Martyn Bennett
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Martyn Bennett (17 February 1971 – 30 January 2005) was a Canadian-Scottish musician who was influential in the evolution of modern
Celtic fusion Celtic fusion is an umbrella term for any modern music which incorporates influences considered "Celtic", or Celtic music which incorporates modern music. It is a syncretic musical tradition which borrows freely from the perceived "Celtic" music ...
, a blending of traditional
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...
and modern music. He was a piper, violinist, composer and producer. Diagnosis of serious illness at the age of thirty curtailed his live performances, although he completed a further two albums in the studio. He died from cancer in 2005, fifteen months after the release of his fifth album ''
Grit Grit, Grits, or Gritty may refer to: Food * Grit (grain), bran, chaff, mill-dust or coarse oatmeal * Grits, a corn-based food common in the Southern United States Minerals * Grit, winter pavement-treatment minerals deployed in grit bins * G ...
''.


Early life

He was born Martyn Bennett-Knight in
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. The city spans and is the easternmost city in North Ame ...
, Canada. His father, Ian Knight, was a Welsh geologist and musician. His mother was Margaret Bennett, a singer and folklorist who was born on Skye. His grandfather, George Bennett, was also an enthusiastic piper. Martyn Bennett spent the first five years of his life in the
Codroy Valley The Codroy Valley is a valley in the southwestern part of the island of Newfoundland in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Codroy Valley is a glacial valley formed in the Anguille Mountains, a sub-range of the Long Range ...
, where
Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...
and traditional music were parts of the local culture. The family then moved to
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
. However, his parents separated when he was six and his mother moved back to Scotland, taking him with her. They stayed briefly on
Mull Mull may refer to: Places *Isle of Mull, a Scottish island in the Inner Hebrides ** Sound of Mull, between the Isle of Mull and the rest of Scotland * Mount Mull, Antarctica * Mull Hill, Isle of Man * Mull, Arkansas, a place along Arkansas Highwa ...
, before moving to
Kingussie Kingussie ( ; ) is a small town in the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland council area of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically in Inverness-shire, it lies beside the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 road, although the old route of ...
, where he had his first lessons in playing the
Great Highland bagpipe The great Highland bagpipe ( 'the great pipe') is a type of bagpipe native to Scotland, and the Scottish analogue to the great Irish warpipes. It has acquired widespread recognition through its usage in the British Armed Forces, British mili ...
from David Taylor, who was also his history teacher. By the age of twelve he was winning junior piping competitions.


Education

At the age of fifteen he moved to Edinburgh with his mother. He won a place at the
City of Edinburgh Music School The City of Edinburgh Music School (TCoEMS) is a state-maintained music school in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded as the Lothian Specialist Music School in 1980, it changed its name in 1996 when Lothian Regional Council was dissolved into four sep ...
, the first traditional musician to do so. During the three years that he studied there he also learned piano and violin. In 1990 he began violin and piano studies at the
Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama () is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and film in Glasgow, Scotland. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools. Founde ...
(RSAMD) in Glasgow, where he met Kirsten Thomson, a piano student in the year above him, who joined him in a band and later became his wife. During the final year of his studies he was diagnosed with testicular cancer, but he recovered after six months of treatment and graduated in 1993.


