Malcolm Bushby

Born in Tasmania, Australia with a strong Scottish heritage, Malcolm grew up listening to the
traditional music of Scotland and Ireland through his parents’ records and CD collection and
their live performances.

At the age of 13 he toured Scotland with the Tasmanian Celtic band Tantallon and drew critical
acclaim for his mature playing at such a young age. He appeared at numerous festivals around
Australia and performed as support act for UK touring folk artists in Tasmania.

After moving to Newcastle upon Tyne in 2006 at the age of 16, Malcolm joined the North East’s young folk ensemble, Folkestra, under the direction of Kathryn Tickell. With them he performed at venues around the UK including the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, toured Spain, and worked with artists such as Kathryn Tickell and her band, Aidan O’Rourke, Catriona McDonald and Sting.

Malcolm also joined SNAP 07, a music group from the North Pennines, Sweden and Brittany, and with them recorded a CD and performed at venues across Sweden, England and France. He has studied with notable fiddle players such as Stewart Hardy, Aidan O’Rourke, Shona Mooney (BBC Radio Scotland Young Musician of the Year, 2006) and Sophy Ball.

Malcolm is considered one of the finest young fiddle players currently on the Scottish and UK
folk scene. His playing exhibits maturity beyond his years and is widely regarded as being of
outstanding brilliance. He has the respect of many prominent musicians.

He won the Open Fiddle Class at The Newcastleton Traditional Festival Competitions in July 2011.

In 2009 –10 Malcolm studied for the Diploma in Scottish Traditional Music and Gaelic at the
Benbecula campus of Lews Castle College on the Isle of Benbecula in the Western Isles, Scotland. Whilst there he worked and performed with Anna Wendy Stevenson (internationally renowned fiddle player and tutor), Iain MacDonald (ex Battlefield Band), Rick Taylor (Peatbog Faeries), Gaelic singer Kathleen McInnes and many more. Whilst at the college he featured on the BBC Alba programme Itrad which showcased young musicians from across Scotland.

In 2010, along with young Northumbrian piper and singerJessica Lamb, Malcolm was a semifinalist in the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Awards.

Malcolm is currently playing with Scottish based singer Darcy DaSilva and the Darcy DaSilva Band. He also performs with well known Scottish singer/guitarist Norman Stewar

Malcolm's Website