THE band has been going for 17 years, but I didn’t come across Blazin’ Fiddles until this summer, when I was tuning my car radio and chanced upon one of the most beautiful tracks I’d ever heard – Gamekeeper’s Cottage.

It turned out that I ought to have known about Blazin’ Fiddles. They’ve made seven albums, received heaps of awards and have been justly acclaimed for the way they bring together different strands of fiddle playing from Scotland’s Highlands and Islands into an irresistible package.

With four (or, at one point, five) fiddles, a guitar and a keyboard, the band treated the audience to nearly two hours of virtuoso playing which was by turns rousing and beautiful.

Bruce MacGregor, the only player to be the band for all those 17 years, described them during this show as an “18th century covers band”.

Many of their tunes really do go back that far, but they segue easily into modern compositions – such as that gorgeous Gamekeeper’s Cottage, written by band member Jenna Reid.

Kristan Harvey and Rua Macmillan make up the rest of the core fiddle players, with Anna Massie on guitar and fiddle and Angus Lyon on piano. In the shed-like auditorium of Forest Arts, they conjured the atmosphere of a stonkingly good ceilidh, albeit one with wistful moments too.

The band’s name is not just a pun on Mel Brooks’ Blazing Saddles but a reference to the times in the 19th century when the church had fiddles burned in some parts of Scotland. You can see why the church was so rattled. Surely having this much fun has to be a sin.