Career

Bennett was influenced by the early 1990s dance music scene and regularly attended clubs. He worked with Martin Swan's
Mouth Music Mouth Music is a Scottish-inspired musical project founded in 1988, whose combination of traditional Gaelic songs and music with contemporary instrumental and technological settings led them to international fame in the early 1990s. Mouth Musi ...
project, combining traditional Gaelic songs and music with contemporary instruments. He made his debut at the
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall Glasgow Royal Concert Hall is a concert and arts venue located in Glasgow, Scotland. It is owned by Glasgow City Council and operated by Glasgow Life, an agency of Glasgow City Council, which also runs Glasgow's City Halls and Old Fruitmarket ...
on 14 January 1994 supporting them. Bennett was a teenager when Swan had first spotted him playing.He took part in the summer festival of the city of Nantes in historic Brittany (France) in July 1994, perhaps his first concert outside the UK. He released his first album, the eponymous ''
Martyn Bennett Martyn Bennett (17 February 1971 – 30 January 2005) was a Canadian-Scottish musician who was influential in the evolution of modern Celtic fusion, a blending of traditional Celtic music, Celtic and modern music. He was a piper, violinist, com ...
'', in 1995 on Eclectic, a small Edinburgh-based independent label. He had recorded the album in just seven days at Castle Sound studios in
Pencaitland Pencaitland is a village in East Lothian, Scotland, about south-east of Edinburgh, south-west of Haddington, and east of Ormiston. The land where the village lies is said to have been granted by William the Lion to Calum Cormack in 1169, ...
. ''Floret Silva Undique'' uses a poem by
Hamish Henderson (James) Hamish Scott Henderson (11 November 1919 – 9 March 2002) was a Scotland, Scottish poet, songwriter, communist, intellectual and soldier. Henderson was a catalyst for the folk revival in Scotland. He was also an accomplished folk s ...
, who commented "What brave new music". The album had a "dramatic" impact on Scottish music. He provided the live musical score for
David Harrower David Harrower (born 1966) is a Scottish playwright who (as of 2005) lives in Glasgow. Harrower has published over 10 original works, as well as numerous translations and adaptations. Career Harrower's first play, ''Knives in Hens'', which pr ...
's play ''Knives in Hens''. He performed at the party held at Stirling Castle for the European premier of the movie ''
Braveheart ''Braveheart'' is a 1995 American epic film, epic historical drama, historical war drama film directed and produced by Mel Gibson, who portrays Scottish warrior William Wallace in the First War of Scottish Independence against Edward I of Engl ...
'' on 3 September 1995. He was back performing in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in January 1996. After writing scores for stage and television, he went on tour to America, supporting
Wolfstone Wolfstone are a Scottish people, Scottish musical group founded in 1989, who play Celtic rock. Their repertoire consists of both original songs and traditional folk pieces. They have released seven studio albums, the latest, ''Terra Firma (Wol ...
. He played at Edinburgh Hogmanay events in 1995 and 1996. He released ''
Bothy Culture ''Bothy Culture'' is the second studio album by the Scottish Celtic fusion artist Martyn Bennett, released in October 1997 (with a US release date in January 1998) on the Rykodisc label. After winning critical acclaim for his debut album ''Martyn ...
'' in 1998 on the
Rykodisc Rykodisc is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, operating as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance. History Claiming to be the first CD-only independent record label ...
label. One composition ''Hallaig'' takes its name from the poem by the Gaelic bard
Sorley MacLean Sorley MacLean (; 26 October 1911 – 24 November 1996) was a Scottish Gaelic poet, described by the Scottish Poetry Library as "one of the major Scottish poets of the modern era" because of his "mastery of his chosen medium and his engagement ...
, incorporating a sample of MacLean reading the poem. ''Bothy culture'' topped the US college radio charts. The album came close to winning a Mercury Music Prize nomination. He sported dreadlocks, an image that fitted with the musical and cultural boundaries that he was crossing. At times he was characterised as "the techno piper". He played at
T in the Park T in the Park festival was a major Scottish music festival that was held annually from 1994 to 2016. It was named after its main sponsor, Tennents. The event was held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire, until 1996. It then moved to the disused ...
in 1998. Scottish celebrities attended his performance at the
Buddha Bar The Buddha-Bar is a bar, restaurant, and hotel franchise created by French-Romanian restaurateur Raymond Vișan, with its original location having opened in Paris, France in 1996.Anthony D'Andrea, ''Global Nomads: Techno and New Age as Transnat ...
in Paris, ahead of
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
playing Brazil in the opening match of the 1998 World Cup. He was awarded the 1998
Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Award Glenfiddich distillery () is a Speyside single malt Scotch whisky distillery located in the Scottish burgh of Dufftown in Moray, Scotland. Is owned by William Grant & Sons. The name Glenfiddich derives from the Scottish Gaelic ''Gleann Fhiodhaic ...
in the music category. He played at Celtic connections again in 1999. At Edinburgh's
Hogmanay Hogmanay ( , ) is the Scots language, Scots word for the last day of the old year and is synonymous with the celebration of the New Year in the Scottish manner. It is normally followed by further celebration on the morning of New Year's Day (1 ...
celebrations at the millennium, his band Cuillin played at the Castle Esplanade, supporting
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
. In 1999 he moved to Mull, where he met Dundonian musician Martin Low who helped him with his next work. Rykodisc had now become part of
