Abby Long wins 2025 Sherriff Memorial

Hamilton, Ontario – November 15, 2025 – Abby Long of Houston was the overall winner of the 2025 George Sherriff Memorial Amateur Invitational Solo Piping Competition, held once again at St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church.

Unusually, three different pipers won each of the three events, with Long taking the Piobaireachd, Alex Pavolovic, also from Houston, winning the MSR, and Magnus Stone of Natick, Massachusetts, winning the 6/8 Marches event.

Eleven pipers competed over three events, each the most successful in Grade 1 amateur events in the various regions.

The 12-hour-long event was hosted by Peter Aumonier, who introduced competitors and offered background and entertaining anecdotes about them and the tunes they would perform.

The contest was started in 1996 and is named in memory of George Sherriff, a Scots émigré to the Hamilton-Niagara area of Ontario who taught many pipers in the region.

The competition is not sanctioned by an association and is organized by a group of volunteers.

Piobaireachd
1st Abby Long, “Lament for the Viscount of Dundee”
2nd Jean-Sébastien Gamache, Ottawa
3rd Magnus Stone
4th Alexander Walker, Pacific Palisades, California
5th Alex Pavlovic
Judges: Chris Armstrong, Matt MacIsaac, Sean McKeown

MSR
1st Alex Pavlovic, “Brigadier-General Ronald Cheape of Tiroran,” “Cabar Feidh,” “Fiona MacLeod”
2nd Abby Long
3rd Magnus Stone
4th Jean-Sébastien Gamache
5th Jim Malcolm, River John, Nova Scotia
Judges: Chris Armstrong, Matt MacIsaac, Sean McKeown

6/8 Marches
1st Magnus Stone, “The Trees of North Uist,” “Duncan McGillivray, Chief Steward”
2nd Abby Long
3rd Jean-Sébastien Gamach
4th Alex Pavlovic
5th Alexander Walker
Judges: Chris Armstrong, Matt MacIsaac, Sean McKeown

Also competing were Greg Bowen, Waterloo, Ontario; Aiden Fowler, Langley, British Columbia; Liam Horne, Wise, Virginia; Alex Rocheleau, Windsor, Ontario; and Jeff Rowell, Vancouver.

Some 58 sponsors support the event, including pipes|drums advertisers Lee & Sons Bagpipes, McCallum Bagpipes, Reelpipes.com, R.G. Hardie & Co., and Scott’s Highland Services.