National Piping Centre expands American schools program
Glasgow’s National Piping Centre is further expanding its network of piping and drumming summer schools with the addition of a Winter School February 19-23, 2007 at St. Joseph’s School and the Hibernian Hall in Babylon, New York.
The new school is the latest in the Piping Centre’s expanding network of programs in the United States, adding to those in Winchester, Virginia, June 24-29; and Pebble Beach, California, July 1-6.
Instructors include Roddy MacLeod, Alastair Dunn, Margaret Dunn, Simon McKerrell, Bruce Gandy, Graham Brown and Tyler Fry. Individual and pipe band instruction is being provided, as well as evening recitals.
A CLASP event will be offered for amateur pipers on February 24 in Babylon. A CLASP event was also held in Babylon in 2006.
The National Piping Centre made no indication of plans to bring school to Canada. The concept of piping schools was first introduced by the Gaelic College in St. Ann’s, Nova Scotia, in the 1950s. The College of Piping under founder and Principal Seumas MacNeill conducted several piping schools throughout North America in the 1960s and ’70s, but gradually reduced the practice.
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For the past three years, the National Piping Centre has also been involved in the summer school organized by the Saskatchewan Pipe Band Association, called Sound Advice.” We have had P-M Paul Warren of the National Youth Pipe Band
Ironically when it comes to teaching it looks like the Piping Centre is continuing Seamus’ traditions of bagpipe evangelizing.