The Piping Wire: Made by Enthusiasts, for Enthusiasts

Keeping up with the piping world can mean visiting a growing number of websites, checking competition calendars and hoping you haven’t missed news about a favourite piper or band. The Piping Wire is a new, free service designed to make that easier – and to grow with the community it serves. By Henry Edwards Made by enthusiasts, for enthusiasts, the Wire brings together news, competition coverage and events from across the…

Lochnell Piping Championship Results and Report

This prestigious, invitation-only contest for solo pipers aged under 22 was held on Saturday, October 10th, at Lochnell Castle, Benderloch, Argyll, courtesy the Earl of Dundonald. The overall champion at the 6th annual competition was Thomas Fallon from Edinburgh. Thomas is 19 and this was his first appearance at the Lochnell. He is a piper with Field Marshal Montgomery. By Robert Wallace He is pictured above with Magnus Stone (l),…

Classical Pipe Music in the Heart of the City of London

If last year’s inaugural London Recital established the formula, this year proved it was no one-off. Black tie, fine wine, Raasay whisky and, most importantly, first-class piping: the second edition of The London Recital delivered another memorable night of ceòl mòr and ceòl beag in the City of London. Photos, a highlights video, and full recordings of the two piobaireachd can be found at www.thelondonrecital.com. But for those who weren’t there,…

Review: ‘A Guide to the Judging of Piping’

This attractive book is structured as follows: firstly a short Foreword by Robert Wallace; then ‘A Code of Practice at a Glance’; ‘A Guide to the Judging of Piping’ by Dugald Graham-Campbell, who was born in 1921, and Malcolm McRae’s comments on that work, ‘A Review of the Guide’. Then we have, James Campbell’s ‘A Different Approach to the Judging Problem’, Colin MacLellan’s ‘A New Approach to a Judging Problem‘,…

Arthur Remembered/ Springbank Results

On a beautiful autumn afternoon the people of Kilchrenan and Dalavich on Lochaweside gathered yesterday to remember Arthur Gillies, one of Argyll’s finest pipers, writes Alastair MacGregor. Locals were joined by visitors from as far away as Connecticut and Colorado. The event was organised by Stella Leitch, the daughter-in-law of Jock Leitch, another Kilchrenan piper and the man who started Arthur on the chanter. This special day comprised an exhibition…