The first day of the Florida P&D Academy is over and has gone well. We have a lower intake than previously but this is to be expected given the change from south of the state to north east. A lot less traffic and a lot cooler up here than in the Boca Raton, though it was 81ºF just before we arrived. Travelling in North America via the northern states in winter…

By Robert Wallace The refurbishment of the RSPBA’s headquarters in Glasgow is well underway as the picture above shows. I understand that Association staff expect to be able to move back in from their temporary offices across the road in Washington Street before the end of the year, possibly as early as September. The building has been stripped back to bare stonework in readiness for a completely new custom designed interior….

By Jeannie Campbell The South London Girl Pipers were listed among the new bands joining the SPBA in 1961. The Belfast Girls’ Pipe Band and the Faulat Girls’ band were mentioned as playing at events in Northern Ireland that same year. The Deeside Ladies (pictured above) were probably the most successful ladies band ever. The band was founded in 1964 and started off in Grade 4. In 1981 they were Champions…

Rob MacNeil, President of the British Columbia Pipers’ Association: ‘A note that Jori Chisholm won the 4th annual Boney Music Memorial Invitational on February 9, 2019. ‘Over $2,500 was raised for brain cancer research at the BC Cancer Foundation. All the details and pictures are athttps://www.bcpipers.org/2019/02/jori-chisholm-wins-the-2019-boney-music-memorial-invitational/ ‘I have also enclosed a picture of Jori in action at the event [above]. It was a great night all around.’ Here is the BCPA…

I read at the weekend that Scottish local authorities can only raise around 12% of their own inciome from local taxes (down from 20% some years ago).As such I am not sure we should be too critical of them when we consider the worrying situation of music teaching in our schools. These councils have their hands tied. Direct much of your ire to the Scottish ‘government’ at Holyrood. In the…