Liza Mulholland

Liza was born and brought up in Inverness in the Highlands of Scotland, where she learned piano from the age of four. After studying Scottish History and Sociology at the University of Glasgow, she went on to work as a musician, playing in the city's piano bars and as keyboard player / accordionist with folk bands in the mid 1990s. On returning north to Inverness she founded her independent production company, Metagama Productions Ltd, within which she has devised and produced quality and award-winning / shortlisted TV and radio arts documentaries for BBC Scotland.

Taking time out from Metagama in 2004, she set up and managed, with husband Bruce MacGregor, their new business at his parents' Bogbain Farm, near Inverness. After renovating old steadings and building a new wing, they established a music and events venue, along with outdoor activities, farm shop, art studio, café and accordion museum. Here they started weekly folk sessions, regular gigs, concerts, food and drinks festivals, and in 2009 their Northern Roots Festival.

Another side-project of Bruce and Liza's was Blazin' In Beauly, a week-long fiddle school they started in 2001. Established in the village of Beauly near Inverness, the music school attracted over one hundred students annually and quickly went on to be multi-award winning at the Scots Trad Folk Awards. Taught by the members of Blazin' Fiddles and acclaimed international guest tutors, participants were immersed for a week in the traditional music and culture of the Highlands.

Throughout these many projects, Liza continued to play and write music, as well as perform and record with Bruce and other musicians. With time at a premium, particularly after the birth of their son, it was only later when she returned to full-time music in 2012 that she was able to fulfil her long-held desires to record her own songs and devote more time to writing. In 2016 she released her debut solo, Fine 'n' Rosy, and in July 2018 published Inside Folk, Volume 1: Notes from a Scottish musician's year, the first instalment in her Inside Folk book series. Further information on these releases and other related projects can be found on the on the Music and Books pages.

Collaboration is what Liza enjoys most and she has worked, performed and recorded with numerous writers, musicians and artistes on many diverse projects, including Stand and Stare for Celtic Connections 2017. Her original music has been used as soundtrack for a number of short films and she is currently Musical Director on the multi-artform project, Elphen Chronicles, of which more detail can be found here. She continues to play and record, both solo and with her band Dorec-a-belle and other artistes, tutors music with Fèis Rois and other Fèisean, in schools and on many wide-ranging projects with young people and adults. Liza lives in Inverness with her son and two cats.

ABOUT - Liza Mulholland