Second Epistle to Davie

Nicola Benedetti, violinist:

The fiddle is one of the three national instruments of Scotland, so it is fitting that the violin is closely associated with our national poet. Burns was a capable fiddler himself and would often play when he frequented the Bachelors Club, which he founded, in Tarbolton, South Ayrshire. It was there that he met David Sillar, one year younger than him, and like, Burns the son of a small farmer. The two men became firm friends. Sillar was the recipient of two verse-epistles from Burns. "The Second Epistle to Davie" is a heartfelt testament to their close friendship in which Burns pays tribute to Sillar's talents as a fiddle player and poet. In truth, although he published a set of poems in 1789, he was no great poet but, by all accounts, Sillar was a better fiddler than Burns! From the end of 1783 Davie Sillar lived in Irvine, north Ayrshire, where I myself was born earning his living first as a grocer and then as a schoolmaster. He was an Irvine Councillor and eventually a Baillie and died in Irvine - much respected - in 1830.

Tam O'Shanter

Gerard Burns, artist:

"It's amazing how literature is opened up to you if somebody points you in the right direction. How many Scots would know what a 'cutty sark' is? Most people would think of the ship but in Tam O'Shanter it means a short skirt. He is referring to Meg, the witch, who is dancing round Tam with a short skirt on. After I found that out I heard Karen Dunbar reading it and all of a sudden it jumped to life for me. It's about a guy basically who is following his baser instincts. The more I learn about his poems the more I believe that he is an absolute force. His poetry is amazing but we need to be taught it in the same way that we are taught Shakespeare because the language is so foreign to us and we can miss a lot of the subtlety."

Ae Fond Kiss

Lou Hickey, singer:

I'm a hopeless romantic, but I'm also a realist, and this poem beautifully captures, with real honesty, the enchantment of romance and the sorrow of parting. He intertwines words of heart break with nostalgic memories of love. Although its a tale of parting, you really get a sense of thankfulness from the time he shared with his Nancy. My favourite line is "Had we never loved sae kindly, had we never loved sae blindly, never met, or never parted, we had ne'er been broken hearted". Its better to have loved and lost, than never loved at all.

Julie Fowlis, singer: Ae Fond Kiss was one of the first Burns songs I ever heard. I came to the poetry of Burns quite late in many ways, and I have much still to learn! But this song has stayed with me since the day I first heard it. Perhaps it's the way the lyrics are constructed, the attractive rhythms and sounds they create, the lilt of the tune – or perhaps it's the close connection to the Gaelic song 'I horo 's na hug oro eile' that makes it stand out for me. I believe the song was not originally composed to this tune, but over time this old melody has been adopted and is the version heard most often.

Willie Wassle

Karen Dunbar, comedian:

One of my favourite rabbie works is the poem 'Willie Wassle', a take of a poor wee man who lives on the river Tweed and has a harridan of a wife and a mother-in-law to match!

The narrator describes every ugly ailment of the woman and ends each verse with his relief at not having a wife like that! As much as it wouldn't be very PC these days it makes me laugh. Colourful descriptions like 'her nose and chin, they threaten ither' like they're so close they're about to do battle and 'her wally neeves like midden creels' (big lumbering hands hanging like lobster baskets) are so humorous and paint a picture of a most - uncomely wench! Mind you, we never hear if Willie is a good looking bloke do we? Maybe that information is conspicuous by its absence -

To A Mouse

Graeme Obree, cyclist:

I'm a huge Burns fan, and my ultimate favourite is To A Mouse. It shows Burns' tolerance and his innate humanity. I tend to call upon the sentiment and message behind this quote more often that I ought to, I think it's a good way of looking at situations that go wrong. It shows that even though you think you have a good thing, it might not always work out like that and positives can quickly change to negatives, but to understand that that's ok. I have lost count of how many times I have said "The best laid schemes" throughout my life and work. Despite what may go wrong in life, it makes me thankful that I have a house to live in and food to eat and everything that I have. In this day and age a bit of positivity doesn't go a miss – we need to take it where we can get it.

