Johnston succeeds McCallum as Principal Study Tutor for BMus Traditional Music (Piping) degree program

Highland Society of London Gold Medallist and two-time Glenfiddich Champion, Finlay Johnston of Glasgow, has been appointed to the teaching faculty of the Bachelor of Traditional Music (Piping) degree program, operated jointly by the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and the National Piping Centre.

Johnston succeeds Highland piping legend Willie McCallum in the role following McCallum’s decision to retire, after a gradual handover period.

The Principal Study Tutor position entails overseeing the development of third- and fourth-year senior students and managing their principal study work.

“I was delighted to be asked to teach on the degree course,” Johnston said. “It’s a real honour, and I’m looking forward to working with the students. I previously enjoyed my time at the NPC, so it’s nice to return in a different capacity. Initially, I wasn’t sure how it would work as my full-time job remains at Pipe Dreams. Fortunately, there is some flexibility at the NPC. I’ll be working with a handful of the third- and fourth-year students, thus allowing me to plan the teaching around my main job.”

“”Life is about to get infinitely busier!” – Finlay Johnston

The BMus Traditional Music (Piping) degree was launched in the late 1990s as a joint initiative between the Conservatoire and the Piping Centre, and shortly after became the world’s first Bachelor of Music (BMus) with a major in Highland piping. The program emphasizes “performance, repertoire, and practical peer-to-peer feedback at the heart of student assessment.”

A full-time instructor at the National Piping Centre for five years, Johnston will work with prospective graduates who would join what has become a lengthy list of accomplished pipers who have made a career in musical performance and composition or the music industry, including John Dew, Margaret Houlihan, Finlay MacDonald, Ross Miller, David Shedden, and Connor Sinclair.

“I’m delighted that Finlay has taken on the post on the Piping Degree and I am sure he will be an amazing appointment,” McCallum said. “His ability to communicate and his stature in the piping world guarantee that the students will rightly be excited about him teaching them. A year ago, I intimated that I would like to retire from the post that had been held across all four years of the course. In the last year, I have been teaching only the third- and fourth-year students. There was a realignment of the teaching, and the other students have had great tuition by Margaret Dunn, John Mulhearn and Finlay MacDonald. It was a privilege to teach and contribute for 10 years to the course.”

The degree program is available to all Highland pipers whose applications are accepted. Deadlines for applications (£34.50 fee) via the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland for the next academic year, starting on September 20, 2027, are October 1, 2026, for UK applicants and December 1, 2026, for international applicants. There is an audition fee of £65.

In addition to the Gold Medals (Inverness 2015, Oban 2012) and the Glenfiddichs (2018, 2019), Johnston’s expansive list of solo piping awards includes the Bratach Gorm (2024, 2025), the Northern Meeting Clasp (2016), the P-M Alasdair Gillies Memorial Championship (2025), the P-M Donald MacLeod Invitational (2019, 2026), the Former Winners MSR at Oban (2025), and was voted Competition Piper of the Year in the 2018 pipes|drums New Year’s Honours.

Johnston added: “Life is about to get infinitely busier!”