AS Celtic Connections reached a finale last night, it's a good bet where you could find every agent, promoter and talent-spotter in Scotland.
Click here to watch the six finalists in action
AS Celtic Connections reached a finale last night, it's a good bet where you could find every agent, promoter and talent-spotter in Scotland.
They'd have been crammed into the Royal Concert Hall, catching a glimpse of this year's Danny Kyle Open Stage winners.
The open stage played host to the cream of up and coming musical talent throughout the festival.
The six winning acts represented a host of different styles, with Scots singer Eddi Reader presenting the awards.
Scooping a Danny were ceilidh band Skalder, Edinburgh singing duo Lucy Pringle and Chris Wright, Glasgow folk-popsters The Magic Lantern Show, singer-songwriter Craig Jeffrey, folk outfit Anarkali and Scots music trio Tyskie.
Festival organiser Liz Clark hailed this year's crop as one of the best in the event's 11-year history.
She said: "The talent seems to be never-ending. It's not made-up bands out of the Academy just having a jam, these are people who are going to make their living at it - and they will.
"It was incredibly difficult picking six winners out of the 75 that entered. We had a lovely group from America, we had Norwegian fiddlers, we had people from Sweden, so it's been a very diverse range of entrants."
The winners of the event, of which the Evening Times is media partner, were gobsmacked.
The Magic Lantern Show's keyboardist Kenny Thoms admitted the seven-piece group very nearly didn't enter the competition.
He said: "We really struggled to get our application in on time, and then as there's seven of us we then struggled to all fit on stage, so we're very chuffed to have won."
Another of the winners, Tyskie, couldn't hide their delight. Harpist Heather Downie claimed the trio were concerned that their fusion of traditional and contemporary Scottish music might prove off-putting to judges.
Craig Jeffrey, 23, was laid back about lifting a Danny, but his set sparked a sing-a-long from the audience when he unveiled a cover of Hallelujah.
The Galashiels singer said: "I was happy just to get a slot on the open stage, so this is amazing."
However, for open stage organiser and compere Gibb Todd, the evening was tinged with sadness.
After 11 years working on the event, this was his final one, as he now intends to live full-time in Australia.
The Danny Kyle Open Stage began in tribute to the popular Scottish folk musician, who died in 1998. Each night five or six acts take to the stage, with the judges deciding who returns for the final night.
Top acts key to event's success
FESTIVAL organisers are hailing this year's Celtic Connections event as a stunning success.
Ticket sales have remained on par with 2008's event, a remarkable achievement for the two-and-a-half-week-long bash which brings a shot in the arm for Glasgow's economy.
The festival's artistic director, Donald Shaw, said the strong line-up was key to its success, adding: "We had some amazing acts and fans and performers from all over the world."
Among this year's standout acts were Edwyn Collins, Eddi Reader and Nanci Griffith.
ScottishPower brought another boost when it revealed it would extend its sponsorship for a further year.
Next year's festival is already pencilled in to run from January 13 to January 31.
