Elphinstone Institute

11/09/2026

Button Boxes & Moothies Autumn Fling 2026

🪗Opening Music Session - All Welcome! 🎻

The Red Lion, 130 Spital, Aberdeen AB24 3JU
7-9pm
Friday 25th September 2026

As we start off our new semester, we are delighted to bring another weekend of music and tuition to Aberdeen with the Button Boxes & Moothies Autumn Fling. The festival is one of the many incredible initiatives started by the late Professor Ian Russell, our former director, in 2003. While Ian will sadly not be with us for the first time this year, we are delighted to continue his legacy through the festival.

All Welcome, musicians and listeners alike.

The session will be led by fantastic local button box players, Tom Roche and Rachel Sheridan.

For more information on the Button Boxes & Moothies Autumn Fling, which includes a day's tuition in Button Box and English Concertina, plus come-and-try events, evening concert and more, visit www.buttonboxesandmoothies.com

This is an Elphinstone Institute event made possible by the support from the Traditional Arts and Culture Fund, administered by TRACS - Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland with support from the National Lottery through Creative Scotland and the Friends of the Elphinstone Institute.

TRACS - Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland
Scottish Culture and Traditions - SC&T
University of Aberdeen LLMVC
Creative Aberdeenshire

10/09/2026

It is with great joy and no small amount of relief that we can say that all of the dissertations by our 2025–26 MLitt students in Ethnology and Folklore have been submitted. Dissertation topics were as varied as ever:

-Luck Beliefs and Rituals in Amateur Theatre
-Tabletop Roleplaying Games as Communal Storytelling Events
-Narratives of Shipwrecks in Johnshaven
-Body-Snatching Legends
-Kelpies and Traditional Scottish Song

We can't wait to read them, but in the meantime we wanted to offer our congratulations to our brilliant students. Well done all!

06/09/2026

Date for the diary!

Join our senior lecturer, Dr Frances Wilkins, for a musical journey around the North Sea and across the Atlantic in this presentation at the Fountainhill Church Centre in Aberdeen on 27th September, organised and hosted by the Caithness, Orkney and Shetland Association of Aberdeen.

Caithness, Orkney and Shetland Association of Aberdeen
Music of Northern Sailors by Dr Frances Wilkins, The Elphinstone Institute
Sunday 27th September 2.00 for 2.30
Fountainhall Church Centre, 1 Beaconsfield Place AB15 4AB
Members £10 and non-members £12

An audio-visual exploration of the music that emerged from the 1700s onwards, in the lives of those working in the Scottish whaling and fishing industries and for the Hudson’s Bay Company. The talk is accompanied by archive recordings and Frances gives live performance of instrumental music from these times along with a wealth of anecdotes, photography and videography.

A compelling account of the importance of music among Scottish sailors and the impact of this music on those who came into contact with it.

If you are planning on attending, please email [email protected]

We are looking forward to this talk on the maritime music of our Northern sailors in September. After listening to thoughtful feedback from our Elphinstone community regarding the previous AI-generated poster provided by the Association, we have decided to remove it. As an institute dedicated to preserving and championing human creativity and authentic cultural transmission, we thank you for your vigilance. We hope to see you there.

Explore Frances Wilkins' work as a musician and ethnomusicologist, featuring performances, research, publications, and cultural projects across Scotland, Canada, and beyond.

06/09/2026

🪗 Button Boxes & Moothies Autumn Fling Concert 2026 🪗

Join us at the Elphinstone Institute for a special evening celebrating the rich, vibrant sounds of free-reed instruments and the traditional music of Scotland and beyond!

We are thrilled to welcome virtuoso Luke Daniels, along with fantastic local musicians Frances Wilkins, Tom Roche, Owen O'Connor, and friends for an unforgettable night of button box and concertina playing.

This concert holds a special place in our hearts as we celebrate the extraordinary legacy of Professor Ian Russell, who founded the festival back in 2003. His passion for sharing and preserving our local traditions continues to be central to much of our work today.

Event Details:
Dunbar Street Hall, Old Aberdeen AB24 3UJ
Saturday, 26 September 2026
Time: 7:00 PM
Tickets: £15 Standard | £12 Friends of the EI | £6 Under 25s/student
BYOB

🎻 BRING YOUR INSTRUMENTS! The concert will be followed by an informal open session—come along and join in!

