industry on the world and its famous Paisley pattern, the project aims to create a body of work which will provide a lasting record of the cultural and social history of the town for future generations.
This involves engagement with the local community to research and arrange traditional folk songs, stories and poems.
In addition new music will be composed exploring the above themes, traditional poetry will be set to music and the resulting material will be professionally recorded and performed live. A limited edition cd will be produced featuring a specially commissioned illustration and an accompanying booklet and video telling the story of each song.
Venue: Paisley Abbey
'Silver Threads' is a unique collection of Folk songs from the historic weaving town of Paisley, covering its heritage, culture, people and traditions. No collection like this currently exists, and considering the impact of Paisley’s weaving industry on the world and its famous Paisley pattern, the project aims to create a body of work which will provide a lasting record of the cultural and social history of the town for future generations.
This involves engagement with the local community to research and arrange traditional folk songs, stories and poems.
In addition new music will be composed exploring the above themes, traditional poetry will be set to music and the resulting material will be professionally recorded and performed live. A limited edition cd will be produced featuring a specially commissioned illustration and an accompanying booklet and video telling the story of each song.
Tannahill: The Opera
Venue: Paisley Abbey
A world premiere of the opera based on the life of Robert Tannahill.
Venue: Paisley Abbey
A world premiere of the opera based on the life of Robert Tannahill.
Reely Jiggered
Venue: Powerleague
As one of Scotland’s most interesting bands, they have headlined at International Festivals including Celtival (Italy), Volmarstein (Germany), Edinburgh Fringe Festival (Scotland), Eden Festival (Scotland) and Musica en Verano (Mexico), Cosmovitral (Mexico), The Lyre (Tokyo) and Minami Aizu Concert Hall (Japan).
They have toured Pakistan three times for the British High Commission promoting gender equality in Lahore, Islamabad and Sialkot. In Scotland, they have appeared in top venues such as Edinburgh Castle, Stirling Castle, 02 abc, The Garage and the Oran Mor
Venue: Powerleague
As one of Scotland’s most interesting bands, they have headlined at International Festivals including Celtival (Italy), Volmarstein (Germany), Edinburgh Fringe Festival (Scotland), Eden Festival (Scotland) and Musica en Verano (Mexico), Cosmovitral (Mexico), The Lyre (Tokyo) and Minami Aizu Concert Hall (Japan).
They have toured Pakistan three times for the British High Commission promoting gender equality in Lahore, Islamabad and Sialkot. In Scotland, they have appeared in top venues such as Edinburgh Castle, Stirling Castle, 02 abc, The Garage and the Oran Mor
"The End" a new play by Karen Herbison
Venue: The Bungalow and Starlight Studio
Karen Herbison is a Renfrewshire-based creative facilitator, playwright, actor, artistic director and company director (Punch Productions). Karen will be leading Performance workshops in Renfrewshire. She has performed her work off-Broadway in Manhattan, at the Edinburgh Fringe and at various west of Scotland arts venues.
As well as her theatre practice, Karen has also had a twenty five year career in social care and is proud of a strong and respected reputation with community organisations. She was very active in the Paisley 2021 bid, has partnered with Outspoken Arts for projects beginning in 2019 and is on the steering group for the local Creative Connections network.
Venue: The Bungalow and Starlight Studio
Karen Herbison is a Renfrewshire-based creative facilitator, playwright, actor, artistic director and company director (Punch Productions). Karen will be leading Performance workshops in Renfrewshire. She has performed her work off-Broadway in Manhattan, at the Edinburgh Fringe and at various west of Scotland arts venues.
As well as her theatre practice, Karen has also had a twenty five year career in social care and is proud of a strong and respected reputation with community organisations. She was very active in the Paisley 2021 bid, has partnered with Outspoken Arts for projects beginning in 2019 and is on the steering group for the local Creative Connections network.
