Last week in his Notebook, the Editor bemoaned the dearth of pipe bands entered for the Grade 1 British Championship (Ingliston, May 30).
There are only nine, playing in this order: 1 SLOT 2 Police Federation 3 FMM 4 Shotts 5 Boghall 6 Fife Police 7 Inveraray 8 Scottish Power 9 Ravara.
Given this low number in the grade, he once more urged a cap on numbers and also voiced surprise at the non-promotion of Glasgow Skye Association Pipe Band after they won the Grade 2 title at the World Championships last year.
Piping Press will always give a platform for differing views and a few are carried below. Please let us have any other comments. There may be questions surrounding other grades that need to be aired too. Reply in the Comments section below or to editor@pipingpress.com.
Ian Forbes: It’s a very sad situation with only nine Grade 1 bands competing in the British Championships. A cap on the number of pipers/drummers will certainly help to improve the situation, but it could take several years for the effects of this change to filter through to an increase in the number of Grade 1 bands.
At last year’s Worlds, there was a total of 21 Grade 2 bands competing, with the top three or four playing to a very high standard. The RSPBA should consider whether it wants to retain Grade 1 as a small ‘super league’ or to have a more balanced situation between Grades 1 and 2.
Ron Bailie: I totally disagree with your premise on Grade 1. This grade is the pinnacle of our hobby and the bands there should represent that. Your proposals will produce quantity in Grade 1 but we will be back to the situation of having a two-tier grade with those at the bottom simply making up the numbers.
A few years later, hey presto, those bands disappear. A band should be upgraded to Grade 1 when they fulfil two criteria. Firstly the Association’s Music Board need to feel they are ready for the promotion. Secondly, and more importantly, the band leadership need to feel they are ready, and that includes having the numbers to succeed in the higher grade.
Allan Sutherland: Regarding the bands and grades, surely it’s up to the RSPBA to inform bands what grade they play in? In Grade 2 bands don’t seem to move out of the grade – or is it the players who don’t want to play in Grade 1?
If so, this must stifle the pyramid system a bit. It seems to be the same in other grades as well – same bands keep on winning. For me it must fall on the RSPBA to sort this out and to tell us what is happening. This clarity may help all grades.
Neil: A few good points raised here but I still cant fathom the RSPBA’s decision not to upgrade Glasgow Skye at the end of last season. From reports, the reason they are not competing this year is because of this which is madness from those that decided they weren’t ready for Grade 1.
I do understand that in the past, bands that have been upgraded to grade 1 and have failed to push on have resulted in the band going off the road. But then again, should the RSPBA be more reactive to monitoring how these newly-promoted bands progress when promoted?
For example, if a band fails to move off the bottom two spots consistently over two years then they are moved back to Grade 2? It’s a sad situation whereby we have bands in Grade 1 disbanding because they don’t have the numbers in their ranks, AND now we have a situation whereby bands might disband because the RSPBA can’t see their potential and ambition to progress to the top grade.
