PIPING WORLD. Joseph MacDonald. Iain Speirs. Jock McLellan. The Balvenie Medal. Bill Robertson. The Massacre at Dunaverty.

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1 THE WORLD S ONLY INDEPENDENT PIPING MAGAZINE PIPING WORLD Iain Speirs Bill Robertson Joseph MacDonald The Massacre at Dunaverty Jock McLellan Sandy McPhee The Balvenie Medal AUGUST 2009 THE BEST OF THE SOLO & BAND WORLDS INDEX TO PIPING WORLD... August IAIN SPEIRS: CAPITAL PIPER MEMORIAL TABLET MARKS JOCK McLELLAN S GRAVE THE BALVENIE MEDAL: FOR OFTEN UNSUNG HEROES PIPE MAJOR BILL ROBERTSON THE ROAD TO THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS PONTEFRACT PIPE BAND CLOSES ITS DOORS 34 PIPING IN THE ITALIAN MOUNTAINS 37 FROM AYR TO SYDNEY AND BACK TO SKYE 41 THE OLDEST PIPE BANDS IN THE WORLD 42 THE MASSACRE AT DUNAVERTY 47 THE CAMPBELLS ARE COMING 48 THE CLUE OF THE BLACK BOOK 54 TONY FIELD:WIGGLING HIS WAY TO THE TOP ALASTAIR MacSWEEN: AUSTRALIA S PIPING GENIUS FROM THE ARCHIVES:THE ROYAL SCOTS DRAGOON GUARDS OUR ADVERTISERS 06 Edinburgh Bagpipes 10 Azure International 12 Music Publishing 18 Chisholms Favourite Marches 32 The Royal Pipers 36 MacLeod Highland Supplies 40 Duntroon Publishing 44 MacKenzie Menswear 46 Binneas is Boreraig 50 Sgoil nam Piobaire Book 1 50 My King Has Landed in Moidart 64 Scottish World

2 Failte PIPING WORLD a standing welcome message ISSN W ELCOME to this issue of PIPING WORLD DIGITAL, a project which has been on the drawing board for a number of years and which almost came to light in a different form so many times in the last few years. Over the years our print magazine, also called PIPING WORLD, gained a reputation for excellence and it is hoped that we can match the standards set in those earlier years. Included in this issue are a number of articles submitted by those interested in what we do as well as a few cribbed from our archive of print material. Our look at the great art of piping is largely an historical or in-depth one which will allow us to steer clear of the path chosen by other piping magazines. Having the benefit of the resources of a professional publishing house at our disposal it would have been tempting to go another route but I am sure that the path we have chosen will find great favour with pipers everywhere. Digital publishing breaks new ground in many ways, the most obvious of which is its immediacy. This issue has been sent to everybody on our lists on the same day that it has been completed - which is a scenario far removed from the print, production and shipping time it normally takes to produce one of our more traditional print publications. But it is also different in layout concept with instead of the normal staple, or glue/stitching, running through the centre there is in fact no centre. In publishing terminology the lack of imposed pairs means that instead a more computer friendly system has to be adopted and that sees us using a system of two pages to view, so that you read everything from left to right. The front cover is also slightly different in that there is a quick find index on the right side of the front cover pic. For those who want to print we have stuck with the traditional method of four page sections which allows you to print two sided per sheet if that is your choice. For those who want to read and discard or save to hard disc or CD it really makes no difference. File size is also an important issue and certain aspects of our production have been adapted to ensure we can finish with as small a file size as possible. I am sure that in time a number of other innovations will be introduced but time will tell. Although this is a pioneering venture the early response has been truly staggering. Our first venture into digital publishing was CRUACHAN!, a clan oriented magazine which then paved the way for the first issue of PIP- ING WORLD digital in mid-march While we had expected that that first issue would have been sent on by our readers to their own mail lists we were just not prepared for what happened. It seems that a significant proportion of our readers have their own major lists, some with as many as 300 other piping addresses, which in addition to ours meant that by the end of the first issue s monthly life span we had attracted something in the region of 20,000 readers. That makes our effort easily the most widely read piping magazine ever produced. Having spent nearly 25 years trying to get somewhere close to that level of readership the almost overnight success was heartening. So too were the early comments, and the s which still continue to flood in on a daily basis. The future, therefore looks very bright and that will include some other innovations which we intend to introduce, making this even more exciting, more vibrant and more immediate. COVER PIC Bruce Campbell PIPE MAJOR Richard Parkes (Field Marshall Montgomery Pipe Band of Northern Ireland) PAGE 2 PIPING WORLD is digitally produced by DUNTROON PUBLISHING 120 St Oswalds Avenue Prenton,Wirral CH43 7ZH TELEPHONE: GENERAL DEADLINE FOR GENERAL CONTRIBUTIONS AND ADVERTISING IS THE LAST DAY OF THE MONTH PRIOR TO PUBLICATION. BUSINESS MANAGER & ACCOUNTS: Susan Campbell EDITOR: Bruce Campbell ( ) PHOTOGRAPY: Duntroon Sports,The Library, Derek Maxwell (William Grant & Sons), Agencies. All material appearing in PIP- ING WORLD is copyright (unless indicated otherwise) and may not be reproduced or stored in any form without prior written permission from the publisher or copyright owner. Duntroon Publishing 2009

