GAELIC SINGER ALASDAIR WHYTE PRESENTED WITH THE GAELIC AMBASSADOR OF THE YEAR AWARD

Tonight at this year’s Royal National Mod Opening Reception Deputy First Minister John Swinney MSP presented the Gaelic Ambassador of the Year award to Alasdair Whyte. The award celebrates the continued work that Alasdair is doing to progress the Gaelic language and heritage .Alasdair who was brought up on the Inner Hebridean island of Mull and is now based in Glasgow, his principal musical interests are in interpreting traditional Gaelic songs, particularly those from his own area.                                                                                                                                Alasdair was awarded a Ph.D in Celtic and Gaelic by the University of Glasgow for his research on the place-names and history of the island of Mull, he was also awarded a Lord Kelvin Adam Smith Research Fellowship at the University of Glasgow with the aim of publishing the first volume of the Survey of Scottish Place-Names to cover an area within the Gàidhealtachd (Gaelic-speaking area) of Scotland.

He is also known as a  composer of original music and song, particularly in Gaelic,                                                 Alasdair won the men’s gold medal at the Royal National Mòd in 2006 aged 19 and released his debut album “Las” with Watercolour Music in 2012: