Festival People
Calum Watt
When it comes to festival time, Calum Watt just wants to 'paint it black'. Not that he has an obsession with The Rolling Stones and their famous track of that name; indeed, if only working as a volunteer at the festival were that simple.
Describing himself as a "hands-on, nuts and bolts type", Calum (45) explained some of the tasks he performs: "Come festival time I take a week's holiday from the job, or try to. I never really get away from it, as I'm the only SSPCA inspector in the Western Isles.
"However, I generally work on putting up the marquee which comes on the Monday morning, at the start of festival week. Myself and others form a squad and start the task because it has to be up by Wednesday, with sound crews arriving on the Thursday.
"We've got a good group and everyone knows their role in what we have to do."
Calum's squad erect the marquee which houses over 3,000 people. Scaffolding is erected before planks of wood are laid upon it. Then chipboard has to be screwed on to the construction before being taped for painting.
Said Calum: "One end of the tent has to be blacked out for the lights to work well on stage. That means all the chipboard has to be painted black and drapes put up around the sides of the stage."
In his role as an SSPCA inspector, Calum has saved a number of animals from a grisly fate; and he has come to the rescue for the festival on more than one occasion since offering his services to the event committee, seven years ago.
Calum didn't need all that experience however to know that wanting to create a black stage is a lot easier when you don't come up 20 litres short of the paint required.
"This year we lost a day of work because the marquee arrived late. It was only on the Wednesday when we set about painting the stage that we realised we were short on supply. This coincided with Stornoway's half day closing for shops so it seemed we had nowhere to get the twenty litres we needed.
"But, as so often happens with the festival, someone knew someone else who could help us. On this occasion the 'someone else' was a person who owned a paintshop and was willing to open on their afternoon off, so that we could pick up the necessary paint.
"It still meant we were painting the stage at half nine on the Wednesday night while the first concert was already underway at the Studio.
"The squad finished eventually and we managed down in time for the end of that concert. That's the closest we've been to not being ready in time. No matter how much of a panic is on, everything always fits into place."
Originally from Aberdeen, Calum moved to the Western Isles in 1990. He has two daughters and a wife who is a native to the area.
Calum's interest in the festival is not his only link with music. He is a brass player and featured in a band when he lived in Aberdeen. He also conducts a youth orchestra in the local school, while his daughter plays the fiddle and sings gaelic songs (she was also involved in the traditional music workshop at the festival, where she helped beginner fiddle players).
Ryan Quigley, principal trumpet player of Salsa Celtica, one of this year's top acts, was in Stornoway the month before the festival with the Scottish Jazz Orchestra. Calum managed to meet up with him on that trip.
"Ryan gave me a trumpet lesson. I learned a lot as he is a tremendous player. I really enjoyed Salsa Celtica when they performed at the festival and for me, were the best act. They are what I call a really good band."
Not that Calum gets much opportunity to see a lot of the acts at festival time. He carries out other duties, such as driving and much more.
"At night I also work at the bridge (to the marquee venue) selling tickets. People were desperate on the Friday night for tickets but I had none to sell, The Waterboys was totally sold out. I even met someone who had come across especially for the Friday night from Norway and didn't reckon on there being no tickets."
It sounds like a lot of hard work and it is. So why volunteer?
"Putting up the tent is quite good craic. Working with people you don't always see on a day-to-day basis is great fun. And driving the van about Stornoway you get the whole buzz of the place, which is huge during festival week.
"I like the volunteer element and that people give up so much of their time for the festival. There isn't any negative side to doing the job. And the more people we can get over here, the more will come back."
Calum explained how he enjoys the fact that the hotels and bars are open late during the festival, giving him and his colleagues the opportunity to meet with each other and the musicians, who often as not, play sessions stretching into the small hours.
In fact, music is never far from Calum's mind, even at home.
"I'm doing a music course through Aberdeen University; study of composition, arranging and music history. It's an open learning course done through video conferencing at Lews Castle College. I'm a distance learning student and it will eventually lead to a degree."
Other plans Calum has include making a CD this year with the youth band. With so much on his plate, where does he get the energy to continue working for the festival?
"You see the marquee up and 3,000 people in it and that's why you do it. It's very successful and the buzz of having people here is huge."
He paints quite a picture. However, with people like Calum working hard behind the scenes, the outlook for the festival remains anything but black.
