Composer who starred in Still Game creates book of Burns tunes

Alan A Craig, who is a long-time composer and manager for music at Glasgow Clyde College, recently released 10 Songs of Robert Burns. It comes ahead of Burns Night - on Wednesday, January 25. 

The digital-only book was released in the latter half of 2022 and sees a reimagined version of Burns' traditional tunes. 

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The 45-year-old, from Renfrewshire, said: "I've been playing Burns for 20 plus years, and I have always noticed that the pianist accompaniments are very old and simplistic.

"The problem with this is that the words are of such great value and the accompaniment is drab and uninspiring. 

"It doesn't lend much to the art of soul.

"So, I started to wing the accompaniment and make them more interesting when I was playing Burns live, and I felt it really brought Burns' words to life.

"So I thought I could make a book of these improvisations and share them with other pianists for them to use too."

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Though the book wasn't released until the end of last year, it was completed by January 2022. 

The book contains all Burns' most known hits including A Red, Red Rose, Auld Lang Syne and Ae Fond Kiss. 

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Alan, who played piano in an episode of BBC's Still Game, began to create the project back at the start of the pandemic in 2020, and the process was one of simultaneous triumphs and challenges. 

Once an opening act for Shirley Bassey, Alan said: "Some of the accompaniments burst out with hardly any kind of challenge at all. They just kind of naturally connected themselves, like Scots Wha Hae for example. 

"However, some small parts of the accompaniments could take hours and were incredibly challenging. 

"The moods in Burns' poems shifts a lot too, so one verse could be triumphant and reflective and the next could be moody, so that was a challenge as well."

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Despite the challenges, however, it seems the project was worth it. 

Alan said: "The response to the book has been overwhelmingly positive.

"The most satisfying thing for me is that the feedback of the book is exactly what I hoped to get.

"Even the American Scottish Society have been really excited by the prospect of the book." 

Alan will be performing these original songs on STV on Wednesday and at the haggis anniversary dinner on Saturday, January 21. 

He is "really looking forward" to the performances, and to reach people who love and are immersed in Burns. 

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Alan's love for Burns started from a young age and has only grown. 

He said: "I took an early interest in Burns, but he can be quite daunting. 

"Like everyone the resonance of words just wasn't there for me. 

"But, as I got older, I discovered the beauty of his poetry and his ability to capture the poignancy and loss that every human goes through. 

"Through playing Burns, I was introduced to people that are very passionate about Burns and learned to further understand how good and relevant he still is. 

"We have tendency to think that old things belong to another world but Burns belongs to ours."

The book is available to purchase on MusicaNeo, JW Pepper and Sheet Music Plus. 

To get a hold of a copy, click HERE