3 Iain Speirs: capital piper challenging solo piping s big five I by Bruce Campbell T IS commonly agreed amongst hard-core piping enthusiasts that the top five pipers in the world today include Willie McCallum, Alasdair Gillies, Angus MacColl, Gordon Walker and Roddy MacLeod. That isn t to say that there aren t a number of other outstanding pipers but just the reality that the majority of premier level prizes over the last couple of decades have been largely shared by this quintet. But times change, and one piper who is consistently challenging the status of that elite group is Edinburgh-based Iain Speirs. Iain is the third generation in a family of some talent. His grandfather Jock was pipe major of the London Scottish and then later of the Johnnie Walker Whisky pipe band. Father Tom won the Gold Medal and then later the Clasp to stamp his own name into the record books. Now Tom s sons Gregor and Iain are making their own presence felt with elder brother Iain enjoying a purple patch in his solo career. Major Prizes NORTHERN MEETING 2007: Gold Medal 2006: A Grade MSR ARGYLLSHIRE GATHERING 2002: Gold Medal LONDON 2008: Bratach Gorm DUNVEGAN CASTLE 2005: Silver Chanter 2004: Silver Chanter 2003: Silver Chanter Glenfiddich Placings PIOBAIREACHD 2007: 2nd 2006: 5th MSR 2005: 5th To date that career has seen him win most of the top prizes and a cluster of placings in those events to boot. One event which he hasn t managed to win yet is the Glenfiddich but with a number of placings the signs are there that he is also a serious contender for PAGE 4 PAGE 5

4 that, an event regarded as one of the most prestigious in the piping calendar. Once again he will be part of the lineup at this year s event, courtesy of his win in London s Bratach Gorm Piobaireachd contest last October. This October Speirs will be making his sixth appearance at Blair Castle, with last year being his only year off in the last six. Over the years PIPING WORLD has been there at a number of Iain s wins. My dad was over the moon when I phoned him to tell him the result, he told us after his first win at Dunvegan Castle in the Silver Chanter in He woke everyone up to tell them about it. The Silver Chanter can sometimes totally unnerve competitors, particularly those who are playing at Dunvegan Castle for the first time. By contrast Iain Speirs seemed to be very relaxed. I was quite happy when I came off about how I had felt during my tune, he admitted then. Typically, I always think that I could have done this or that a bit better. I had felt very nervous before I went on but felt relaxed once I was up. Maybe that was a bit of apprehension about how the pipes might go. It is warmer in the playing room and I think that as long as you give enough time to settle the drones then it is OK. But to be honest before I played I didn t think I could win the Silver Chanter against those guys. That thought just didn t enter my head. I d put a lot of work into my tune but I still expected to be nervous when I got up there. But that didn t happen and instead I felt very relaxed. I think that when you get the pipes under your arm and things are going well then you do tend to relax. Then it is just hoping that it all comes out as you hope it will. But I had built it all up so much in my head before hand. My dad played in the Silver Chanter the year that they used it as part of the film The Glorious Effect. My grandfather was also sitting in the audience then and I can still see my dad playing in front of that big mirror. So it was all built up a bit for me. What did help was the fact that they moved the chairs back a bit to give the pipers more space. Words just can t express how I felt; I was so close to tears. I was just shocked. I m delighted but I really can t express it fully. That was after his first win in 2003 and he went on to record a hat-trick with other wins in 2005 and Speirs, who is now well known for his fine bagpipe sound, is quick to credit his tutor Donald MacPherson for the masterly touches in his playing. Yet he is also well known for a strong pipe band background, something which is more common amongst top PAGE 6 PAGE 7

