Starting Young and Finishing Strong: Tuesday at Piping Live! 2026, with Iain MacDonald

Iain MacDonald (Regina) reports from the epicentre of piping (and drumming) . . .

A short walk to the National Piping Centre began Day 2 at Piping Live! with some band MSR rehearsals going on as I passed by Glasgow Caledonian. I arrived at the National Piping Centre (NPC) to the sound of Pipe Idol going strong on the main stage. Once again, the excellent piping was a little distorted by live mics on stage. It’s a minor complaint against the entertainment provided by these young pipers, but it would be great to have it sorted before the final!

I decided to check out Ceilidh Tots in The Bothy tent, and I’ll admit to a preconceived notion that it might be a bit more of a checklist item than a real event, but it was honestly one of the nicest times of the day. The tent was packed with young children, parents and grandparents, learning ceilidh dances, moving to a live (fiddle, keyboards) Gaelic air with coloured scarves, and just generally having a great time being engaged with the music. Highly recommended if you have young ones here, and still worth a look if you don’t. This was a well-conceived and delivered event, and it was clearly a hit with all in attendance.

Next up was an annual visit to the Museum of Piping and the tour with Dr. Hugh Cheape, whose contributions to the history and culture of piping are immense. Cheape leads people through the displays, giving context for what is in the displays, what is not, and what that suggests. An interesting point he makes is how Gaelic has really become a strong element of Piping Live!, both in terms of the musical styles and also just in the amount of Gaelic that is spoken and Gaelic words used.

A museum tour was a natural precursor for time spent with Gary West in the Learn@Live event, which took place in the NPC auditorium. This was a live presentation of some of the ideas and themes covered by Gary in his excellent book Voicing Scotland (Luath Press, 2012), and Gary does an excellent job describing the ways that history has impacted our music and continues to influence new music being made today.

The Lunchtime Recital featured Fin Moore on Scottish smallpipes and reelpipes. Gary West stayed in place to introduce Fin, and he pointed out that this was the first time that a lunchtime recital featured bellows pipes. Moore played an hour of music to a packed hall, first on a set of Scottish smallpipes in B, and then on a set of reelpipes in A. This was a highly enjoyable hour of music, with tune sources ranging from the 1733 Dixon manuscript to recent tunes picked up from other musicians at festivals. He gave a strong nod of thanks to his dad, Hamish Moore, who was in attendance and clearly enjoying all the music. All the great music gets even better when you consider it’s being played on instruments made by him and his family.

Out into the bright sunshine of the main stage in front of the NPC, where the Shotts & Dykehead Caledonia drum corps was performing on the main stage. Leading-Drummer David Henderson has the corps sounding well, and it was an impressive blast of rhythm off the main stage.

Seeking a break from bagpipes and drums (what?!!) I retreated to The Bothy once more and spent nearly an hour in the company of Will Pound and Jenn Butterworth. I’ve listened to recordings and was familiar with their sound, but I was not prepared for the stunning virtuosity of their live performance. I’ve never witnessed someone as good as Will Pound on the harmonica. The number of notes and sounds he coaxes from his instrument with ripping speed and maximum groove . . . simply jaw-dropping. Jenn Butterworth is no less dextrous on the guitar, filling, driving, enhancing and sometimes carrying. She too was amazing. Will also played the melodeon with the same level of skill and drive, and it was all balanced with some lovely songs from Butterworth, including her version of “Little Sparrow” and a John Prine classic. The tent was heating up as this set went on and the sun stayed high in the afternoon sky, but the sweat was worth it. This is one of those sets that will remain in my head for some time to come.

Out on the main stage, the Ross Miller Band was getting rolling with a full-on set featuring Miller on Highland pipes with a full backing band, and they delivered a rollicking, fun set of tunes to a packed festival. People were elbow-to-elbow in the space, enjoying the tunes, the sunshine and the food and beverage tents. The hamburgers were flying off the grill at £14 each, so I expect receipts will be strong for the food and beverage side.

Up in the NPC auditorium, a small group gathered for Wellness in Your Art, a Maket Collective panel discussion. This session began with a breathing exercise and focused on identity, competition, and sustainability. Panels discussed life outside of piping, advice for their younger selves, and how competitive pressure drives perfectionism and imposter syndrome.

The discussion highlighted the strain of balancing the World Championships, work, and other commitments, emphasizing the need for rest, perspective against social media, and personal grounding rituals. Attendees also noted progress in women’s visibility and complaint committees, while stressing that leadership must do more to create supportive environments.

And that was a full day, with more fun ahead in the evening. It was superb to greet so many friends that we don’t get to see regularly, another benefit that Piping Live! provides each year.

(With contribution from Barbara MacDonald)

Iain MacDonald is an all-too-often underappreciated treasure of the piping world. A tireless teacher, leader, competitor, judge, volunteer, writer, and all-round good guy, he has played with Grade 1 bands Simon Fraser University under Pipe-Major Terry Lee and Babcock Renfrew under Pipe-Major Iain McLeod. For many years, he was a pupil of the great Donald MacLeod. He served as pipe-major of Grade 2 City of Regina for more than 30 years, and during that time, was instrumental in starting the Conservatory Pipe Band for young learners. We could go on. He lives in Regina, Saskatchewan, and operates Reelpipes.com.

Stay tuned to pipes|drums for Iain MacDonald’s daily reports from the 2026 Piping Live! Festival.