Musicians from a disabled community in Aberdeen are hoping to strike the right note with the public this weekend by hosting their first music festival.
Instrumentalists, singers and artists from Newton Dee have been holding a free folk club every two months for the past two years in an effort to further integrate the village, which is home to almost 100 adults with learning disabilities and other needs, into the wider population.
This weekend’s gathering has been designed to further cement this bond and welcome even more people into the community with a range of outdoor performances, music workshops, and craft stalls celebrating music and the Newton Dee way of life.
Alan Brown, a staff member at the village, said: “The folk club has always had a good turn out, and the atmosphere we’ve managed to create there purely from a love for music is truly wonderful.
“We thought that since it’s gone so well and brought so many new people into the community that it was time to step it up.
“We found that by opening our store, cafe, bakery and gift shop to the public as a way of bringing people into the community, and into normal, daily contact with our villagers, it really helped to integrate these two groups.
“This folk club and folk festival is really a continuation of this common interest, and we hope to see as many people come along as possible.”
The festival starts tonight at 7.30pm and runs until 10pm, with more events taking place tomorrow from 1pm-10.30pm.
The event will be completely free except for tomorrow’s evening concert, which will cost £10 a ticket.
For more information visit www.newtondee.co.uk.