Pipers for the Inaugural Argyllshire Gathering Intermediate Championship Announced

This prestigious competition for junior professional pipers will be held at Lochnell Castle, Benderloch, Argyll, on October 2. Ten leading young pipers aged 22 and under have been invited to take part. Most were finalists in the recent MacGregor Memorial Competition run by the Argyllshire Gathering on behalf of the Highland Society of London. Others have developed significant track records since leaving the junior ranks. Those invited are: Bobby AllenRuairidh…

Uddingston Pipe Band Recruiting Pipers and Drummers/ Balmoral Classic 2021 Announcement/ Glenfiddich Details

In  2020, the Uddingston Strathclyde G4 and G2 pipe bands announced the formation of a new band intending to compete in Grade 3 to support the growth of the organisation, writes Douglas Adams, USPB Executive Committee. With the pressures of COVID continuing throughout 2020 into 2021, a mutual decision was taken that the Grade 4 and Grade 2 bands would move forward as separate organisations. Further to this the Grade 2…

Donald Morrison Archive: Downpour at the Northern Meeting 1930

The following is from a clipping from the Inverness Courier found in Donald’s papers. The headlines read ‘Great Washout at Northern Meeting’, ‘Disastrous Effect of Ceaseless Deluge’, ‘Handful of Spectators Watch the Games’ and ‘Balmoral Ghillie’s Piping Triumph’. In these days the Meetings were held out of doors in the Northern Meeting Park. The report goes on: Rain ruined the Northern Meeting Gathering which opened at Inverness today, even more…

Significant Correspondence and Response to Focal Dystonia Request/ New Drum Instructor for CMU

A request for information on focal dystonia from one of our Australian readers, Ken MacDonald, has prompted a good deal of interest and response, some already carried in our comments section but repeated here. Clive Douglas: ‘Good to hear some positive comments regarding focal dystonia. I’ve suffered for over 30 years and I’ve never managed to overcome the condition. I noticed a woman called Ruth Chiles claims to be able…

Donald Morrison Archive: The Frost of Suspicion Before John MacDonald Arrives on South Uist

We conclude this story on the revival of the piping tradtion on South Uist. This is from the archive of the late Donald Morrison. Readers might like to refresh the memory by reading the first part of this anonymous article here. Given that this excerpt mentions the ‘late’ John MacDonald, Inverness, it must date from the late 1950s or 60s. P/M MacDonald is pictured above in a rare photograph taken…