DONALD Shaw, the musician and creative producer of Celtic Connections, the folk and traditional music festival which opens in venues across Glasgow today, revels in the multicultural showpiece he helped create.

Given the history of Gaels and Celtic music, it’s no surprise how outward looking it is. 

But even here, in gallus Glasgow, fears grow that musicians could be ‘shut out’ of European culture in the wake of the carnival of politics playing out elsewhere. 

He fears that Scottish musicians will find it much harder to play in Europe after the UK severs the cord with the EU. 

The extra paper work and bureaucracy that may be required to book UK musicians for European tours and festivals could work against them, he said.

Celtic Connections begins tonight with its opening concert, Syne of the Times at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, which will feature more than 120 musicians, including around seventy young musicians.

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It also features the Galician folk orchestra, SonDeSeu – and it is the festival’s links with Europe after Brexit that is a concern for Mr Shaw. 

However, if Brexit happens, he foresees problems both for Scotland’s musicians playing in Europe, and with musicians coming to Scotland.

He said: “My issue is that as a festival we have to be very pro-active in engaging with European artists, not only culturally – because the more we understand about their cultures, the more we learn about our own.

“But also because for folk musicians in Scotland, a lot of them have made their living touring in places like Spain, Italy and France and Germany, all over Europe and Scandinavia as well. 

“And the reality is that whenever Brexit does happen it is only understandable that there will be element of us being shut out by European festivals in those countries.

“They might say: ‘It is a bit of a pain bringing in a British artist, you have to fill in all these forms’. I think that is going to happen whether we like it or not.

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“So we have to counter that by being particularly welcoming, and show our colours – we are an inclusive, international festival and being very pro-European, which we always have been.”

Last year Mr Shaw spoke of how two artists, from Mali and Senegal, had withdrawn themselves from consideration for the festival because of the difficulties with obtaining Home Office visas. 

He said: “It is my concern that after a while, we get forgotten about, because it is a hassle. And that was my point with international visa issues. 

“We found that several high-profile African artists that we had approached to play in Celtic Connections, who initially were very positive about playing, they pulled out, not because they had their visa refused, they just didn’t particularly like the process in front of them. 

“They were being asked so many questions, they said: ‘Look, your country doesn’t really want me to play, I don’t need this, let me know when it’s easier to get into the country.’

“The other side of that, is that Europan festivals and tour promoters will say: ‘It used to be easy, phone the Scottish promoters and bring them in, but now we are not sure we want to do that.’ That is definitely a concern. 

“It is like everything in this Brexit argument, when you start to realise the impact that culture has economically on the UK – and it is extraordinary industry – who knows what the effect will be.”

He added: “I do think it is important that we make an effort as a festival to shout from the rooftops that we want to be recognised and not forgotten about.”

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Mr Shaw said that ticket sales for the festival are “very good”. He added: “There is a great old Gaelic quote that says, ‘The world might end but love and music will always carry on.’ 

“We can look back at times of adversity, it wasn’t so long ago, after the ‘45 [Jacobite rising], that the establishment was repressing people for playing music. 

“We’ve dealt with quite a lot, so I don’t think the change in the politics of borders will stop traditional music surviving.”