With Scottish music as a starting point, and linked by a common interest in the whole range of the musical spectrum, Causeway Trio bring a unique take to Scottish traditional music. Through shades of minimalism, jazz, classical and Eastern European music they create a refreshing sound world within the intimate setting of accordion, piano and guitar which is at once very new and very familiar.
After meeting as young music students in Edinburgh in 2012 and finding an affinity for each other's musical tastes, they spent the next two years playing ceilidhs around central Scotland, while delving further into traditional music and each individual's playing by rehearsing their own compositions. The following summer, they successfully applied for Creative Scotland's Youth Music Initiative project, through which they recorded their debut EP "Causeway Trio" at Castlesound Studios (of Frightened Rabbit, R.E.M. and Karine Polwart fame), which was released in 2014.
The release of the EP was followed that summer by a tour of Scotland taking in the Outer Hebrides, the Highlands and their spiritual hometown of Edinburgh as part of the 2014 Edinburgh International Book Festival.
In 2016 the trio were finalists in the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award 2016, as part of which they spent a weekend with folk duo Nancy Kerr & James Fagan (Best Duo BBC Folk Awards 2003/2011) and played a live set from the Royal Albert Hall broadcast on BBC Radio 2. The trio also appeared at the Fishguard Folk Festival (Wales) in May and as part of noted composer James MacMillan's Cumnock Tryst Festival (Scotland) in October.
In 2017, the trio played in Celtic Connections as part of Ceòl’s Craic and Gaels le Chèile's joint event at the Centre for Contemporary Arts, Glasgow, and after a brief pause in which the trio have been completing their respective degrees, they are excited to bring new music and other ventures to everyone later in 2018!
Pàdruig Morrison - accordion
Pàdruig, who hails from the Isle of North Uist in the Outer Hebrides, was raised speaking Gaelic and playing traditional Scottish music, as well as tinkering with tractors on his croft. His experience in traditional music has seen him play and teach regularly across the UK, and also throughout Europe in Germany, Austria and Holland, while his interest in classical music placed him as a finalist of the 2014 Edinburgh Competition Festival Concerto Competition and has seen him play solo recitals across Scotland. Also a keen scholar, after completing his degree at the University of Edinburgh Pàdruig will be undertaking a Masters degree in ethnomusicology in Ireland.
Peter Thornton - guitar
In his final year of study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, Peter's far-reaching musicianship has led him to lead a dual life as both a guitarist and a trombonist. As a guitarist, he regularly plays across London in ceilidhs as well as in classical and jazz projects, while as a trombonist he has played across the UK and internationally in everything from big bands to consorts and works with leading international brass players (John Kenny, Simon Wills). His interest in early music led him to study in Utrecht, the Netherlands across 2017/2018. It is rumoured that Pete was once a contestant on celebrated Scottish children's TV show Raven, although the tape is mysteriously still to be found...
David Swan - piano
Also in his final year of study at the Guildhall, David's flexibility as a pianist/keyboardist and composer/arranger has see him involved in the worlds of contemporary classical and jazz music, free improvisation, rock and salsa among others. David regularly appears across London jazz clubs and other UK venues in a wide variety of his own and other people's projects, including as a trumpet player/electronics/singer/percussionist. Aside from playing, he is also co-founder of new UK big band Old Fountain Jazz Orchestra and composes for contemporary brass ensembles Dopey Monkey and Aeris Brass. In his spare time, he enjoys making odd noises on synthesisers, putting objects inside pianos and cooking.