Royal Conservatoire BMus (Piping) students putting on a show Dec. 9th

To celebrate three decades since the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland launched its Bachelor of Arts (Scottish Music – Piping) degree program, a cadre of Highland piping students will put on a concert on Tuesday, December 9th, at the NPC’s McPhater Street premises in Glasgow.

“Resonance” is the name of the show, which will feature accomplished pipers currently enrolled in the undergrad course, which started in 2000 when the RCS collaborated with the National Piping Centre to offer a BMus Trad Music major specifically in Highland piping.

Organizers confirm that all of the music played on the night will be composed by alumni of the degree course, including tunes by Finlay Frame, Danny Hutchinson, Finlay MacDonald, James Duncan MacKenzie, Craig Muirhead, Ciaren Ross and others.

The Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama (renamed in 2011 to the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) first offered a Bachelor of Arts (Scottish Music – Piping) degree in 1996, the inaugural year of the Piping Centre (renamed in 2002 to the National Piping Centre).

In 2000, the Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama and the Piping Centre officially launched the UK’s first university-level degree in Highland piping.

“The BA (Scottish Music – Piping) degree is a breakthrough for the Highland bagpipe,” the Piping Centre’s Education Officer Colin MacLellan said 25 years ago. “For the first time, the Highland pipe is officially on the same level as the violin, the piano, and every other ‘serious’ musical instrument. The Piping Centre is proud to have built this degree program with the RSAMD.”

In 1991, Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh recognized the Highland pipes as an instrument eligible for a BA in Music at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. The late Jimmy McIntosh worked with the university to create the degree, which continues today under Andrew Carlisle’s management. In 2010, Carlisle succeeded the late Alasdair Gillies in the role.

St. Andrews University in Laurinburg, North Carolina, also offered a major in music with Highland pipes as the primary applied instrument. The university closed its doors in April of this year.

The University of the Highlands & Islands in Scotland and Cape Breton University in Nova Scotia offer BA Music degrees with Highland piping as the principal area of study.

Tickets for the Resonance concert are £10 / £8 and available at the National Piping Centre’s website.

A correction was made on Nov. 28, 2025: an earlier version of this article stated that graduates would perform at the event. Performers will be those currently enrolled in the piping degree program.