Palm Pictures Palm Pictures is an American entertainment company owned and run by Chris Blackwell. Palm Pictures produces, acquires, and distributes music and film projects with a particular focus on the DVD-Video format. Palm places an emphasis on such proj ...
. In 2000 he released the album '' Hardland'' on his own Cuillin label. He appeared at the
Cambridge Folk Festival The Cambridge Folk Festival is an annual music festival, established in 1965, held in the grounds of Cherry Hinton Hall in Cherry Hinton, one of the villages subsumed by the city of Cambridge, England. The festival is known for its eclectic mix ...
in 2000, giving an electrifying performance. A reviewer wrote in ''
Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in Hoodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Mojo'' (2017 film), a 2017 Indian Kannada drama film written and directed by Sreesha Belakvaadi * '' ...
'' that "Scots music has never sounded like this before. No music has ever sounded like this before. Half the audience fled in fear of their lives." Bennett sold a thousand CDs after the set. The City of Edinburgh Music School commissioned him to write '' Mackay's Memoirs'' for the school's centenary in 1999. It was a piece for chamber orchestra featuring Great Highland bagpipes and harp. ''Mackay's Memoirs'' was played at the celebrations that took place in Princes Street Gardens, alongside the opening of the new
Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( ; ) is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. It is located in the Holyrood, Edinburgh, Holyrood area of Edinburgh, and is frequently referred to by the metonym 'Holyrood'. ...
in July 1999 and at the 2004
Mòd A mòd is a festival of Scottish Gaelic song, arts and culture. Historically, the Gaelic word ''mòd'' (), which came from Old Norse ''mót'', refers to a Viking Age '' Thing'' or a similar kind of assembly. There are both local mòds, and an an ...
He was diagnosed with
Hodgkin's lymphoma Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a type of lymphoma in which cancer originates from a specific type of white blood cell called lymphocytes, where multinucleated Reed–Sternberg cells (RS cells) are present in the lymph nodes. The condition was named a ...
in November 2000. Over the following eight months he received both chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In the following years his treatments would also include several major operations. After this diagnosis he recorded his fourth album ''
Glen Lyon Glen Lyon () is a glen in the Perth and Kinross region of Scotland. It is the longest enclosed glen in Scotland and runs for from Loch Lyon in the west to the village of Fortingall in the east. This glen was also known as ''An Crom Ghleann' ...
'' which was first released on the Foot Stomping' label in 2002. It was a cycle of Gaelic songs, his mother singing and he accompanying her. Woven into this is a sample of Peter Stewart, his great-great-grandfather singing in 1910, taken from a wax cylinder recording. He married Kirsten in February 2002. Following a relapse and an unexpected
splenectomy A splenectomy is the surgical procedure that partially or completely removes the spleen. The spleen is an important organ in regard to immunological function due to its ability to efficiently destroy encapsulated bacteria. Therefore, removal of ...
in January of that year, Bennett proposed; the ceremony took place in her mother's kitchen. The couple moved back to Mull. Illness left him feeling disconnected from his music and one day, in a fit of rage, he destroyed many of his instruments – pipes, fiddles and whistles. Horrified at what he had done, he was unable to bring himself to speak to anyone for the following two days. The final album that he recorded, ''
Grit Grit, Grits, or Gritty may refer to: Food * Grit (grain), bran, chaff, mill-dust or coarse oatmeal * Grits, a corn-based food common in the Southern United States Minerals * Grit, winter pavement-treatment minerals deployed in grit bins * G ...
'', was released in October 2003 on
Real World Records Real World Records is a British record label specializing in world music. It was founded in 1989 by English musician Peter Gabriel and original members of WOMAD. A majority of the works released on Real World Records feature music recorded at R ...
. It had been recorded while he was ill, and he was unable to play his instruments. He brought together samples of unaccompanied traditional Scottish folk singers, his own bagpipe and fiddle playing, with electronic drum beats. For ''Move'', the opening track, he sampled a recording of traditional singer
Sheila Stewart Sheila Stewart (7 July 1937 – 9 December 2014) was a Scottish traditional singer, storyteller, and author. She inherited a large number of traditional songs from older family members, including her mother Belle Stewart. Biography Born in a ...
performing the ''Moving On Song'', Ewan MacColl's song about travellers; she was delighted that he was taking it to a new audience. His song ''Liberation'' featured
Michael Marra Michael Marra (17 February 1952 – 23 October 2012) was a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician from Dundee, Scotland. Known as the Bard of Dundee, Marra was a solo performer who toured the UK and performed in arts centres, theatres, folk cl ...
narrating an English translation of
psalm 118 Psalm 118 is the 118th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in the English of the King James Version: "O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever." The Book of Psalms is part of the third section of the Ta ...
. The album has been "credited with starting the musical evolution of Celtic fusion". On 10 December 2003
BBC Two Scotland BBC Two Scotland is a Scottish free-to-air television channel owned and operated by BBC Scotland as a variation of the BBC Two network. It was broadcast via digital television and was the sister Scottish channel of BBC One Scotland and Gaelic-l ...
aired an ''ArtWorks Scotland'' documentary titled ''Martyn Bennett: Grit''.


