Freight and Salvage, a historic landmark in Berkeley, was the perfect location for Scottish Gaelic singer Julie Fowlis to grace as she made her way down the west coast for a brief US tour. Known for its wealth of culture and support of traditional folk acts, the charmingly rustic walls of the venue were sparked to life by a language and a style they had never before heard.

Performing with an accompanying guitarist, violinist, and bouzouki player (and playing a variety of instruments herself), the combination that this quartet produced was stimulating and smoldering with chemistry. To her left, Julie’s own husband and bouzouki player, Eamon Doorley, alternated between gazing at his wife while picking out intricate patterns on his lute-like instrument and providing witty and humorous commentary between tunes. To her right, fiddle player Jenna Reid demonstrated a truly impressive command over her instrument and its dynamics.

The concert began with an a capella ballad that left the entire hall hushed in awe, and then the band proceeded to launch into “Hug Air A’ Bhonaid Mhoir,” which instilled the listeners with the feeling of standing on the brink of some urgent and exciting adventure. Thus, the night played out, with Julie undulating between songs of wide-eyed wonder and vibrant celebration.

Julie and the band kept things interesting by choosing songs from both her albums (Cuilidh and As My Heart Is), a song she wrote for her cousin’s wedding, her recent cover of The Beatles’ “Blackbird,” and a tune in the language of Breton, another little-known Celtic language.

When she wasn’t singing, Julie was diving headfirst into solos alongside violinist Jenna Reid, alternating between various flutes and whistles. The body language that these two women displayed made their passion for the music obvious. Jenna stomped to the beat powerfully with her right foot while keeping her upper body poised and precise. Beside her, Julie danced with only her hips as she piped away at incredible speeds.

As the performance came around to the end of what was supposed to be the last song and the band said goodnight, the audience stood in ovation and responded with thunderous applause and incessant stomping. The encore that followed was a worthy reward. Julie lightly skipped back onto the stage with her band, but this time with bagpipes that were probably about the same height as she is. They definitely accentuated her small, pixie-like frame, and the way she almost appeared to struggle holding the massive instrument up as she tuned it was part-cute, part-comical. However, she was soon showing off her mastery of its signature Scottish sound. Playing through one last exhilarating song of the night, the band sent the fans home with high spirits and satisfied minds.