I made my first trip to Scotland in January of 1996. The purpose of the visit was to conduct research at the Celtic Connections Festival in Glasgow. My business partner and I had hatched the idea to create what would become the Celtic Colours International Festival in Cape Breton. We wanted to see a large Celtic festival in action and Celtic Connections, although only in its third year of existence, was already a huge event spanning almost three weeks in length.

Cape Breton music offers many soulful elements.  Our airs in particular will offer you an experience that has often been described as Holy; they will fill your heart and soul. Some of the oldest of these are Gaelic airs; they’ll pull on your heart strings, bring about that “lump’ in your throat, give you goose bumps and could make a tear drop from your eye.