The Seahouses Festival are proud to present Alistair Anderson and his six-piece ensemble who will perform his composition 'The Farne Islands' in concert, alongside a programme of traditional Northumbrian music.

"The Farne Islands" is a reflection on those rocky guardians of the Northumbrian coast. The band fuses concertina, fiddles, cello, clarsach (Scottish harp), whistle, oboe and pipes, to create an evocative sound picture of islands shrouded in mist, surrounded by unpredictable seas.

Alistair Anderson has been at the forefront of traditional music for 30 years. Internationally acknowledged as master musician, he has recorded and performed with artists ranging from Kate Bush to the Lindsay String Quartet, from Richard Thompson to John Williams and from the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra to Nigel Kennedy. Without doubt one of the all time greats of Northumbrian music.

Anderson is a treat to watch ... his own involvement and delight in the music are infectious. Beautiful music, played with skill, taste and affection. Folk Roots

Saturday June 20th 2009 at 7.30pm Seahouses Methodist Church, Seahouses Northumberland. Tickets £10, available from Seahouses resource Centre 01665 721868, or on the door. For more information visit www.seahousesfestival.org

The Seahouses Festival 2009 is taking place on Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st June, and this year promises the most exciting line-up so far. The outdoor and indoor music stages will host an eclectic mix of superb performers, such as: Alistair Anderson, Martin Stephenson (of The Daintees), Maybe Myrtle Tyrtle, The Briganties, Dan Walsh, Land or Sea, Blackthorn, Monkey's Fist, Nick Pride & The Pimptones, The Cornshed Sisters, The Keelers, Kirill Gara, Royal Hunt Of The Sun, The Watchorns, The Fluxes, Lesley Roley, and the Alnwick Pipers.

There is also an environmentally themed Film Festival, showing: 'In Fading Light' (1989); 'Building The Future: Energy' (2007); 'The Lorax' (1972); 'Cul de Sac' (Roman Polanski, 1966); 'Age of Stupid' (2009); 'Silent Sands' (2009); The Tale of Grace Darling (2009)

Other activities include a RockPool Safari exploration event hosted by the AONB team, a food & craft festival, photographic exhibition, workshops and fun and games on the beach. Plus, the Belford Players perform 'A Whale of a Tale'; Noel Hodgson - Northumbrian Poet, reads his work; and 'Bee-Natural' - a Bee-keeping talk event.

Two unique art projects are taking place - firstly, local artist Sara Riseborough bravely takes her seascape art into the grand scale when she creates, in situ, a 12 to 15 ft sq painting, on a specially constructed platform adjacent to Harbour Hill music stage.

Secondly, with the assistance of our local shopkeepers, we will temporarily turn Main Street into a public art gallery - using the shop-front windows to create a unique showcase for the impressive work of twelve contemporary Northumbrian landscape artists. Read the Journal news story: here

The Festival and events are almost entirely free of charge. For more information see the website at www.seahousesfestival.org