Piping Press

Dr Peter McCalister: A very successful AKQ again today, with 23 players on the day. The competition is sponsored and promoted by the Piobaireachd Society in memory of its former Music Committee Editor Archie Kenneth. The winner was Andrew Park with a bold rendition of the Rout of Glenfruin from Donald MacDonald’s book. Judges were Donald MacPhee and Patricia Henderson. Full results:1 Andrew Park2 Stuart Gaudin (The Groat) 3 Gill…

By Iagan MacNeil A new tune has been composed to support the work of the Eilidh MacLeod Memorial Trust. It will be premiered live at a special fundraising event in Glasgow next month. ‘A Tune for the Trust’ is by music student and award winning pipe band drummer Fergus Bryce. 14-year-old piper Eilidh, from the Isle of Barra was a victim of the 2017 Manchester Arena attack.   Fergus’s starting point…

Every day is a school day as they say and if ever the old adage was proved true it is here in Florida at the Pipe & Drum Academy. Star of the week has to be the brilliant Stephen Creighton, World Champion leading drummer with St Laurence O’Toole. Harsh truths about playing standards have been told and it seems that the more Stephen dishes out the honesty the more his…

Playing the pipes is something a person does for life. For many of us it has provided a lifelong musical pursuit, and a source of great pleasure and interest. It makes sense to those who love the pipes (i.e. are obsessed with them) that Robert Reid, one of the finest pipers who ever played, could say that if he had his life again he ‘would spend it playing pipes’. He also said…

Almost fifty years ago an Army pipe major approached his regimental music director and asked him to make an arrangement for a spiritual hymn that went well on the pipes. The Pipe Major was Tony Crease, the tune was Amazing Grace and The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards were about to take the popular music world by storm. P/M Crease and members of the Pipes & Drums and RSDG Military band…