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The Sound of Scotland's Traditions

The Sound of Scotland's Traditions

Tobar an Dualchais/Kist o Riches is Scotland’s online resource dedicated to the presentation and promotion of audio recordings of Scotland’s cultural heritage. Its principal content is songs, music, history, poetry, traditions and stories, recorded from the 1930s onwards. The website contains material from three archives: The School of Scottish Studies, The Canna Collection and BBC Radio nan Gàidheal and there are recordings in Gaelic, Scots and English. Tobar an Dualchais/Kist o Riches’ principal aim is to ensure that Scotland’s rich oral heritage is safeguarded and made widely available for present and future generations.

The People Behind the Collections

The recordings on this website would not exist without the willingness of thousands of individuals to extol their local knowledge and share their oral traditions. They would also not be available without those pioneers who travelled the length and breadth of Scotland, and beyond, to record them. Many of the earlier recordings were made in people’s homes, with fieldworkers often carrying heavy recording equipment to reach them. We have selected some of the most noteworthy people associated with the collections so you can learn a bit more about their lives as well as listening to their recordings. We will be adding more profiles each month so please remember to re-visit these pages.

Featured Fieldworkers
Major Contributors
Newly added contributors

Projects & other Information

Alongside our work developing the website, we often work in collaboration with other organisations and individuals to develop projects, events, and courses for the benefit of the wider user community. Some examples of these projects are given below.

Re-use of material
Short Courses
Artist in Residence

Gaelic Resources for Schools

Gaelic Resources for Schools

Tobar an Dualchais has created a range of Gaelic-medium resources for educators at pre-school, primary and secondary levels. These resources will assist in making the wonderful range of material on the website more easily accessible to teachers and students. We recognise the importance of young Gaelic speakers being able to connect with the rich cultural heritage associated with the language and the website is an excellent resource to enable this. Other resources will be added to the Schools section as they are developed.

Aiseag - Foghlam Cultarail
Dualchas sa Choimhearsnachd
SING WITH US

Latest Blog Posts

Exciting New Opportunity for Young Creatives to Work in Gaelic and Scots

A new project Sgrìobh | Scrieve set up in partnership with Eden Court and Tobar an Dualchais/Kist o Riches (TAD/KOR) will give two young emerging artists the opportunity to create their own music and poetry in Gaelic and Scots. The project will allocate time for the artists to explore the TAD/KOR website in depth as inspiration for creating new work, which they will perform at Eden Court’s Under Canvas 2024.
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Local Stars Shine at Uist Concert

A host of local talent from Uist performed at the ‘Dualchas Uibhist’ concert, recently held in St Peter’s Hall in South Uist in what proved to be a memorable evening. The concert was organised by Ceòlas and Tobar an Dualchais and brought together musicians, singers, dancers, and pupils from Sgoil Dhalabroig. Drawing inspiration from local sources, and especially those available on the Tobar an Dualchais website, the concert was full of community spirit, Gaelic, heritage and warmth.
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Spiritual tradition of Gàidhealtachd’s female bards

The Gàidhealtachd is full of outstanding female bards and singers, and this has been the case throughout history. Names including as Sìleas na Ceapaich (c1660-1729), Mary MacDonald (1789-1872) and Màiri Mhòr nan Òran (1821-1898) continue to live on as some of the most impressive and prolific Gaelic bards.
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