A LARGS Largs musician hit the right note to score a life-changing £25,000 to help fund her music career.

Hayley Keenan and her band Talisk have been awarded the Belhaven Bursary Award which will also offer them an advertising campaign and a chance to perform in New York during Tartan Week.

The competition - run by Hands up for Trad - is a celebration of innovation in the traditional music scene, with the winners announced at the MG Alba Scots Trad Music Awards this month.

Talisk have previously won the MG Alba Folk Band of the Year and BBC Radio 2's folk gong but hope the latest prize will take them to a new level.

Hayley, the founder of Largs popular folk nights which bring traditional Scottish musicians to the town once a month, said: "I am absolutely delighted.

"It's been such an incredible year of gigs and travel and this really is such an amazing way to finish off a busy 2018.

"This award will help to open many doors for the band, and we're really looking forward to the year ahead and working with Belhaven."

Financially matched only by the famous Mercury Prize, the £25,000 Belhaven prize rewards innovation.

It also involves an appearance at the legendary Belhaven Brewery Post Parade Party in New York during Tartan Week in April.

The band is made up of Mohsen Amini on the concertina, Graeme Armstrong on the guitar and Hayley on the fiddle.

Fresh off the back of their summer US tour the band have already made a name for themselves performing top festivals in Europe as well as live sessions on BBC radio.

The band will also be launched into the spotlight through a televised advertising campaign featuring their music.

The Belhaven fund is supported by Showcase Scotland Expo, an organisation backing the international development of Scottish-based artists and the bursary is awarded to bands or artists chosen through a panel of industry experts.