Transatlantic Sessions
Transatlantic Sessions is the collective title for a series of musical productions by Glasgow-based Pelicula Films Ltd, funded by- and produced for BBC Scotland, BBC Four[1] and RTÉ of Ireland.[2] The productions comprise collaborative live performances by various leading folk, bluegrass and country musicians from both sides of the North Atlantic, playing music from Scotland, Ireland, England and North America, who congregate under the musical direction of Aly Bain and Jerry Douglas to record and film a set of half-hour TV episodes.[3] The Television director is Mike Alexander[4] and the producer is Douglas Eadie.[5]
Background[edit]
The first (Original) Transatlantic Sessions episode was produced in 1995 - a project conceived at that time by Douglas Eadie, Mike Alexander and Aly Bain.[4] Subsequent sessions were produced in 1998, 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2013. To date, the series comprises the six sessions shown below in the History (listed in reverse-chronological order).
For each session, the producer and directors select a special setting - typically a country manor, lodge or hotel in Scotland where the musicians perform and stay while the session is recorded (see also below). Each session was filmed in a different location with the exception of Series 4 and 5 which were both filmed in the same house, the hunting lodge at Glen Lyon near Aberfeldy in Perthshire. Series 6 was filmed and recorded at a location on the banks of Loch Lomond.