Category: Letters

A Letter from Australia from a Man Dedicated to Preserving Piping History

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Last week we told of the generosity of Robert Bruce McKenzie Baker from Maclean, New South Wales. Robert had donated two handsome snuff mulls to the Northern Meeting, one of which will be used for a prize in their junior competitions. The other has been given on loan to the Piping Centre Museum. Read about the snuff mulls here. Robert, pictured above at a games in 1997, has written an…

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New Victorian Era Trophy for Northern Meeting

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News from a very generous Piping Press reader……. My name is Robert Baker, I live in Maclean, New South Wales, Australia. In 2018 I acquired, from Colin Ross, Ontario, Canada, two antique snuff mulls, belonging to his ancestors. I have included pictures. I am a piper, as were my sister, father, great-grand father and great uncle (Murdo Mackenzie, Gold Medallist 1895). Much as I enjoy my mulls, I also felt…

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Editor’s Notebook: Pipes Difficulty/ Muirheads Articles/ Paddy Moloney/ Jim Murdock/ John MacLellan Recital

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In a recent poll covered in the national press the pipes came on top as the hardest instrument of all to play. The order given was 1 Bagpipes 2 Piccolo 3 French horn 4 Violin 5 Oboe 6 Flute 7 Cello 8 Accordion 9 Organ and 10 Drums. I’m not sure who conducted this survey or what the criteria were, but it seems spurious to me – no mention of…

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Focal Dystonia in Pipers – Readers Respond With Touching Personal Stories

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We make no apology for this third and final (for now) article on Musician’s Focal Dystonia (MFD). You only have to read the comments below to realise the anguish this distressing condition has caused pipers. We are grateful to these correspondents for sharing their experiences and to Norman Matheson whose erudite articles brought the matter once more to pipers’ attention. Bill Currie: ‘Some 15 years ago I consulted the late…

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Picture Poser Solved/ Solo Contest Round Up: Bratach, Captain John, George Sherriff

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In reply to yesterday’s photograph poser, Donald Mackay, Pipe Sergeant of Scottish Power, was first out of the blocks. Donald writes: ‘This photo was taken in 1999 out in Pakistan. ‘The Pipes and Drums of the 1st Btn The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons & Camerons) were out taking part in Queen’s Birthday celebrations all over the country. ‘The band played at various engagements and functions in Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore and…

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