Archive

Hugh Cheape and Decker Forrest, two of the world’s preeminent scholars on the MacKays of Raasay, the legendary piping dynasty . . .

Simon Fraser University won both Grade 1 events with straight first-place rankings from all eight judges at the annual BC Highland Games. One listener reported that “Dowco-Triumph Street continues to improve and laid down two strong performances today. The last time that British Columbia had two bands playing this well going into the World’s was 1979 when both Triumph Street and City of Victoria were top six at the World’s.” Alan Bevan won all three of the Professional solo piping events. SFU-member pipers took all of the prizes except one.

Results were mixed at the Drumtochty Highland in Aberdeenshire, with Jeffrey Lawson and Fraser Maitland split the first prizes . . .

David Wilton of Glasgow was the overall winner at the Aberdeen Highland Games, with a first in the Jigs and two other high prizes. Mael Sicard-Cras of Brittany won the Piobaireachd event . . .

The Western United States Pipe Band Association is marking its fiftieth anniversary this year by creating a pipe music collection made up . . .

While bands in the northern hemisphere are in the middle of their competition season, those in New Zealand and Australia are busy making plans for the future and, following Invercargill’s addition . . .

The Transvaal Scottish were overall winners at the Pretoria Boys Highland Gathering at Pretoria Boys High School, the second major championship of the South African season. “The Jocks were again the top-grade winners on a very hot winter’s day, winning the MSR and finishing second in the Medley, which . . .

Bruce Gandy was the overall winner of the 27th annual United States Piping Foundation Professional Piping Championship held at the Amy E. DuPont Music Building at the University of Delaware. Fifteen competed in the Professional events, which were judged by . . .

After a global search, Russell Esler of Glasgow has been chosen to be Leading-Drummer of the Grade ILT City of Invercargill . . .

Ed Neigh reviews the June 14, 2013, Forte concert at the Cobourg Community Centre in Cobourg, Ontario, and finds that the band was ready to take on the challenge – and then some . . . even in a hockey arena.

The annual Donald MacDonald Quaich Invitational Solo Piping Competition was won by Cameron Drummond of Edinburgh, playing the Donald MacDonald setting of “The MacDougalls’ Gathering” from the MacArthur Manuscript. The contest is organized each year by the Clan Donald Association, and celebrates the music of Donald MacDonald. Other competitors were Glenn Brown, Glasgow, “Glengarry’s . . .

The return of the Cobourg Highland Games to full piping, drumming and pipe band competition format was a spectacular success, with a packed Victoria Park on the shore of Lake Ontario in brilliant sunshine. Boghall & Bathgate Caledonia was brought in to perform in concert the night before, which they did to an audience estimated to number more than 1,000, and the band competed, winning with straight firsts in a five-band Grade 1 competition. The Ontario season continued its varied results, with Toronto . . .

A quarter century has passed since a Scottish Grade 1 band last competed in Ontario, when Vale of Atholl travelled to Canada in 1988 . . .

Bill Livingstone reviews the new, comprehensive analysis of ceol mor by the renowned Andrew Wright and finds a book that’s required repeated reading by any serious student of piobaireachd.

Harry’s been enjoying the videos from last weekend’s competition, and taking in the online chatter about the 78th Frasers’ dramatic entry and miraculous recovery. As a service to readers, Harry has assembled a few samples of how things can go terribly wrong in that one small segment of the contest. […]

Iain Speirs was the recipient of the 2013 John A. MacLellan Medal on the evening of June 8th at the Royal Scots Club, Abercromby Place, Edinburgh, the second annual version of the invitational dinner/recital that showcases four of MacLellan’s piobaireachd compositions. Speirs played “A Welcome for Patrick Struan,” which MacLellan composed on the birth of his second grandson in 1989. Also competing were Faye Henderson . . .