Archive
The venerable Mackenzie Caledonian Pipe Band organization – affectionately known as “Mac-Cal” – is putting on a show by Willie McCallum, one of the most prize-winning Highland pipers in the history of the instrument, on April 26th at the Woodlands Hotel near Broughty Ferry, Scotland, the original home of the […]
After an absence since 2019, the memorable Toronto Indoor Games will finally return on March 30th at its familiar downtown Toronto location at Moss Park Armoury. The event’s staging was interrupted by the two-year pandemic crisis and various logistical issues, but the 2024 edition promises to provide a full slate […]
Ian Green, the founder and manager of the Celtic music record label Greentrax, died in Edinburgh on March 10, 2024, at the age of 90. From the 1980s onward, Greentrax captured almost all of the greatest pipe bands, solo pipers and even solo pipe band drummers of the era, becoming […]
Kevin R. Blandford Memorial of Rancho Cucamonga, California, won both Grade 3 events at the Phoenix Scottish Games. Conditions at Gilbert Regional Park for early March in Arizona were ideal: 75°F (24°C) on Saturday, though an intense sun made it feel warmer, while a strong breeze on Sunday kept temperatures cooler, around 68°F (20°C). The event opened the outdoor contest season for the Western United States.
Alan Bevan of Abbotsford, British Columbia, was the winner of the 2024 Boney Music Memorial Invitational Competition & Recital held before a packed hall at the Seaforth Armoury as well as streamed live online by the British Columbia Pipers Association.
Bearsden, Scotland’s Willie McCallum was the overall winner of the 2024 Uist & Barra Invitational Solo Piping Competition after a tie with Sarah Muir of Glasgow, broken by a Piobaireachd preference. Only 50% of Hornpipe & Jig result counted toward the aggregate trophy.
The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association membership brought in several new leaders for the organization at its ninety-third annual general meeting, held in Glasgow on March 9th. Robert Niven was voted in as the association’s new chairman, taking over from incumbent Kevin Reilly. Niven serves on the board of directors […]
Eilidh MacDonald asks female pipers and drummers: “If you imagine that it is 2044 and you think about women in pipe bands/piping/drumming: what does that ideal future look like, in particular at the highest level? What makes you hopeful? What do you wish for?” The responses are fascinating.
The Boney Music Memorial Invitational Competition & Recital was started in 2016 by Andrew “Boney” Bonar himself when he was waging his personal battle against cancer. The eighth rendition of one of the piping and drumming world’s most charitable events is set to take place on Saturday, March 9th, at […]
Callum Douglas is the new owner of the popular ES Session Chanter business, taking over production and sales from Lindsay Ellis, who co-created the product with the late Ross Scrim, both accomplished tool makers who crafted the unique instrument from stainless steel and aluminum. Callum Douglas is the pipe major […]
pipes|drums is delighted to include the first 10 piobaireachds in our exclusive Castle Recordings series of performances played and captured by Captain John A. MacLellan MBE in the early 1960s when he was head of the Army School of Piping at Edinburgh Castle.
The historically significant recordings made by Captain John A. MacLellan MBE of 151 piobaireachds, at the time, comprising all nine books in the Piobaireachd Society’s Collection.
The thirteenth annual Redding Bagpipe Competition attracted a solid entry from across North America, and ultimately Malachi Johannsen of Modesto, California, was the Grade 1 aggregate winner, gaining an invitation to compete at the Sandy Jones Memorial Amateur Championship on November 9th at the Sun Belt Invitational in Florida.
Some 28 prospective piping, drumming and ensemble judges attended an extensive online training course run by a new-look Adjudicators Panel Management Board (APMB) under recently-appointed Convener Robert Mathieson. The board’s Adjudicators Development Group is managing the training course, which had its first session on March 1st. The piping and drumming […]
The Pipers & Pipe Band Society of Ontario has confirmed that its first-ever Drumming Summit will occur on March 30th as part of the Toronto Indoor Games. Joining the panel will be Jamie Alfred, Kahlil Cappuccino, Drew Duthart and Dave Fenton, each moderating discussions on various topics related to pipe […]
“Highland games are a partnership between the band association, bands and local organizers. Each is important to the end result, and none is more important than the others.” Dave Bruning, Pipes and Drums Chair for the Wisconsin Highland Games, discusses the challenges many of today’s competition organizers face.