The French government have banned all gatherings of more than 5,000 people until September and the Lorient Festival Interceltique, the world’s biggest celtic music festival, has had to be cancelled for 2020, it was announced this morning. Lorient had hoped to buck the trend of summer cancellations afflicting the piping and music worlds. Only a couple of weekes ago they were still hopeful of staging the festival. In a statement,…

The promoters of the popular Balmoral Summer Schools in the US have sent this: Coming soon to a desktop near you! The Balmoral School of Piping & Drumming will hold its 2020 summer school sessions via Zoom. Joining us through the magic of the internet will be three acclaimed instructors from Scotland, Ireland and Nova Scotia, all with incomparable records of teaching and promoting pipe music around the world.  From…

Put the extra time indoors to good use by learning some new tunes. Paste this code FTTHHPPT into the appropriate box at checkout to get £1 off these lessons courtesy the Piping Press Shop! And remember, every small purchase helps us keep Piping Press subscription free. What not to like? The lessons, by Robert Wallace, our Editor, are from our listings ‘Donald MacLeod Tunes’, piobaireachd and light music, ‘Selected Piobaireachd…

This started off as a small opportunity for local kids to compete together as their local contests had been cancelled, the promoter reports. It quickly grew into a much larger event as documented below. Competitors submitted audio files which were compiled and sent to judges who judged them blind, in other words, not knowing who the player was. The virus is forcing us to find new ways of supporting youth piping and…

It is with sadness that we report the passing of Allan MacColl, the man who 25 years ago had the vision to revive the once grand Lochaber Gathering. Allan, who was 79, had been in failing health for several months. A lifelong lover of Gaelic, its language, song and poetry, Allan also had a passion for the great pipe and its music. Though he himself did not play, his son…