Kaye Adams, broadcaster:

To a Mouse is my favourite. Apart from the vivid imagery , it gives me an impression of Burns as a man who was endlessly and relentlessly contemplative.

Even the simplest events in life caused him to stop and think and try and attach meaning to them.

Burns sought to make sense of things and that's a quality I greatly admire.

Tony Singh, chef:

To A Mouse has always stood out as my favourite Burns poem. There's something so humbling and fragile about the "tim'rous beastie" finding solace and shelter in Burns' warm house. On a chilly Burns Night there's nothing better than enjoying Haggis, Neeps and Tatties next to a cosy fire and thinking of "winter's sleety dribble". That's the essence of a Burns Supper for me, coming together, having a really flavoursome winter warmer and celebrating our Scottish heritage.

Manda Rin, Bis frontwoman:

I'd say my favourite is probably To A Mouse, which I first heard in primary seven. There just something so intriguing about his despair and sadness about a plough uplifting a mouse and its home she's spent so long putting together for the winter. This is despite what appears to be a quite critical first line of "Wee, sleeket, cowran, tim'rous beastie". I do love big softies when it comes to animals!

Is There For Honest Poverty

Pat Kane, singer, writer:

The lines "for a' that, and a' that, it's coming yet for a'that/That man to man the world o'er/shall brothers be for a' that" have inspired me politically for most of my adult life. The whole poem is a rich expression of the Scottish everyday scepticism towards power-elites, but also our desire for a democratic process that expresses our desires. Read this alongside Edwin Morgan's poem for the inauguration of the Holyrood parliament, Open the Doors, & the continuities are striking: "A nest of fearties is what they do not want.../perhaps above all the droopy mantra of 'it wizny me' is what they do not want." Burns might have made it rhyme more, but he'd salute the language & sentiment.

John anderson, My Jo

Michelle Mone OBE, founder of Ultimo:

Whenever someone reads Robert Burns the way it was written – whether it's a battle song or a love story – it has this wonderful haunting tone which is still really emotive even if you don't know the meaning of every word. I like John Anderson My Jo. It's is a sad love story, more romantic than a lot of Burns' poetry and I've heard it sung a few times. It always sticks in my mind as a lovely traditional song. I like how it rhymes and flows more like a song than his other poetry which is more story-telling. I like the neatness of the verses and the sensitivity.

A Man's A Man for a' that

Eddi Reader, singer: One Christmas eve, I met a man in George Square, he wanted to say hello. He told me he worked on the Shipyards with my Dad Danny Reader, during their apprenticeships in the early 1950's. I told him I was doing well but my dad had passed away. He told me he noticed that I was interested in Robert Burns and had heard some music I had recorded using Burns. I told him the world was a stranger place without my dad in it and I moaned about the music world, how Burns would deal with music and poetry today, would he see style dominating over substance and would he comment on it through poetry. He took my cold hand in his tough, older, but warmer, one and recited the above verse. When he got to the last line of that verse: 'the man o independent mind -" He leaned in closer and emphasised: "- He looks and LAUGHS at a' that!". It made me smile and reminded me of who I am. With our cheerios I felt I had just heard the BEST version of a Robert Burns poem EVER recited. I felt proud to come from such a culture that throws up the likes of Robert Burns, my dad and his pal.

Address to Edinburgh

Andrew Dixon, Chief Executive of Creative Scotland: Many of Burns' poems and songs celebrate the life and character of locations around Scotland. Whilst cities and even landscapes have changed over two centuries, his observations are still instantly recognisable and capture the enduring essence of place. I've picked Address to Edinburgh but could have equally chosen the short song Bonnie Dundee where the simple reference to the banks of Tay conjures an immediate image. In the first line of Address to Edinburgh the reference to 'Edina! Scotia's darling seat!' leads into his acute observation on the wealth, architectural splendour and power of the city. The sense of a learned city standing proud, towering and confident in its role is in stark contrast to Burns' home.