🎟️ Get your tickets from www.buttonboxesandmoothies.com

Please share this post with friends, family, and fellow musicians! We look forward to seeing you there.

University of Aberdeen LLMVC

Scottish Culture and Traditions - SC&T
TMSA Scotland
Traditional Music and Song Association of Scotland (TMSA Aberdeen)
Music Forum
Traditional Music Forum

03/09/2026

Date for the diary!

Join our senior lecturer, Dr Frances Wilkins, for a musical journey around the North Sea and across the Atlantic in this presentation at the Fountainhill Church Centre in Aberdeen on 27th September.

An audio-visual exploration of the music that emerged from the 1700s onwards, in the lives of those working in the Scottish whaling and fishing industries and for the Hudson’s Bay Company. The talk is accompanied by archive recordings and Frances gives live performance of instrumental music from these times along with a wealth of anecdotes, photography and videography.

A compelling account of the importance of music among Scottish sailors and the impact of this music on those who came into contact with it.

If you are planning on attending, please email [email protected]

www.franceswilkins.com

University of Aberdeen LLMVC
Scottish Culture and Traditions - SC&T

University of Aberdeen Music Department

01/09/2026

Our director, Tom McKean, is just back from Tartu, Estonia, where he was participating in the 54th International Conference of the Kommission für Volksdichtung, hosted by the Estonian Literary Museum. While there he chaired two different panels on balladry and continued his work on the board as treasurer (and former president) of the society. Thanks to James Deutsch for his on-the-ground updates and for sending through a photo taken by the organisers.

27/08/2026

There is still time to send in your submissions for the Toulmin Prize, deadline 31 August 2026: https://www.abdn.ac.uk/elphinstone/public-engagement/toulmin-prize

The Toulmin prize is open to all amateur writers over the age of 16 for submissions of short stories. Stories should be about some aspect of life in North-East Scotland and may be written in Scots, including Doric, or English, or a mixture of the two, and up to 4,000 words in length to be submitted by 31 August 2026. (Previous prize-winners cannot submit an entry).

The winner will receive a £500 prize, sponsored by Steven and Martin Reid, grandsons of David Toulmin (aka John Reid), and the story will be read by well-known North-East writer, Sheena Blackhall, at this year's Way WORD Festival on 11 October at Aberdeen Art Gallery.

Photographed is last year's winner, Marka Riffat, with judges and Steven and Martin Reid.

25/08/2026

Fit a rare experience wis hid at e ‘22nd International Handbell Ringing Symposium’ in e Aiberdeen P&J Live a pucklie wiks syne. Sivin hunner haanbell musicians fae aa ower e warld cam igither — different leids, different ringing styles, different stories. I hinna bin a pairt o an evint like iss afore. It wisnae jist aboot music; the theme iss ear wis biggin brigs, celebratin cultures, an makkin new freens, an er wis plinty o aat. I hid a chunce te s**k wi fowk aboot e culture (mait, music an leid) o the North-East an it wis received wi gryte muckle enthusiasm.

21/08/2026

REMINDER! Deadline approaching!

The Friends of the Elphinstone Institute - Call for New Board Members!

Are you passionate about Northern Scottish culture and traditions? would you like to join the board of The Friends of the Elphinstone Institute and help support the vital work of the Elphinstone Institute? A centre for the study, promotion, and celebration of Northern Scottish culture and traditions based at the University of Aberdeen.
Our local and international members support the work of the Elphinstone Institute to research, celebrate and promote culture and traditions across the North of Scotland. Members include past and present students, local businesses, arts professionals, cultural workers, academics, and others with an interest in supporting our work.
We are looking for three new board members from September 2026. We welcome applications from across Scotland.

Deadline for expressions of interest: Monday 31st August 2026

For more information, contact David Francis - [email protected]

To find out more about what we do, visit www.elphinstonefriends.org

06/08/2026

Thank you to Dinna be feart - La Escocia oscura en español for creating this brilliant film about this year's Buchan Ballad Bus. Watch it here:

BIENVENIDOS A DINNA BE FEART: LA ESCOCIA OSCURA EN ESPAÑOL 🌫️🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳...