Category: Features

BC Pipers Tune and Memories of Captain John MacLellan MBE

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Rob MacNeill, President of the British Columbia Pipers’ Association, has sent this: ‘April 20, 2017 marks the 30th Anniversary of the tune for the British Columbia Pipers’ Association. ‘In the lead up to the 1987 Annual Gathering, Captain John MacLellan [pictured top], who was adjudicating that year’s Annual Gathering with Robert Wallace, recommended that a tune composition competition be held for a tune to be named for the British Columbia…

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PP Ed’s Blog: Aussie Rules/ St Petersburg/ Chris Terry

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Latest from Pipe Bands Australia: ‘The national council of Pipe Bands Australia has voted to endorse the decision of bands in the recent annual ballot of bands to include a separate Grade 4 selection of marches events in the contest regulations. ‘National management committee last year introduced a trial rule for the event to encourage bands to return to the competition arena, retain players of long-standing and assist in providing…

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Macdougall of Aberfeldy and that Feature of 1893 Part 2

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We continue with our feature on Macdougall of Aberfeldy and the feature which appeared in the People’s Journal newspaper of November 4, 1893. It is by their ‘Lady Correspondent’ and is headlined ‘An Interview with the Queen’s Bagpipe-Maker’. This is a period piece of writing and the author is clearly no piper. Would that we could get our hands on some of the sets mentioned. There is relevant information on the ivory…

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What Ensemble Adjudicators Should Assess at Competitions

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The following article by Alistair Aitken OBE was  first published in the April 2003 edition of Pipe Band Magazine, an edition now out of print. It throws some light on the still mysterious (to some) business of Ensemble adjudication. Given the rapid approach of the 2017 pipe band season we thought it would be helpful to bands currently polishing up their competition MSRs and Medleys. In the last edition of the…

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Bagpipemakers: An Interview with MacDougall of Aberfeldy

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The following is taken from the People’s Journal newspaper of November 4, 1893. It is by their ‘Lady Correspondent’ and is headlined ‘An Interview with the Queen’s Bagpipe-Maker’. The subject of the article is Duncan Macdougall, Aberfeldy, renowned pipe maker. The article will be of interest to all those who study or collect or indeed manufacture pipes. It is written in the flowery style of the late Victorian times but that…

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