Glenfiddich 2015 – Full Report from Blair Castle

This was a vintage Glenfiddich, which the packed audience in the great hall of Blair Castle was privileged to hear.  To begin with, we heard ten technically faultless tunes, played by ten of the world’s leading pipers of today: a rare occurrence. But technical perfection needs another ingredient: the pipers must convey the music as well as the notes.  But there was no shortage of music, and the adjudicators must…

Some Thoughts on London 2015

I first travelled to London for the annual competition in 1976 and have always found it an enjoyable experience. I can’t quite put my finger on why this should be. A chance to meet up with piping colleagues in a far off land? A different competing environment? The beer? I don’t know. Certainly the lure of the big prizes, the Bratach Gorm and Gillies Cup and all the history attached…

PP Editor’s Blog: KO Contests/ Caption Contest/ Rosneath Thoughts/ World Drumming

Congratulations to Craig Muirhead on winning through to the next round of the Scots Guards KO against Brian Lamond. The first round of the SPA KO is on November 7 at the College of Piping. The jousters are Finlay Johnston and John Patrick. 7.30 start, bar and refreshments. The Northern Ireland Branch of the RSPBA have sent this: ‘Thanks to Ian Burrows, pictures from all 2015 pipe band contests (except Rostrevor)…

PP Editor’s Blog: Northern Meeting/BBC/ Letters etc

The Northern Meeting Clasp competition is a main feature today with a review of that event and of the successful two-day festival of piping held at Inverness.  There was a lot of traffic last week about US piper Dan Lyden playing in torrential rain at Cowal, stoic to the last. But we over here have our own weather warrior too, in the shape of Gold Medallist Faye Henderson. Alister Sinclair,…

PP Editor’s Blog: Oban Gold Medal Critique/ New Juvenile Band/ Shotts Jnr. Contest/ Grampian League

Read adjudicator Dr Jack Taylor’s comments on the 2015 Argyllshire Gathering Gold Medal – erudite, articulate and analytical. You’ll always find the best writers on Piping Press. News of a new juvenile pipe band from Oliver Brownlie. Check out the notice: Still with the bands Ewan McAllister of World Champions Shotts & Dykehead has sent this notice about the forthcoming Shotts Juvenile contest: ‘Building on the success of 2014 we are…