Iconic conductor takes a bow after final Mòd appearance

He sang in school choirs and when he came to work in Glasgow, joined the Philharmonic Male Voice Choir.  

When he and his wife-to-be Valerie were visiting a friend whose father was president of the Glasgow Gaelic Musical Association, he said that they were short of basses and would Kenneth sing with them to perform at the 1968 Mòd. He joined for what was supposed to be six weeks and never looked back. 

Kenneth, who has been a member of the choir for 56 years, directed it to victory at local and national Mòds. 

But this year’s Oban Mòd, held from Friday October 11 to Friday October 19, was to be his last one with the baton, with the choir placing third in the competition for the prestigious Lovat and Tullibardine Shield.

“I have just loved every minute,” Kenneth told the packed audience in Oban’s Corran Halls on the festival’s final night. “The friends I have made through all the choirs is wonderful. I will still be singing in the choirs, so I will still be around. 

“But it is time for the bodach to call it a day.”

Kenneth, who worked in the NHS as a manager, latterly as chief executive of Yorkhill NHS Trust, took the famous Glasgow choir to his home town last year, holding a concert at Campbeltown Parish Church as part of the celebration of his then 40 years at the helm.

The choir was supported at the anniversary concert by the ladies of Kintyre Chorale, under the baton of Mhairi Renton, as well as a number of soloists, including Mòd Gold Medallists.

All proceeds from the concert – an incredible £1,305.50 – were donated to the Beatson Cancer Charity.

Kenneth, who has published a memoir of his time in the choir, entitled The GG and Me, was awarded the British Empire Medal for services to Gaelic choral music in 2021.

The Glasgow Gaelic Musical Association is holding a final farewell concert for Kenneth in the New Auditorium at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Friday March 14 next year.