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Gaelic psalm singers from the Borders hit the big screen

Giancarlo RinaldiSouth Scotland reporter
News imageHopscotch A man singing from a hymn book. He has grey, receded hair and glasses and is wearing a purple jumper with a light coloured shirt underneath. He is standing in front of a microphoneHopscotch
The psalm singing group started after a memorial service to Rob MacNeacail's father

A group of Gaelic psalm singers from the Borders are set to hit the big screen.

A new documentary following the story of Rob MacNeacail on a musical journey starting in Carlops is set to premiere at the Glasgow Film Festival on Sunday.

The idea to establish the group came from a memorial service for his father - the renowned poet Aonghas Dubh MacNeacail who died in 2022 - when he decided that Gaelic psalms should be part of proceedings.

Since then the group has met regularly in the Borders and are part of the new documentary - Psalms of the People - filmed by Jack Archer.

News imageHopscotch A group of people singing hymns. There are four of them in total and they are seated and reading from a sheet of paper. The man closest to the camera has grey hair and glasses and a grey jumper. Next to him is a grey-haired woman in a black top, then a grey-haired woman with glasses and a striped jumper and finally a man with black hair and a beard. They are in a church setting.Hopscotch
Members of the group will feature in the documentary which will premiere on Sunday

Rob has worked with Jack in the past but they were keen to come up with ideas for a Gaelic documentary.

They were actually looking at other areas before they turned their attentions to the Borders.

"I had set up the Carlops psalm group and it was going from strength to strength," Rob explained.

"Jack came and filmed a couple of times to get a feel for it, then we decided to make something around this."

News imageHopscotch A man with a beard and a brown beanie hat in a grey hoodie holds a large microphone in the air while out in a rugged Scottish landscapeHopscotch
The documentary follows Rob from the Borders across Scotland and Ireland

He said it had been a lot of work but he was happy with the finished documentary.

"I'm really delighted with the outcome," he said.

"It was a challenge at times, given the subject matter, but I feel we've told a story that celebrates the Gaelic psalms with the respect they are due, whilst honouring my dad and his relationship with the tradition.

"It was quite an intense way to process the loss of a father, but a very rewarding one, and I feel very privileged to have been able to do so in this way."

He said he had been surprised at the popularity of singing in Gaelic in an area not usually associated with the language but perhaps should not have been.

News imageHopscotch A man in a beard and glasses leads five other people - four women and a man - in song. They look like there is an organ behind them and they are all holding sheets of paper apart from the man leading them who appears to be playing some kind of musical instrument, a wooden box on his knees.Hopscotch
Rob said the psalms were "incredibly accessible and inclusive"

"The psalms themselves are incredibly accessible and inclusive," he explained.

"I work in a residential community for adults with learning difficulties in the Borders, and the residents love participating when I precent [lead the singing] at community concerts.

"I also think Gaelic is becoming increasingly appealing all over Scotland, as people learn about the benefits of bilingualism and the abundance of cultural riches the language opens up."

He said the people of Carlops were an "amazing community" and had got to know people from other villages through their songs.

He admits he is a little nervous about the film premiere.

"From my perspective, it's mildly terrifying, as I hadn't necessarily imagined myself in front of the camera before this," he said.

"The film has existed in a relatively safe vacuum up until now, but I'm very proud of what we've done, and that's what's important to me

"What I'm looking forward to most is seeing the other Carlopians on the big screen – I think you get a really good sense of the people and the place that my family have loved since we moved here 30 years ago."