LOCH LOMOND's alt-blues troubadour Dave Arcari saw his tour schedule decimated as a result of Covid-19 and the resulting lockdowns.

Having only been able to play one show since the turn of the year – his annual home territory shindig at Buchanan Memorial Hall at the beginning of February – Arcari has seen a run of UK shows, two USA tours and all his scheduled summer festival appearances fall foul of the pandemic.

His tour of Finland and Estonia, originally scheduled for June, has also been rescheduled for November.

But he refused to be held down and in a bid to plug the considerable gap between live dates Arcari has taken his unique brand of performances online.

"Livestream concerts have proven a crucial income stream," he said. "The enthusiasm and generosity of my fanbase has been amazing – and that's has really helped me through spiritually as well as financially."

"I've been careful to keep the livestream shows to no more than every five or six weeks and have tried to offer a different angle each time.

"Also, fresh content is as important as ever, so I've been trying to offer a range of livestream topics that are not intended to attract tips or donations."

This month saw the final episode of Blues'n'2s – a weekly livestream series with Arcari swapping stories and songs with musical pals from the USA, Finland and Estonia.

"It was great fun and something a wee bit different," he added. "I wanted to make viewers feel like we were all sitting round the table chatting and taking it turns to play songs – and also introduce folks to some music and artists they may not have come across before. It worked.

"I have another weekly livestream series up my sleeve too starting in a fortnight called Cookin' Up The Blues which will combine my love of cooking and food with some songs."

On Monday, August 17, Arcari streamed a full-length concert, including a Q&A and chat 'afterparty'.

"I love chatting with folks after gigs as much as I enjoy playing the gig itself," he admitted. "After the last livestream show I moved from the 'stage' to a table where my wife, Margaret, and I had a drink and virtual chat with folks…it keeps things interactive and fun.

"Plus, everyone who comes to live gigs knows Margaret, who's usually selling merch, taking tickets, working with the sound engineer…or all of these things."

But livestreams are only part of Arcari's survival plan. Since lockdown in March, Arcari has released two singles, an EP and is currently working on another new single and some instrumental music he hopes will get picked up for TV, film, advertising or even games.

His instrumental compositions have been widely used in TV programmes both in the UK and abroad including the BBC series Grand Tours of Scotland's Lochs and Julia Bradbury's Britain's Best Walks.

He believes that continuing to release new music is always important, not just in times of lockdown. He adds: "While the music itself is no longer a great income stream, regular releases keep existing fans engaged and help raise awareness of an artist and their music in the wider respect."

Arcari hopes a local outdoor, socially-distanced event may be possible mid-September if lockdown guidelines permit – and is keeping his fingers crossed that stabilisation of the pandemic will allow him to safely complete his rescheduled Finland and Estonia tour in November.