Review: ‘Garron’, a New CD from Stuart Liddell

It has been a little while since I added to my collection of piping recordings but when I heard that Stuart Liddell had recently released a new CD I just had to buy a copy.

I ordered it directly from www.stuartliddell.com and it arrived very quickly. The packaging is excellent with very attractive artwork and it contains a little booklet which lists the tracks and gives some background details on all the tunes.

By Cameron Edgar

The CD opens with a couple of melodic 12/8 marches that were new to me and I was immediately struck by the quality of the bagpipe. The chanter is bright and true with every note interval just perfect and a crispness that lets the immaculate finger technique shine through.

The drones are rich with a steadiness that remains throughout every track. It would be hard to imagine that a bagpipe could produce a better sound. I found myself wondering about the bagpipe and the reed set up. Perhaps this could have been added to the notes in the booklet.

I’ve listened to the CD at least 10 times now and it is a joy from track 1 to track 16 with about a full hour of wonderful music.

---

---

There is a very wide variety of music including marches in various time signatures, hornpipes, jigs, strathspeys, reels, waltzes, a slow air and a piobaireachd. A mixture of some well known tunes and some newer ones. In many of the tunes Stuart includes some little variations that add considerably to the musical interest and entertainment and it seems that every time I listen I find something new.

For me some tracks that stand out are the arrangements by Allen Tully, further enhanced by Stuart, of Highland Wedding and Cameronian Rant played as hornpipes. This is just magnificent virtuoso playing crammed full of music and technical brilliance. Despite the vast amount of complex finger technique involved there is never a hint of any lapse of rhythm.

The interpretation of the J Scott Skinner slow air Hector the Hero is filled with emotion as is the piobaireachd Lament for Alasdair Dear MacDonnell of Glengarry. One of the shorter tunes in the repertoire and often considered a ‘beginners’ tune it is brought to life by Stuart from a superbly played ground through to the rippling crunluath a mach climax.

Maggie Cameron is played in the conventional style followed immediately by the same tune played in the Cape Breton style giving an interesting contrast.

The Bird Jigs is a set of six jigs all named after birds. The arrangement with some little variations and thoughtful key changes maintains interest throughout.

I particularly enjoyed Stuart’s interpretation of Mark Saul’s monster of a six parted jig the Stonecutter’s Phoenix which again demonstrates wonderful control of the instrument combined with brilliant technique and musicality.

The final charming little bonus track is a 6/8 march composed by Stuart for the occasion of the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee called Diu Ragnare. A tune that I enjoyed learning and playing. Here it is played on a practice chanter using circular breathing and accompanied by his mum Agnes on piano and an occasional size nine ghillie brogue bass drum. 

I could go on and say something about every track as they are all excellent and form part of a quite wonderful demonstration of what can be achieved on a bagpipe being played by a true master of the instrument.

• Cameron Edgar began his piping career in 1969 and first competed with the East Kilbride Pipe Band in 1970 in Grade 3. From 1973 he played in Grade 1 with Dumbarton & District followed by four years with Red Hackle under P/M John Weatherston. At this time he was highly successful in juvenile solos winning all of the major trophies including the Inverchapel at Cowal, and the Farquhar MacRae and MacDougall Gillies trophies at the SPA. The majority of his band career was with Shotts and Dykehead under P/M Tom McAllister Jnr. during which time the band won every major championship including the Worlds. He holds the RSPBA Advanced and Instructors certificates and is a PDQB examiner. He is a qualified RSPBA adjudicator for piping and ensemble.

---