Talking with Magaidh Smith

Facebook turns up gems sometimes! A reply to a post in the “Scottish Gaelic Speakers Unite!” group led Gordon Wells to uncover a new (to him) Gaelic treasure trove – the online world of Magaidh Smith. Old classmates from the early days of Ceòlas, they met again this week, this time in Glasgow, when Gordon was able to quiz Magaidh on what she’s been up to in more recent years, including traditional tales, drama, poetry and local history. She’s not been idle!

Clearly, Magaidh’s work chimes nicely with the Guthan nan Eilean orientation towards capturing local voices and providing them with a wider platform. We’ll be watching this space closely!

http://www.magaidhsmith.co.uk/

In the meantime here’s a table of Magaidh’s Soundcloud recordings of stories from local Lewis tradition.

Story	Description	Links
S daor a cheannaich mi fiadhachd	MacAulay men at Loch Langabhat and the landmark Clach Bhess	Magaidh’s blog post Soundcloud
An Seann Fhiadh	Deer hunting at Loch Langabhat on the border of Lewis and Harris in days gone by. Who was the wee wizen man?	Soundcloud
Fir Mhealista	Mealista men who went to gather a cargo of wood for roof timbers. A love story and what is extant of a dream song.	Soundcloud
Sabaist Mhor Wick	Circa 1870 when the herring fishing was booming a large number of fishing boats were in Wick Harbour when a fight broke out. This account includes details of men from Lochs who were in the fracas.	Soundcloud
Ishbal Nighean Dhomhaill Ban	The love Story of Ishbal nighean Dhomhnaill Ban an t-Struim who herded the cattle in Uig and Calum MacAmhlaigh from Harris.	Magaidh’s blog post Soundcloud

STOP PRESS UPDATE – 15/04/19. Island Voices now has a Magaidh Smith page with a full collection of her online recordings, all supplemented with Clilstore transcripts. Check it out!