Category: Comment

Revisiting the Past: 2/4 Marches and a Letter from Archibald Campbell

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Until the advent of recordings, music was ephemeral. Performances faded from memory, save for occasional outstanding examples imprinted on our minds. Memories become clouded in time, however.  Historic recordings can remind us of what we heard in the past. I am old enough to detect that march playing has arguably deteriorated, even at the highest level.  I can assure readers this is not just a personal view – it is shared…

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Jimmy Anderson 1946-2024

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Jimmy Anderson, who has died aged 77, was a World Pipe Band Championship winning piper with Muirhead and Sons and the man who half a century ago led the introduction of bagpipes into folk groups. His successes at the Worlds came in the legendary Muirheads band of the 1960s, and he was the proud owner of three plaques commemorating wins in 1967, ’68 and ’69. With brothers Peter and Tommy,…

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Royal Honour for the Piobaireachd Society

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His Majesty The King has agreed to become Patron of The Piobaireachd Society. The news was received by President Robert Wallace in a letter from Buckingham Palace last weekend. It was timed to coincide with the first anniversary of the King and Queen’s Coronation. In a message to the Society’s 1,000+ membership Mr Wallace wrote: ‘I am delighted to be able to tell you that HM The King has agreed…

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Draws Announced for British Pipe Band Championship

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The second Major Championship of 2024, the British, will be held at Forres, Moray, on June 8. This will be the first British for two years. There was no contest last year due to the sponsor’s financial difficulties. The winners in 2022 were Inveraray under P/M Stuart Liddell. They were placed second by both piping judges but won drumming and ensemble. Second placed Field Marshall won first from both piping…

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Society Announce Line Up for Showpiece Annual Recital

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The Piobaireachd Society has announced the following pipers for its annual gala concert held each summer in Edinburgh. The pipers are Iain Speirs, Edinburgh, Dr Jack Taylor, Aboyne, Matt Pantaleoni, St Louis , Missouri, and Cameron May, Dillarburn, Lanarkshire. The venue is Edinburgh University’s beautiful St Cecilia’s Hall just off the Royal Mile. The date is August 11. Iain is one of the outstanding players of piobaireachd in world piping….

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