Death and legacy

Bennett died from cancer at the Marie Curie Hospice, Edinburgh on 30 January 2005, aged 33. News of his death spread among those attending the last night of Celtic Connections. The news was held back from the Edinburgh Music School pupils who were recording ''Mackay's Memoirs'' the following day. His funeral was held on Mull. A memorial concert was held at The
Queen's Hall, Edinburgh The Queen's Hall is a performance venue in the Southside, Edinburgh, Scotland. The building opened in 1824 as Hope Park Chapel and reopened as the Queen's Hall in 1979. Hope Park Chapel opened as a chapel of ease within the St Cuthbert's Church, ...
, on 15 April. Around the same time the Martyn Bennett Trust was set up by his family and friends, as a commemorative fund to help young musicians. The 2006 Celtic Connections programme included a Martyn Bennett Day, held on 14 January, with events to celebrate his work. ''Toccata for Small Hands'', written by Bennett for Kirsten, was performed in public for the first time. Greg Lawson was commissioned to score an arrangement of ''Liberation''. Cuillin Music reformed to perform at the event. After Bennett's death, the band preferred to rework material instead of reproducing it. In June 2006, a book ''It's Not the Time You Have ...'' was launched which contained recollections of Bennett, compiled by his mother. On 27 October 2007 an event was held at The Queen's Hall. This event was organised by the Martyn Bennett Trust, with musicians invited to workshops during the day, finishing with a concert in the evening. In 2008 Margaret Bennett released a CD single, ''Love and Loss'', with three tracks where Bennett played to accompany his mother's singing; two of the tracks were previously unreleased. Mr McFall's Chamber, a string quartet from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, toured with a tribute show ''Aye: An Affirmation of Martyn Bennett'', performing pieces that were inspired by Bennett and his work. The tour began in Perth on 18 March and ended on 29 March in Findhorn. A further performance was part of the 2008
Edinburgh International Festival The Edinburgh International Festival is an annual arts festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, spread over the final three weeks in August. Notable figures from the international world of music (especially european classical music, classical music) and ...
. In March 2012 an anthology was released on the Long Tale Recordings label, entitled ''Aye''. The album consisted of remastered tracks and some new material, compiled by the Martyn Bennett Trust. In 2013
Creative Scotland Creative Scotland ( ; ) is the development body for the arts and creative industries in Scotland. Based in Edinburgh, it is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government The Scottish Government (, ) is the execut ...
announced they would fund an annual prize for new music composition, named in his honour. A stage show, ''Grit: The Martyn Bennett Story'', was created as part of the
2014 Commonwealth Games The 2014 Commonwealth Games (), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014 (; ), were an international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Commonwealth Games as governed by the Commonwea ...
cultural programme. Conceived by
Cora Bissett Cora Bissett (born 1974) is a Scottish theatre director, playwright, actor and musician. As a director she has created ''Amada'', ''Roadkill'', ''Grit: The Martyn Bennett Story'', ''Glasgow Girls'' and ''Room''. As an actor she had regular appe ...
, it was written by Kieran Hurley. Bisset directed the show, having worked in close collaboration with his friends and family to create the show. It premiered at the Tramway in Glasgow in May 2014, then was performed in Mull. It was named event of the year at the 2014
Scots Trad Music Awards The Scots Trad Music Awards or Na Trads were founded in 2003 by Simon Thoumire to celebrate Scotland's traditional music in all its forms and create a high profile opportunity to bring the music and music industry into the spotlight of media an ...
. Real World Records label re-released ''Grit'' to coincide with the stage show. Greg Lawson, who had been friends with Bennett and who scored ''Liberation'' for a performance at Celtic Connections in 2006, went on to recreate ''Grit'' with an orchestral score for live performance. Lawson spent more than a year working on ''Nae Regrets'', working out how an orchestra might recreate Bennett's precise arrangements. He assembled eighty musicians to form the Grit orchestra. On 15 January 2015, just over a decade after Bennett's death, Lawson conducted the Grit orchestra at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, to perform the Opening Concert at
Celtic Connections The Celtic Connections festival started in 1994 in Glasgow, Scotland, and has since been held every January. Featuring over 300 concerts, ceilidhs, talks, free events, late night sessions and workshops, the festival focuses on the roots of trad ...
. The concert was later named as the event of the year at the 2015 Trad awards. A further performance was given on 23 August 2016 at the Edinburgh Playhouse as part of the 2016 Edinburgh International Festival. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Bothy Culture, and the 25th anniversary of the Celtic Connections festival, Lawson and the orchestra, now containing some 100 traditional folk, classical and jazz musicians, performed the show Bothy Culture and Beyond at the SSE Hydro, Glasgow on 27 January 2018.


