PP Editor’s Blog: Band Formation Poll Results/Grampian League/ / Festival of Juvenile Solo Piping etc.

A couple of weeks ago I ran a piece lauding the organisers of the Chicago Highland Games for instituting concert formation for their band competition. The accompanying poll results can now be revealed. We asked the question ‘What do you think of the circle formation for band competition’. The results show an overwhelming majority in favour of change – a huge 88%. The response ‘Couldn’t be better; leave well alone’…

PP Editor’s Blog: Games Attendance/Bands at Bridge of Allan

There are some pretty simple solutions the Competing Pipers’ Association could enact to solve the poor turnouts at our Highland games. I hope I am not overstating the problem, but when only handfuls of pipers are turning up at the likes of Taynuilt, Lochearnhead, Markinch, Luss, Tobermory, we need to do something. Inveraray, by contrast, can attract 35 for its B grade events, 27 for the C and a healthy entry for…

Geoff Hore, Pipe Music Collector and Researcher

Robert Wallace: It is with sadness that I report the passing of Geoff Hore, Auckland, New Zealand, after a long illness. He had been suffering from motor neurone disease.  In decades of collecting pipe music books Geoff, an NZ Gold Medal piobaireachd winner, had amassed a vast collection of works and there were very few editions he did not possess, some very rare. In the last few years he had…

Hallkirk Games, Pacific North West Results, AP Campbell on the Games, WW1 Tunes, Tom Peterkin

Results for Hallkirk Games and in the US the Pacific Northwest band and solo competitions, have been posted on the Results pages. The picture above shows Colin Campbell, Aberlour, the Champion Piper at Hallkirk. Colin is playing at Tobermory Games in beautiful conditions under the famous piobaireachd tree. Writer, poet, broadcaster and actor Angus Peter Campbell, father of noted young player Brighde Chaimbeul, had an interesting article on the games…

A Look Back at the Scottish PB Championships and a Review of Grade 1

A very busy week in the piping and pipe band calendar ended with the Scottish Pipe Band Championships at Dumbarton on Saturday. The championship, the fourth in the RSPBA roster, was won by Ireland’s St Laurence O’Toole. Today we carry a review of the Grade 1 contest from editor Robert Wallace. Comments on his comments are welcome. The above picture shows a SLoT piper playing in front of Dumbarton Rock,…