Highlands & Islands Festival 2026 – Updated With Full Results and Comment

Very large entries in all Senior and Junior Grades. The competition was held in the Oban High School on Saturday, May 2. Judges reported a high standard in both P/A events. Of the MSR Barry Donaldson commented: ‘The prizewinners all played extremely well. There was very little between them. The pipes and fingers were impressive and those who failed to make the list generally had issues with pulsing and phrase…

Analysis: A More Authoritative and Pleasing Way of Playing a Particular Crunluath Motif

By Robert Wallace This article concerns the crunluath motif written in the Piobaireachd Society’s collection, before the 2019-2025 revision, as: What follows I first wrote about 22 years ago. I raised it again at the at the recent Piobaireachd Society Judges Seminar when discussing the tune, the Pride of Barra. The timing of this motif is important given that it features not only in the Pride of Barra – set…

Readers Letters: P/M Hamilton Workman and the RSPBA Pipe Band College

We have received the following comments regarding articles in this week’s Piping Press. Firstly this from reader Joe Hardy on ‘Remembering P/M Hamilton Workman, HLI’: ‘This is a truly wonderful memory of Hammie. So many pipers today don’t really know about him and don’t understand how important he was to piping in the U.S. I attended the North American Academy of Piping [NAAPD] every summer between 1985 and 2007.  ‘Hammie…

Remembering P/M Hamilton Workman, HLI

Wouldn’t it be interesting to go back in time to piping contests held in the late 1950s-60s and see all the legends of piping from that era? Think of the bigger than life names, such as John MacFayden, Donald MacPherson, John D Burgess, Donald MacLeod, and many others.  One name, maybe not as prominent, but certainly competitive, would have been Hamilton Workman. Hammie, as he was affectionately known to me…

SPA Professional Contest 2026 – Full Results

The annual professional competition run by the Scottish Pipers’ Association was held at the Piping Centre in Glasgow today, April 11. There was a good entry in all categories. The competition was sponsored by the Piobaireachd Society and the Competing Pipers’ Association. Champion Piper was Cameron May (pictured above). Four prizes and five places in each category. President Logan Tannock thanked the stewards who were on duty throughout the day from…