Tag: Bagpipe Stories

Argyllshire Gathering Entries Open/ Set Tune Addition/ Florida Pipe & Drum Academy

Posted on      by      Leave a comment

The Argyllshire Gathering Piping Competitions take place in Oban, Argyll, on Wednesday 26 August and Thursday 27 August 2026. Entries are now open here. The website reads: ‘The Competition features two days of piping excellence, with over 200 pipers from across the globe competing in this, the world’s foremost solo piping competition.’ Pipers are encouraged to enter now but their eligibility and acceptance will only be decided early in the new…

More Argyllshire Gathering Entries Open/ Set Tune Addition/ Florida Pipe & Drum Academy

Consideration of Upper Limits on Numbers Following the Demise of two Grade 1 Bands

Posted on      by      Leave a comment

Recently, two first grade pipe bands ceased operations, unable to attract enough competent pipers and drummers to compete confidently at the top level. This reduction highlights a growing issue: the remaining top bands have become so large that they absorb much of the available talent, leaving fewer skilled players to sustain other Grade 1 or 2 bands. By Allan Hamilton Historically, a greater number of strong bands existed precisely because…

More Consideration of Upper Limits on Numbers Following the Demise of two Grade 1 Bands

Gordon Duncan Tribute/ George Sherriff Results

Posted on      by      Leave a comment

A special concert is to be held at Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow to celebrate 30 years of the release since the groundbreaking ‘Live ‘n Well’ album by Vale of Atholl Pipe Band under P/M Ian Duncan. A Gordon Duncan Tribute Band will lead the musical offering at the concert with input from Ross Ainslie and Ali Hutton. P/M Duncan, Gordon’s brother, and Ryan King have hand picked a line…

More Gordon Duncan Tribute/ George Sherriff Results

‘Piping’ World Record in Melbourne/ Stuart Liddell’s Winning MSR at London

Posted on      by      1 Comment

The above video has received 160,680 views so far, writes the Editor. Thanks to the reader who forwarded the link. The video is of pipers gathered in Federation Square, Melbourne, Australia, on 12th Nov 2025. The organisers say 374 pipers took part creating a world record for pipers playing in ‘unison’. They did not play a proper pipe tune but rather passages from ‘It’s a Long Way to the Top…

More ‘Piping’ World Record in Melbourne/ Stuart Liddell’s Winning MSR at London

Editor’s Notebook: Bands Under Threat/ Big Rab Show/ Angus MacKay/ Talk Piobaireachd

Posted on      by      1 Comment

The well-documented concerns of the audience at last summer’s Worlds is not the only matter which seems to have been passed over by the RSPBA Board of Directors at their October meeting. What about the demise of two of our Grade 1 pipe bands, Johnstone and Closkelt? Did this merit any air time at all? There is a line in the minutes which tells us that one enlightened director did…

More Editor’s Notebook: Bands Under Threat/ Big Rab Show/ Angus MacKay/ Talk Piobaireachd