HebCelt and Lews Castle College UHI showed they are in harmony this week with a continuing partnership at the award-winning festival.

The college, part of the University of the Highlands and Islands, sponsored the acoustic stage for the third year in succession.

With HebCelt, it also organised a competition for past and present students of the university’s music programmes, which was won by Jamie MacDonald and Christian Gamauf.

Fiddler Jamie, from Tiree, and piper Christian, from Loipersbach in rural Austria, are BA Applied Music degree graduates. They met six years ago while studying in Benbecula and began playing together at local concerts.

Last year they released their debut album, ‘The Pipe Slang’, which was longlisted for Album of the Year at the Scots Trad Awards 2018. Jamie is also a member of folk band Eabhal, who were named Hands Up For Trad, Battle of the Folk Bands 2018 winners, and are also appearing at HebCelt.

A number of other college alumni are appearing at HebCelt this week, including Alasdair Turner (Tide Lines), Euan Smillie (Elephant Sessions), Hamish Hepburn (Eabhal), James Mackenzie (Breabach) and Mairi Therese Gilfedder (Beinn Lee)

HebCelt 2019 was held from 17-20 July. It featured almost 30 international acts in the main arena programme, as well as events in various venues in Lewis and Harris.