7 Part Self-Paced Course
Ancestral Songs & Stories
of Scotland
VOLUME 1
A journey into the heart of Scotland's ancestral traditions through song & story
This series is intended to weave a connection between you and the land & traditions of Scotland through music and storytelling.
Whether you have Scottish ancestry or are simply drawn to deepen into the land and culture of Scotland, this is an opportunity to connect with some of the ancestral ways that are still alive and being carried forwards.
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Reconnect with earth-based traditions of Scotland...
In this self-paced course, you’ll explore the relationship between people and land – how it lives through story, song, and ritual. You’ll journey with the landscape as a living being, guided by tradition-bearers, singers, and storytellers of Scotland. Our teachers share from their own heritage and customs, offering context and depth that brings the material alive.
You’ll hear, receive, and have the opportunity to learn some of the old songs of Scotland, sung in the indigenous Gaelic language. Traditional music carries deep beauty and wisdom, which can inspire your own connection to place, voice and expression.
Journey into the Land with Song & Story
You’ll also hear from some of Scotland’s wonderful traditional storytellers, who will take you on a journey through story, myth and lore, awakening remembrance of timeless animistic cultures and ways. These stories draw you into a mythical, archetypal realm, where you can connect with and remember a real relationship with the land that has been interwoven within people’s lives for thousands of years.
May this series touch our hearts and awaken remembrance of our original ways.
Honoring Traditions
Seven Scottish culture-bearers will point us back to our roots through the teaching of old songs and stories.
We honor the path that each teacher has walked to carry the songs, stories, and traditions they so generously share with us. These offerings are rooted in years of practice, relationship, and care.
By joining the course you agree not to replicate, alter or dilute the content. Understanding that in doing so we lose the essence of that which we are wanting to preserve.
In the traditional way, may we receive these songs & stories, integrate them and allow them to live through us, before we consider sharing with others.
What You'll Learn
A note on cultural sensitivity: We welcome the ongoing exploration and conversation around the appropriate ways to receive and honor these teachings. We see this as part of the education this course aims to provide – bringing awareness to the respectful ways to connect and learn from these traditions.
- Stories that echo of old animistic cultures of these islands
- Simple, old/traditional Gaelic songs from Scotland
- Cultural context that these songs & stories arise from
- Basics of the indigenous Gàidhlig language
Meet the Teachers
Through the songs and stories shared by our guest teachers, may the living reality of earth and ancestral belonging be rekindled within you.
Dougie Mackay
Michael Newton
Ruth Kirkpatrick
Maeve Mackinnon
Donald Smith
Alasdair Whyte
Janis Mackay
Who Is This For?
This course has been created for the purpose of connecting those of Scottish heritage, and anyone deeply drawn to these lands, with some threads of ancestral wisdom that are still living in the landscape and the people.
Those who feel drawn to connect with the ancestral traditions of Scotland
Those who wish to learn old songs and hear old stories from these beautiful lands
Those who are inspired to connect with ancestral wisdom and remember the old ways
Course Overview
Many may have forgotten the old ways, though gratefully there are those still keeping the skills and songs alive, and others of us who are relearning them.
May our time together help us to remember our own motherland.
Part 1
Power of the Word and Faery Lore
In the opening workshop, Dougie Mackay invites us into the magic of words and the shimmering realm of faery lore. Opening with a few playful riddles to awaken curiosity, Dougie leads into an old Scottish tale of Norman—a moving story of friendship, healing and sacrifice to bring a beloved companion back from another world. More than just entertainment, the tale unfolds as a gateway into the cultural and symbolic depths of the storytelling tradition, illuminating the wisdom carried in Scottish myth and the enduring power of the spoken word to connect us with mystery, memory, and meaning.
Part 2
Introduction to Scottish Gaelic
Dr. Michael Newton offers a bird’s-eye view of Scottish Gaelic — its history, unique features, and the role it has played for millennia as the vessel of indigenous knowledge in Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. In this engaging lecture, he highlights the most fascinating characteristics of the language and shares practical tips to support English-speaking students on their Gaelic learning journey.
Part 3
Beware the Wee Folk at Beltane!
Ruth Kirkpatrick discusses the importance of knowing and investigating our heritage and traditional practices. She shares with us her personal journey of discovering her own heritage, and tells us a story rooted in the enchanting festival of Beltane.
Part 4
Scottish Gaelic Work Songs
Maeve Mackinnon shares the rich lore of Scottish work songs, revealing how their many themes interweave and how waulking songs once guided the rhythm and unity of communal cloth-making. Blending song and story, she offers a glimpse into a way of life shaped by land, sea, and tradition, and teaches one rare waulking song with its distinctive syncopation, collected by the School of Scottish Studies in the 1950s.
Part 5
Going to the Deeper Well
Donald Smith brings us on a journey into the heart of Scotland through stories about the world where Giants and the Little People coexisted with humans, inspired by George McPherson’s narratives. Through his variation on “the Dreamcatcher” story he explains why some stories may need different, evolved endings, and how modern storytellers explore this topic in their practices.
Part 6
Scottish Gaelic Songs from the Hebridean Isle of Muile
Dr. Alasdair C. Whyte, a specialist in Scottish Gaelic names, teaches a traditional song from the Isle of Muile (Mull) that beautifully weaves together the landscape through its many references to local places and names. Written by Iain ‘Beag’ MacPhaidein, the song is rooted in the life and inspiration of the island itself, and Alasdair shares both the music and the story of its composer with insight and care. More than a song lesson, this class offers a glimpse into the fabric of island life and community, where language & land are inseparable.
Part 7
Coming Home to the Cailleach
Janis Mackay invites us into the enduring presence of the Celtic Earth Mother Goddess — the Cailleach — whose stories are etched into Scotland’s mountains, rivers, and stone. Through traditional lore and personal tales, she explores how retelling and reimagining these myths can rekindle awe, mend our severance from the land, and deepen our sense of belonging to body, earth, and imagination.