Northern Meeting Day 1 (Updated) – Finlay Wins Medal and ‘A’ MSR – Canadians Sean McKeown and Bruce Gandy Take Silver

Finlay Johnston completed his set of Highland Society of London Gold Medals when he took the premier award at today’s Northern Meeting in Inverness, writes Robert Wallace. Finlay won the Oban medal three years ago and now joins the select band of double gold medallists. Today the judges described Finlay’s performance of Farewell to the Laird of Islay as ‘beautifully controlled and phrased, perfectly fingered on an immaculate instrument’.  You cannot get…

PP Editor’s Blog: Northern Meeting, Dan Lyden Pic, SPA Juveniles, Games League

To Inverness tonight for the Northern Meeting. There’s a reception in the Town House from whence will come my first report. Entertaining us will be last year’s Gold Medallist Douglas Murray and the band of the Queens Own Highlanders Association. Look for results from tomorrow’s events – Gold and Silver Medals, and the ‘A’ MSR at around 6pm and the Former Winners’ MSR much later. Friday’s results from the Clasp,…

PP Editor’s Blog: Oban Gold Medal Critique/ New Juvenile Band/ Shotts Jnr. Contest/ Grampian League

Read adjudicator Dr Jack Taylor’s comments on the 2015 Argyllshire Gathering Gold Medal – erudite, articulate and analytical. You’ll always find the best writers on Piping Press. News of a new juvenile pipe band from Oliver Brownlie. Check out the notice: Still with the bands Ewan McAllister of World Champions Shotts & Dykehead has sent this notice about the forthcoming Shotts Juvenile contest: ‘Building on the success of 2014 we are…

Northern Meeting Prelim: Judges, Draw etc.

This week the focus of world piping switches to Scotland’s northernmost city, Inverness and our own Theatre of Dreams, Eden Court. Anyone who has ever been to the Northern Meeting piping competitions knows of the tension, the excitement and special atmosphere that surrounds the place and its precincts over the two days of the Meeting. The best pipers in the world are there to do battle for honours they know…

Oban 2015 – Gold Medallist John Angus Smith Interview

By Robert Wallace Another successful Argyllshire Gathering concluded yesterday as you will have read, and plans are already underway for next year’s gathering. The weather was particularly unkind on Games Day (though it brightened up later), but it could not lessen the light in the eye of the new Gold Medallist, John Angus Smith. In a short interview he told Piping Press: ‘It feels fantastic to have won the Gold…