Pipes+Drums returns to Piping Live!
The Pipes+Drums recital sponsored by pipes|drums Magazine will return to this year’s Piping Live! Festival in August an all-start line-up for what is one of the festival’s most popular events and one of the biggest performances of the pipe band year.
Free to all who wish to attend, compliments of pipes|drums, the two-hour event showcases pipe-majors and leading-drummers from the world’s best bands in a rare opportunity to hear these virtuoso players show their chops in an informal setting.
On Tuesday, August 11, from noon until 2 pm, at the Street Café in front of the National Piping Centre, listeners will get to hear:
- ScottishPower – Pipe-Major Chris Armstrong and Leading-Drummer Jake Joergensen
- Shotts & Dykehead Caledonia – Pipe-Major Ryan Canning and Leading-Drummer Jim Kilpatrick
- Simon Fraser University – Pipe-Major Alan Bevan and Leading-Drummer Reid Maxwell
- Stuart Highlanders – Pipe-Major Adam Holdaway and Leading-Drummer Scott Fletcher
“We are pleased once again to bring what is the greatest recital of Grade 1 leaders in the world,” said Andrew Berthoff, editor of the non-profit pipes|drums. “With advertising and subscription proceeds we’re able to compensate these great musicians appropriately and make the Pipes+Drums recital free to all who wish to attend. This is sure to be another great recital, and one of the few Piping Live! events that puts pipe band drumming front-and-centre.”
The 2015 Pipes+Drums features Shotts & Dykehead, SFU and Stuart Highlanders for the first time, while Armstrong and Joergensen return to the event. Joergensen previously performed as Leading-Drummer of the now-defunct Lothian & Borders Police.
Kilpatrick and Maxwell are legends in pipe band drumming history, having led their corps to scores of World Pipe Band Drumming titles over the last 30 years. The Stuart Highlanders emerged in 2014 as rising stars in Grade 1, and are one of only two US-based bands in the top grade.
Each duet will play for about 25 minutes, including at least one competition MSR.
pipes|drums readers can enjoy video from the previous Pipes+Drums events on the pipes|drums Magazine YouTube Channel.
The recital had to be skipped in 2014 due to scheduling conflicts with performers and the magazine, and was replaced with several other events.
pipes|drums is also confirmed as an official media partner with Piping Live! 2015, a designation the magazine has had since 2005.
Be sure to check out many videos of many of the world’s greatest pipe-majors and leading-drummers from previous Pipes+Drums events at the pipes|drums YouTube Channel, and be sure to subscribe to the channel for alerts whenever new videos are published.
It’s exciting that al of these great musicians are participating, I ook forward to seeing the videos posted. I hope no one in the crowd make the mortal error of saying theat or pair were better than another, or the RSPBA will ban them from competition – maybe for life.