If, like many, you enjoy piping history, you will read the following with avidity. It is from P/M Sandy Hain, formerly of Fife and now domiciled in Ohio, USA. Sandy ‘did the course’ at the Army School of Piping, Edinburgh Castle, 1950 -51. He has many stories of his time there with P/M Willie Ross, great piper and a great character (as you will see). We asked Sandy if he would…
An important initiative to help youngsters learn the pipes has been launched by the Scottish Schools Pipes & Drums Trust. ‘The Bagpipe Amnesty’ is asking for individuals with old sets of pipes to donate them to the trust so that they can be handed over to needy children. The Trust is being supported by Scottish Fire and Rescue Services who have offered fires stations as drop-off points for the instruments. The…
Reed expert and professional maker Chris Apps continues with his monograph on cane drone reeds and addresses further problems that can be encountered with them…. Dealing With Cane Drone Reeds Part 2 by Chris Apps The Reed Squeals There can be more than one cause of this problem: a) The bridle is too tight. Re-tie the bridle a little looser and test again (there are instructions for tying bridles later in this…
This article, by reed expert and professional maker Chris Apps, first appeared in the Pipe Band Magazine 15 years ago but is as relevant today as it was then, especially as more bands are turning to cane to add depth to their overall sound… Are You Able to Handle Cane? by CHRIS APPS I LIKE the sound of cane drone reeds but don’t use them because plastic is so much easier to set and maintain….
It was a pleasure to talk to Sandy Hain the other day. Sandy is the composer of the popular jig Donald MacKillop, now better known, erroneously, as Duncan MacKillop. The eponymous Donald was from Wick and a piper in the Black Watch through WW2. Sandy was Pipe Major at the regimental depot in Perth. Sandy ‘did the course’ with Willie Ross 1950 -51 along with Bob Crabb (Scots Guards), Peter…
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