I started being involved in musical performance whilst living in the Shetland Islands, where I was based between 1994 and 2001. During this time I was involved in helping with a variety of projects at CDS Studio, the main recording studio on the island. I also took up English Concertina and started performing in the group Sølan, recording two albums, ‘Northern Shore’ (1999) and ‘The Haven and the Hurricane’ (2000). The group has toured extensively since 1999 in the UK and in parts of Europe including Norway, Denmark, Holland, and Germany.