Piping Press

Some time ago a reader alerted me to what he termed the ‘California D throw’, the ‘light’ throw. He said that he had noticed how modern pipe bands and soloists seemed to opt for this style. The correspondent thought the ‘light’ throw ‘sounded tidier’ in bands but thought it lost ‘importance’ when played by a soloist. By importance I took it that he meant impact or definition. He speculated: ‘Has the…

Robert MacNeill, President of the BC Pipers has written: ‘Thanks for your back to back articles on Tom Brown being awarded the MBE and SFU PB’s 2009 Worlds Win pictures retrospective. Tom is so deserving of such a high honour for his great dedication to teaching youth for many decades. I well remember Tom being here to teach at SFUPB’s first two Highland Arts Festival weekends in 1987 and 1988….

By John Hughes, Chairman, Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association I would like to begin by wishing everyone the compliments of the season and all the very best for 2020. This will be a very significant year for the RSPBA. It is our 90th Anniversary yet it doesn’t seem that long ago we were celebrating our 75th. I wonder if our founders back in the 1930s would ever have dreamt that…

By The Editor All the very best to all of our readers, advertisers and contributors for 2020. 2019 has been a successful year for Piping Press, with many thousands of readers attracted by our ‘no spin, no subscription’ quality journalism. Thanks to your support Piping Press will remain an independent, free, self financing web magazine for all of next year and beyond. Since our beginnings five years ago the magazine…

Firstly a very Happy New Year to all the Piping Press readers and all pipers, drummers, drum majors and administrators everywhere. 2019 marked the 70th anniversary of the Northern Ireland Pipe Band League (then affiliated to the North of Ireland Bands Association) becoming the first N.I. Branch of the Scottish Pipe Band Association. This affiliation was the brainchild of pipe band pioneers such as Eddie McVeigh (pictured above) Tom Hart, William…