Daniel Gray (left), author of the acclaimed Homage To Caledonia, has teamed up with classical guitarist, Jonathan Prag and the two have devised a format in which to perform the thrilling and stirring tale of the Scots men and women who travelled to Spain to fight against Franco in the Spanish Civil War.
Daniel’s book, around which the STV two-part series was based, is about the extraordinary role of Scottish people in the International Brigades.
In this powerful live performance, Gray’s compellingly told stories and the stunning music of Spain from guitarist Jonathan Prag combine to evoke the atmosphere and tell an extraordinary tale. It is one of sacrifice in battle, sheer belief and drinking too much local vino.
The show will alternate story and music so that as the piece unfolds, stark facts and heroic deeds are echoed in the music of Spain and in the guitar's rendition of the songs the Brigaders used to sing around their fires at night and as they marched. As well as learning more about this unprecedented time in history, the audience will be thrilled, amused and fascinated, enriched and beguiled by the skill of the two performers.
About the two performers
Jonathan Prag trained as an actor, studying drama at Bristol University and working as an actor/musician in various professional theatre companies with whom he toured in Canada, Poland, France and the UK before deciding to leave the theatre and devote himself to the classical guitar. He studied with Adrian Neville in Southampton and with international classical guitarist, Carlos Bonell, in London (with whom he toured in a guitar and poetry show based on the life and writing of the Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca).
Jonathan performs solo classical guitar concerts regularly at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe but always enjoys collaborations. In 1994, he played guitar as accompanist to the legendary Eartha Kitt in her one-woman show: Yes, which played at the Edinburgh Fringe and the Liverpool Everyman.
In 2007 he performed with the Orchestra of St John’s, Smith Square in the Grange Park Opera production of Verdi’s Falstaff. He is a member of chamber music group, The Ruskin Ensemble, appearing with them at the Brighton Festival, the Tunbridge Wells Festival, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Rural Touring Schemes in Nottinghamshire, Sussex, Devon, Scotland and Wales and Music Societies throughout the British Isles.
Outreach work is an important part of his experience as a musician and he works for the charity Music in Hospitals and has worked on the outreach projects of the City of London Sinfonia and taken part in schools workshops throughout the UK.
Jonathan performs solo classical guitar concerts regularly at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe but always enjoys collaborations. In 1994, he played guitar as accompanist to the legendary Eartha Kitt in her one-woman show: Yes, which played at the Edinburgh Fringe and the Liverpool Everyman.
In 2007 he performed with the Orchestra of St John’s, Smith Square in the Grange Park Opera production of Verdi’s Falstaff. He is a member of chamber music group, The Ruskin Ensemble, appearing with them at the Brighton Festival, the Tunbridge Wells Festival, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Rural Touring Schemes in Nottinghamshire, Sussex, Devon, Scotland and Wales and Music Societies throughout the British Isles.
Outreach work is an important part of his experience as a musician and he works for the charity Music in Hospitals and has worked on the outreach projects of the City of London Sinfonia and taken part in schools workshops throughout the UK.
Daniel Gray (left, in performance at the Glasgow Book Festival, Aye Write, in 2009) is a writer and researcher. As well as being the author of Homage to Caledonia: Scotland and the Spanish Civil War, Daniel is a 2003 Politics and History graduate of Newcastle University. His first book, The Historical Dictionary of Marxism, was published in 2007. He is yet to sell the film rights. He has worked as a researcher, contributor and writer on BBC radio and on STV's mini-series The Scots Who Fought Franco. He has also written on football for When Saturday Comes and Fly Me To The Moon, the fanzine of his beloved Middlesbrough FC, and is a book reviewer for History Scotland and The Skinny. He writes for the The Leither and Scottish Labour Review, and is currently working on a travel book based around lower division Scottish football, entitled Stramash: a Ramble Through Scotland’s Small Towns and Teams. He is proud to be an adopted Leither. In 2009 alone, he addressed 32 audiences on the subject of his book Homage To Caledonia. Here's some feedback:
"It was fascinating to hear about those from Scotland who went to fight in the Spanish Civil War - a piece of history now often overlooked, which still has incredible resonance for our times." Susan Garnsworthy, Director, Dumfries and Galloway Arts Association
“We got great feedback from the audience. A hard act to follow!” Historical Association, Glasgow.
“Illuminating and thought provoking.” Bill Butler MSP
“A superb session…the panel enlightened and engaged…Daniel Gray argued passionately for the "forgotten heroes”… Fully sold out, this was a truly remarkable event.” Herald review of Daniel Gray’s event at Glasgow’s annual Literature and Book Festival, Aye Write, 2009
“He’s a born storyteller. He held the audience spellbound and the story itself is full of inspiring heroism. The event was packed solid and when he finished was a roar of appreciation.” Frances Clarke, audience member at the Daniel Gray event at the 2009 Edinburgh Book Festival
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