The Lorient Festival is being held this week in Brittany, France. It is the biggest festival of Celtic music in the world and each year hosts important piping competitions with some of the highest prize money available to the solo piper, writes Younn Pensec.
Piobaireachd:
1 Fred Morrison, Scotland (Scarce of Fishing) £380
2 Robert Watt, Northern Ireland (Corrienessan’s Salute)
3 David Shedden, Scotland (The Big Spree)
4 Stuart Easton, NZ (A Flame of Wrath for Patrick Coagach)
5 William Rowe, NZ (Too Long in this Condition)
Others pipers who played: Callum Moffat (Lament for Captain Mac Dougall) and Andy Wilson (Beloved Scotland)
Judges: Andrew Frater, Bruce Hitchings
The other main piping event at Lorient is the MacCrimmon Trophy in which pipers have to play music from the three Celtic countries/regions of Scotland, Ireland and Brittany. Once more the versatile and brilliant Fred Morrison came out on top:
1 Fred Morrison (Scotland – for the eighth time) £1,150
2 Robert Watt (Northern Ireland)
3 Stuart Easton (New Zealand)
4 Quentin Meunier (Brittany)
5 Cedric Bozec (Brittany)
Others pipers : Gwenael Le Corronc, William Rowe, Christopher McLeish, Andy Wilson, David Shedden, Callum Moffat
Judges
Breton music: Pierre Gallais and Stéphane Kermabon
Scottish music: Andrew Frater and Bruce Hitchings,
Irish music: Brian MacMahon and Eamonn Curran
Organisation : Loic Denis
The picture up top shows organisers Loic Denis (l) and Gerard Benoit with Fred.
Last Sunday saw the Lorient bagad championship (Breton pipe band). The new champions are Bagad Cap Caval.
Grade 1
1 Cap Caval 2 Quimper 3 Locoal-Mendon 4 Vannes 5 Kemperlé
Grade 2
1 St Malo 2 Lorient 3 Bourbriac
A Feast of Piping Awaits[wds id=”17″]
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