Setting the Record Straight on Reid v Ross in the 1923 Gold Clasp

We are very grateful to piping historian Jeannie Campbell for helping us put the record straight regarding the tie for the Clasp between Willie Ross and Robert Reid at the 1923 Northern Meeting. Jeannie has produced two pieces of corroborating evidence which show that Craigie Calder (see last weeks’s story here) was misled in his assertion that the award should have been split between the two piping titans. Jeannie has…

A Short History of Piping and the British Legion Golden Jubilee 1971

The following article is taken from a programme published for a Massed Pipe Bands and Beating of Retreat on Edinburgh Castle Esplanade in May 1971. The occasion was the Golden Jubilee of the Royal British Legion. The note may have been written by Captain John MacLellan, one of the main organisers of the event. Antiquity obscures the precise origin of the sophisticated modern bagpipe but it is known that it…

George Watson’s Band and Solo results/ Redding CA Results

The George Watson’s College Invitational Competition held on 3rd March at George Watson’s College in Edinburgh, writes Ben Duncan. With close to 130 solo and 20 band performances, it made for a healthy day of piping and drumming at Watson’s. The events were judged by RSPBA adjudicators John Nevans, Alvis Kerr, Gordon Lawrie, Alex Dudgeon and Stuart Coils. George Heriot’s were triumphant in the Senior Bands, with Dollar winning the…