Discography

* ''
Martyn Bennett Martyn Bennett (17 February 1971 – 30 January 2005) was a Canadian-Scottish musician who was influential in the evolution of modern Celtic fusion, a blending of traditional Celtic music, Celtic and modern music. He was a piper, violinist, com ...
'' (1995) * ''
Bothy Culture ''Bothy Culture'' is the second studio album by the Scottish Celtic fusion artist Martyn Bennett, released in October 1997 (with a US release date in January 1998) on the Rykodisc label. After winning critical acclaim for his debut album ''Martyn ...
'' (1997) * '' Hardland'' (with Martin Low) (2000) * ''Glen Lyon'' (with his mother, Margaret Bennett, on vocals) (2002) * ''
Grit Grit, Grits, or Gritty may refer to: Food * Grit (grain), bran, chaff, mill-dust or coarse oatmeal * Grits, a corn-based food common in the Southern United States Minerals * Grit, winter pavement-treatment minerals deployed in grit bins * G ...
'' (2003) * '' Mackay's Memoirs'' (performed by
City of Edinburgh Music School The City of Edinburgh Music School (TCoEMS) is a state-maintained music school in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded as the Lothian Specialist Music School in 1980, it changed its name in 1996 when Lothian Regional Council was dissolved into four sep ...
) (2005) * '' Love and Loss'' (with his mother, Margaret Bennett, and Cameron Drummond) (2008)


Compilations

* ''
Aye Aye or AYE may refer to: * Aye (yes), an English affirmative Businesses and organisations * Africa's Young Entrepreneurs, a non-profit organisation in Johannesburg, South Africa * Allegheny Energy (NYSE symbol), an electric utility in Greensburg ...
'' (2012)


References


External links

*
Greg Lawson conducting "Chanter" at the Celtic Connections, 2015, on the BBC
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Martyn 1971 births 2005 deaths Celtic fusion musicians Alumni of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Scottish folk musicians Musicians from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Great Highland bagpipe players Deaths from cancer in Scotland Real World Records artists People educated at Broughton High School, Edinburgh 20th-century Canadian male musicians 20th-century Scottish musicians People from Kingussie Canadian bagpipe players 20th-century British folk musicians 21st-century British folk musicians 21st-century Scottish musicians 20th-century bagpipe players 21st-century bagpipe players