One thing I found striking about the report this week on the 1934 Argyllshire Gathering was the tunes played in the light music: Shepherd’s Crook, Lochcarron, Piper’s Bonnet, Glengarry Gathering, and what must have been an early run of Mrs MacPherson of Inveran. Here we are, eight years off a century later, and these classic pieces are still what separates the great from the not so great players of ceòl…

I want to double down on one of my comments in Brad Davidson’s report on my workshop in Ontario. Any rule or legislation in piping which discourages teaching, directly or indirectly, should be deplored by all right-thinking persons. Judging and teaching should not be seen as mutually exclusive, yet we now have experts, proven winners at the top of our business, who have turned their backs on the latter in…

The 78th Fraser Highlanders band from Ontario have launched a crowd-funder to help pay for a professional recording of their pre-Worlds concert on August 12th. Entitled ‘True North Strong’, the concert will celebrate piping and drumming with a distinctly Canadian flavour. The 78th Frasers are a self-supporting organisation, the band’s members paying their own way to rehearsals and competitions at home and abroad. The fundraiser is intended to help offset…