Review: Johnstone Pipe Band Concert at Celtic Connections 2018

What a thrill it  must have been for the youngsters brought on to the stage for the finale of Johnstone Pipe Band’s Celtic Connections concert yesterday, writes the Editor. It made for an emotional end to what was a thoroughly pleasant way to spend a Saturday afternoon. The concert began with warm up sets from Finlay MacDonald, Angus MacColl jnr. – at times you could have sworn it was dad…

New Recording from Donald MacPherson added to PP Archive/ RSPBA Update Prescribed Tunes

A treat for piobaireachd aficionados today with the posting on the PP Audio Archive of a performance of the Lament for Mary MacLeod by Donald MacPherson, writes the Editor. The recording was made by the BBC in 1977 during a recital Donald gave with P/M Angus MacDonald at the Eden Court Theatre, Inverness.We are grateful to Donald McBride, one of Donald’s former students. for passing it on. Donald’s playing reflects all…

PP Ed's Blog: WW2 Pipes/ Piobaireachd Society Conference/ CoP Lecture

A couple of weeks ago we highlighted a request from RSPBA Vice Chairman John Hughes for information about a set of pipes presented to his uncle, PoW William Chisholm, during WW2. The pipes had a plaque on them which indicated they may have arrived in Germany via the Piobaireachd Society. We asked if any other readers had similar sets. I was pleased to hear from Iain Duncan, the former archivist…

Winter Storm Closing Concert and Weekend Review

With a sell out crowd achieved the day before, the venue was packed for the annual gala concert featuring celebrated soloists, mini bands, Highland dancers and all held together by Ken Eller, the long-standing master of ceremonies, writes our Special Correspondent. In a nice touch, the students of St Thomas Episcopal, from Houston, Texas, kicked off proceedings, led by former World Champion Drum Major, Jason Paguio of the SFU organisation….

Winter Storm – Full Results with wins for Sarah Muir, Alastair Lee, Grant Cassidy and Andrew Elliot

Our Special Correspondent reports: Cool running in chilly Kansas. With a record number of competitors, the event ran for around 12 hours, using multiple rooms, venues and facilities in the Winter Storm Campus. The judges were allocated across the lot and full marks to that crew for sticking at it through the day. They only have the Workshops and Gala Concert to worry about today. The blue ribbon events were taken…