Rockness and other Scottish Music Festivals

Think of Scotland and you will most probably immediately think of tartan, think of Scottish music and you will, most likely, think of the bagpipes or the fiddle. Yes Scotland is well known for both it's tartan and it's bagpipes and traditional Scottish music is known (and practiced) across the globe. While traditional Scottish music remains incredibly popular Scotland is a diverse nation and this is extremely apparent in it's music. While the whole of the U.K. has seen a marked increase in the number of annual music festivals, Scotland seems to have exploded musically with festivals celebrating all types of music from the traditional to the bang up to date sounds of the DJ and modern rock/pop. The Rockness music festival, held near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands, saw a strange mix of modern dance acts and DJ's alongside the latest pop acts and up and coming rock bands. So Scotland is not just bagpipes and tartan!

Music has a vital role to play in the development of any society or nation and this is extremely apparent in Scotland. Through the centuries Scottish music has encompassed many influences and happily embraced new instruments. While interest in the traditional will always remain strong the Scottish music scene is wide and varied. Across Scotland various music events celebrate the various styles of the nation and introduce acts from elsewhere. At Scottish music festivals it is not unusual to see the traditional acts appearing alongside the most modern or acts from Africa or others from around the world.

Scottish music festivals cater for all tastes in music and, whatever style or genre you appreciate most, there is bound to be a festival suitable for you. If you enjoy traditional Celtic sounds and some of the modern fusion bands then a visit to Celtic Connections of the Hebridean Celtic Festival will introduce you to both the well known and the most modern Celtic influenced acts around. On the other hand if you prefer the more modern sounds the likes of Tartan Heart, Wickerman and Rockness present a mix of the most modern and popular acts alongside the up and coming acts of the future.

Although Rockness is held in rather a remote location (about 8 miles from Inverness) the organizers, Loudsound and Slingshot, have worked miracles to ensure that all the required facilities are in place and there are adequate transportation links. Held on the banks of Loch Ness, Rockness, has the most breathtaking views out across the Loch. In fact the location, Clune Farm, Dores, is amongst the most incredible of all the UK music festivals.

The 24 June 2006 saw the first Rockness headlined by DJ Fatboy Slim and Daft Punk (in the Clash Arena). The second Rockness was held over 2 days and headlined by the Chemical Brothers on the 1st and Manic Street Preachers on the 2nd. However Daft Punk returned to play in the Clash Arena and as the whole 30,000 crowd attempted to fill the Clash Arena tent the organizers were forced to open it's sides which led to claims that it was really Daft Punk who headlined.

Rockness 3 saw a small increase in the crowd to around 35,000 and Fatboy Slim returned to headline the first day (which was mainly dance orientated). The second day was more rock orientated with Editors supporting the headline act Razorlight. Throughout the two days smaller tents pumped out dance sounds until the early hours with DJ's such as Pete Tong making an appearance.

Imagine a city center crowded with 35,000 revelers and then consider how much trouble and arrests there would be? Well Rockness had such a crowd and there were only about ten arrests. Unfortunately one poor soul died (cause not known) but the whole event was full of happy, friendly and helpful people with no sign of trouble anywhere. I believe there was one fight which was quickly sorted but I personally witnessed a massive number of acts of kindness.

Even more family friendly are the music festivals, Tartan Heart and Wickerman. These events are astounding in that the crowds are ultra friendly and the sight of small children and toddlers playing is not unusual and even babies attend, There are even baby changing facilities! At these festivals the parents are always responsible and the kids are seen wearing ear defenders when they are anywhere near the loud music. Festivals in Scotland are amongst the most friendly in the world.

About the Author

Rockness is over for another year (see Rockness Photos) but if you are planning to visit Inverness see our listings of Inverness hotels at http://www.invernesshotelscotland.com/

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