In last week’s references to Duncan Johnstone I deliberately avoided mention of his oft-used description as ‘King of the Jigs’. I don’t know where or how he assumed this epithet but it was one he disliked. He was good at them mind. His was a rounder style, perhaps, given his Barra roots, an island way of handling this much-maligned tune form. Duncan’s presentation was often misinterpreted as straight as a die…
The following advice may be of use to all pipers, but especially those who intend competing round the games this summer. Before any public performance be aware that your bagpipe sound is 99% of the battle. You will NEVER do well on an ill-sounding instrument, yet even the more middle of the road piper can excel when his or her instrument displays vibrancy and accuracy of tuning. I say, perhaps…
We are indebted to Calum MacLean, Tobermory, Mull, for this unique, handwritten copy of the famous 2/4 march Dugald MacColl’s Farewell to France – handwritten by the composer himself, the great John MacColl. It was given to Calum’s grandfather by John MacColl and is rightly displayed with pleasure on the wall of Calum’s piping room. The tune was written to commemorate the safe delivery from WW1 of John MacColl’s son…
Now a respected member of the RSPBA’s Adjudicators’ Panel, P/M Robert Mathieson won no less than five World Grade 1 Pipe Band Championships in his highly successful career at the helm of Shotts & Dykehead. Here we run the second part of the interview he gave to Pipe Band Magazine after winning his third in 2000. It will be of great interest to everyone aspiring to similar success. Robert is pictured…
I was sorry to learn the other day of the passing of Pipe Major Archie Cairns. Archie was aged 87 and throughout his life piping was central to everything he did. An obituary in Canada’s ‘Your Life Moments’ reads: ‘Peacefully at home on 1 April, 2016, at the age of 87 with daughter Fiona at his side. He was a loving and devoted son, brother, husband, father, and grandfather. Archie…
Recent Comments