British Pipe Band Championships – Boghall Triumph

Peoples Ford Boghall and Bathgate (pictured after the results were announced) are the new British Pipe Band Champions winning today at Grant Park, Forres, Moray, in cold, changeable weather conditions. Only one MSR was required in G1. Boghall placed first in piping and ensemble and second in drumming. The other places in the top grade went to: 2 Inveraray3 Shotts4 SLOT5 Fife Pol.6 FMMDrumming: Fife Pol. Judges for the Grade…

Scottish Schools Festival/ Latest CLASP Results

The Scottish Schools Pipes and Trad Music Festival is a new open-air event running from 12th – 15th June in Edinburgh. It is supported by Edinburgh Council, the National Galleries of Scotland and the Scottish Schools Pipes and Drums Trust. There will be over 20 performances from youth pipe bands, ceilidh groups and trad music groups from Edinburgh, Falkirk, Renfrewshire, North Ayrshire, and the Highlands. Daytime performances will take place on the…

Piping News from Brittany

As part of the 70th anniversary of the bagad [pipe band] Raoul II of Fougères, a piobaireachd concert was held in the small church of Beaucé, Brittany, writes Clement Gallet. The tunes were very well introduced by Pierre Gallais. He took the time to teach the general history and structure of piobaireachd, as well as introducing each individual tune and piper before they played. Five pipers played, most of them…

Pipe Bands Gear up for Second Major of Season

Forres in Moray will host the British Pipe Band Championship this Saturday, June 8th. The competition is being held in Grant Park, very popular with bands after the successful staging of the European Championships there from 2013-18. The above aerial shot is of that championship and comes courtesy the promoters ‘MacPipingHot Forres’ a partnership between YBD Music Ltd and the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association. The RSPBA report all arrangements…

The ‘Old Men of the Shells’ and a Win for Alastair Murray

The Clan Donald Trust for the Gaelic Performing Arts, together with the Robert Burns Society of Charleston, are pleased to announce that, on 31st May 2024, Alastair Murray won the third annual Joseph MacDonald Memorial Prize for Piobaireachd, writes Major Bruce MacDonald. It is held as part of the Scottish Performing Arts Classic in Charleston, South Carolina, USA. The judge was Jack Lee of Vancouver, British Columbia. Alastair Murray was…