Open Air stage on Saturday evening
It's reciprocal: the Tønder Festival audience loves them, and they love the Tønder audience right back.
Tønder Festival means something special to the Scottish folk rock band Skerryvore, who first connected with Danish listeners right here at Tønder Festival.
From 2011 and on, Skerryvore have played at our festival seven times, most recently in 2024. Now they're back and it's in a prime time spot: they are playing the final slot on the Open Air stage on Saturday evening.
Skerryvore formed in 2004, when brothers Daniel (accordion) and Martin Gillespie (accordion, bagpipes), joined up with drummer Fraser West and singer Alec Dalglish. The other musicians are Craig Espie (violin), Scott Wood (bagpipes, flute), Jodie Bremaneson (bass) and Alan Scobie (keyboards). Their career has taken them round the world, won them numerous prizes, and they have made nine albums.
It's not wrong to say that Skerryvore inherited the crown as Scotland's leading folk rock band after Runrig retired in 2018. This eight-piece band build on the same foundations, the music traditions of the Scottish Highlands and Islands. But Skerryvore mine other influences, too: they draw on cajun, country and rock in various guises.
The band's latest album Skerryvore XX – Live at Floors Castle (2025), recorded live at the historic Floors Castle in the Scottish Borders, is an anniversary project to mark the band's twentieth year. The album's 15 tracks illustrate their progress from their Scots roots to their current global status, and involves guests such as Nathan Carter and The Eves and a grandiose finale with The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Pipes and Drums.