RockUS Choir
Venue: Paisley Town Hall
RockUs are particularly well-known for singing classics from the world of pop across the ages, from Abba to Adele, from Queen to James Bay, from Elvis to Justin Timberlake, and has went from strength to strength since it was formed in 2011 with only four members (we now have over 100!), with the aim of creating a community singing group where people could join together with a variety of social backgrounds and capabilities.
Venue: Paisley Town Hall
RockUs are particularly well-known for singing classics from the world of pop across the ages, from Abba to Adele, from Queen to James Bay, from Elvis to Justin Timberlake, and has went from strength to strength since it was formed in 2011 with only four members (we now have over 100!), with the aim of creating a community singing group where people could join together with a variety of social backgrounds and capabilities.
Voices of Paisley
Venue: Callum's Cavern
Some of the best vocalists Paisley has to offer brought together for one night. Solo voices and spoken word artists presented an informal night of song and poetry.
Venue: Callum's Cavern
Some of the best vocalists Paisley has to offer brought together for one night. Solo voices and spoken word artists presented an informal night of song and poetry.
"Cleek" movie screening
Venue: Stow Brae Kirk
A chance to see a film on the big screen shot in and around Paisley. An exciting thriller from local screen-writer Christina Littleson and director Gary J. Hewitt.
Jacob Cleek is a quiet, well presented artist, who keeps himself to himself, but Jacob has a secret, and when it starts to break the surface, he must do what he can to stop his world from crumbling.
Venue: Stow Brae Kirk
A chance to see a film on the big screen shot in and around Paisley. An exciting thriller from local screen-writer Christina Littleson and director Gary J. Hewitt.
Jacob Cleek is a quiet, well presented artist, who keeps himself to himself, but Jacob has a secret, and when it starts to break the surface, he must do what he can to stop his world from crumbling.
Shaun Moore
Venue: Callum's Cavern
Shaun is a spoken word artist, activist, and music lover. He hails from Johnstone, but spends much of his time in Paisley. Since he was a boy, he loved poetry, but in the last few years has come into his own across Renfrewshire and Scotland for his pointed, often comical, spoken word poetry. Combining his love for music, Shaun enjoys the “rhythm and rhyme” of the genre and often crafts bespoke pieces for events where he’s asked to perform.
Venue: Callum's Cavern
Shaun is a spoken word artist, activist, and music lover. He hails from Johnstone, but spends much of his time in Paisley. Since he was a boy, he loved poetry, but in the last few years has come into his own across Renfrewshire and Scotland for his pointed, often comical, spoken word poetry. Combining his love for music, Shaun enjoys the “rhythm and rhyme” of the genre and often crafts bespoke pieces for events where he’s asked to perform.
Renfrewshire Community Gospel Choir
Venue: Life Church
The Renfrewshire Community Gospel Choir is a community group which is open to all who enjoy singing and performing Gospel music.
Venue: Life Church
The Renfrewshire Community Gospel Choir is a community group which is open to all who enjoy singing and performing Gospel music.
Evelyn Laurie
Venue: Brew Coffee Shop
Evelyn Laurie was born and bred in Paisley. She has a life long love of singing and performs jazz, as well as her own compositions. She has a background in marketing and coaching and was the creator of #PositivePaisley, a campaign to change people’s perceptions of the town. While pursuing her music, she also runs a freelancers’ network called, Creative Connections. Recently, Evelyn was awarded The Provost’s Community Award for Arts & Culture for being a community champion.
Venue: Brew Coffee Shop
Evelyn Laurie was born and bred in Paisley. She has a life long love of singing and performs jazz, as well as her own compositions. She has a background in marketing and coaching and was the creator of #PositivePaisley, a campaign to change people’s perceptions of the town. While pursuing her music, she also runs a freelancers’ network called, Creative Connections. Recently, Evelyn was awarded The Provost’s Community Award for Arts & Culture for being a community champion.
The Doyenne Duo
Venue: The Wynd Centre
This international flute and piano duo arrived to take part in the 2019 Tannahill Arts Festival from San Diego.
Venue: The Wynd Centre
This international flute and piano duo arrived to take part in the 2019 Tannahill Arts Festival from San Diego.