One of Scotland’s leading harpers, Karen Marshalsay released her album of traditional harp music and original compositions, The Road to Kennacraig in July 2019 to enthusiastic reviews including a four-star appraisal from The Scotsman.

Karen is a master of all three Scottish harps – the warm sounding modern gut harp,  the clear ringing wire-strung clarsach and the baroque bray harp with its buzzing sitar-like effect – and she features each of them in her solo concerts.

With a particular interest in playing pipe music on the harp, Karen has worked with Allan MacDonald, of the famous Glenuig piping brothers, featuring in his acclaimed pibroch concerts, including the Edinburgh International Festival’s Herald Angel Award-winning From Battle Lines to Bar Lines series in 2004. She also featured in the National Piping Centre’s Ceòl na Piòba concert in 2013 and has worked with African, Paraguayan and Indian musicians on multi-cultural projects including Yatra, which premiered at the Edinburgh Mela in 2008.  More recently Karen has guested with the Russian String Orchestra, playing her own compositions, during the Edinburgh Festival in 2018 and 2019.

Karen’s passion for pipe music is highlighted in the pibroch, The Battle of the Bridge of Perth (Ceann Drochaid Pheairt) with its phrasing closely resembling piping techniques, and her compositional talent materialises on tunes written for people and places, including Helen’s Farewell, Isabel Gow’s Welcome to Edinburgh and The Road to Kennacraig itself.

The Road to Kennacraig was produced at Temple Studios by Robin Morton, a founder member of internationally regarded folk band Boys of the Lough and one of traditional music’s top producers, with credits including Dick Gaughan’s classic Handful of Earth, Alison Kinnaird’s seminal The Harp Key and albums of Gaelic singing by Flora MacNeil and Christine Primrose.

As well as appearing in solo concerts, Karen is currently a member of the Irish folk music legend, singer, flute and whistle master Cathal McConnell’s trio. She has also produced new works for Celtic Connections’ New Voices series, Hands up for Trad’s Distil showcase concerts, and Drake Music Scotland, and she was Composer in Residence with Harps North West in 2016.