It Is Time We Addressed the Issue of Pipe Band Sizes

I had this message from Ken Stewart, Northern Ireland, the other day: ‘I just stumbled on an old programme of the European Championships in Stranraer 1989. There were 24 bands playing in Grade 1 and 34 in Grade 2. It is startling just how many of these bands are on longer operational.’ Indeed it is Ken. There is a decline and it is creeping up on us. And don’t use the…

Editor’s Notebook: Worlds Prices/ SPA Meeting/ PS Summer School/ Festival of Junior Piping/ Luss Games

Tickets are now on sale for the Worlds and already there has been a frisson of discontent regarding spectator prices. One reader has written: ‘I have noticed that tickets for the Worlds have just gone on sale on the Tickets (theworlds.co.uk) ‘I am a little shocked at the various add-ons to the face value of the ticket, thus…. A 12% booking fee will be added to all tickets A £1…

European Pipe Band Championships 2022 Results

Bught Park, Inverness, was the venue for this year’s European Pipe Band Championships, the third major of the season. Ninety – nine bands entered. Inveraray were crowned Grade 1 champions. The full result was:1 Inveraray (pictured)2 Scottish Power3 Field Marshal4 SLOT5 Fife Police6 BoghallDrumming: InverarayJudges: D Brown, R Mathieson, D MacPhee, J Wilson Grade 21 Annan2 Buchan Peterson3 Uddingston4 City of Edinburgh5 Portletham6 Worcester Kiltie (USA) Drumming: Buchan PetersonJudges: T…

New Information for John and his Ancient Bagpipe Identification Research

There are so many old makers that we have yet to positively attribute works to, that short of carefully removing all of the lacquer in the hope of trying to find a maker’s stamp, we may never really know who made this set until something very similar surfaces. Not just one or two of the features being similar, but all. By George Hannah Some of the features that stand out…

Editor’s Notebook: Teaching At the Highest Level is the Only Answer to Decline/ Atlantic Canada Challenge

Michael Grey, the invigorating new President of Ontario’s Piping and Pipe Band Society, lamented on social media the decline of bands and piping in his province. Mike’s bout of mild depression was occasioned by his perusal of an old programme from 1972 of the Canadian National Exhibition Intercontinental Gathering held in Toronto. Ontario then was second only to Scotland in the piping empire. Dozens of bands in every grade. Top…