5 Iain Speirs photographed with the MacCailein Mor, the Duke of Argyll, after leading the competing pipers into Mossfield Park, Oban for the 2002 Argyllshire Gathering - the day after winning his first Gold Medal solo competing pipers today than it was just twenty years ago. Iain has a solid background in pipe bands having spent his junior years with the successful Craigmount High School Pipe Band and then adding spells with the College of Piping (Summerside, PEI), Clan MacFarlane (Ontario) and the Lothian & Borders Police. These days he chooses not to play seriously in the band scene as he concentrates on cementing his growing reputation as one of the outstanding next generation of top players. Like his father, Iain also goes to Donald MacPherson, the master, to hone his expression of Piobaireachd. It is a model which has served him well and in recent years he has won both Gold Medals as well as a hat-trick of wins in the prestigious Silver Chanter at Dunvegan Castle. Iain s early influence, other than being around a house which is a constant hub of piping, was Jack Crichton, and, of course, his father Tom who taught both Iain and his younger brother Gregor. I can remember my own trips to Iain s parents house in Christiemillar, in the east of Edinburgh, for Piobaireachd lessons in the late 1970s where there was a constant reminder of piping in everything. A one hour lesson invariably stretched for several hours and involved tea and biscuits along with samples of various reeds that his father Tom was making at the time and chat about all the piping topics of the day. Going home afterwards was like being in a daze; tunes and phrasing, reeds and tips, the sound of drones and the pitching of chanters being the constant base of evenings which are still vibrant even nearly 30 years later. To grow up in that environment would have been awesome. Features of Iain Speirs playing are a light sounding pipe with a delightfully sweet yet full bodied chanter and clean, crisp fingering. His Ceol Beag submitted lists generally have a good sprinkling of tunes by that master composer, Roddie Campbell, who spent his best years also in Edinburgh. Speirs seems to be well at home with tunes like The Royal Scottish Pipers Society, Loch Loskin and The Edinburgh Police Pipe Band with their demand for precise technique and subtle changes of melodic line. In that he is adding a reinforcement to the idea of his being the capital piper. But despite his fine light music playing it is in the art of Piobaireachd that Iain is developing such a big reputation. That is vital for overall success in the Glenfiddich where often the draw can be so cruel and especially so with the Piobaireachd component which starts in the mid-morning of an Autumn day which is still crisp outside. The constant opening doors allowing the capacity audience to take their seats only help to bring part of that chill to the great hall. Put that together with nerves and it often prevents a piper from giving off his best. So being early on is not a favoured position for anyone and to be able to approach the event in the right frame of mind it is imperative that each player sees Piobaireachd as the platform on which to build a successful day. But before Iain Speirs takes his place this year amongst 10 of the world s elite pipers at Blair Castle on Saturday October 31 are the little matters of the Argyllshire Gathering and The Northern Meeting - capital events for a capital piper. PAGE 8 PAGE 9

6 MEMORIAL TABLET NOW MARKS JOCK McLELLAN S GRAVE by Bruce Campbell I IN FEBRUARY 2007 I made a special trip to Dunoon to view the memorial tablet erected in the Bogleha Cemetery to honour Jock McLellan, one of the greatest of all composers of pipe music. The only other tribute to this great man is a small plaque erected in the town s Castle Gardens but unless you know it is there you wouldn t find it. A few articles in PIPING WORLD AZURE INTERNATIONAL 261 Chingford Road Walthamstow London E17 5AB Suppliers of pipe band equipment and uniform accessories TEL/FAX badge@azureinternational.com MOBILE: had caused one local enthusiast to visit the offices of the Cowal Highland Gathering. There an enthusiast response was given by Mrs Janet Fletcher, then General Manager of the CHG. After a couple of calls to our office and a lot of discussion Janet decided that together we should mount a campaign to erect something over the otherwise unmarked grave. It wasn t quite as easy as all that, largely due to the fact that the grave was the responsibility of the War Graves Commission. But Janet ploughed her way through the red tape and succeeded in having the tablet sited - one of the last things she did before finishing her period with the CHG after the 2005 Gathering. Having just edited and compiled the Collected Works of Pipe Major John McLellan I was very keen to get a photo of the tablet. Thanks to the help of the groundkeepers at Bogleha I did just that. The grave is at the far left hand side of the cemetery as you walk in through the main gates, and cross over the small bridge. It is number S24. But I am still not sure that Jock McLellan is given proper acknowledge- PAGE 10 PAGE 11

7 DO YOU HAVE A PIPE MUSIC BOOK YOU WOULD LIKE TO HAVE PUBLISHED? MUSIC PUBLISHING HIGHLAND MEDIA can offer either a CONTRACT SERVICE or IMPRINT SERVICE CONTRACT SERVICE (including any of the following) * assistance in design & layout * preparation of manuscript to camera-ready stage * copyright and legal advice * tune registration for royalty purposes * ISBN cataloguing * print liaison * distribution * marketing IMPRINT SERVICE * taking the rough concept to a finished product under our own imprint including worldwide sales and regular statements - all of the facets of a Contract Service schedule but without any financial investment. IN THE FIRST INSTANCE you should send an idea of your project along with a covering letter to; Bruce Campbell Highland Media 120 St Oswald s Avenue Prenton Wirral CH43 7ZH ment as one of the best composers ever of pipe music. It seems that you have to be dead for at least fifty years before your talents are recognised in Scotland, a country where showmanship is almost frowned upon. In that kind of staid ah kent your faither atmosphere, many a great talent has been ignored. But surely none more so than John McLellan, the composing genius from Dunoon. It is likely that the talents of this great man who was the leading composer in Scottish music in the early years of last century have been diminished because of two things. One is the fact that he has been more often mistaken with his namesake, Captain John MacLellan, Edinburgh Castle. Another, I believe, and a more serious one, is a throwaway line written by Joe Quigley in a little piping magazine in the middle of last century. He wrote that McLellan was more noted as a painter than a piper, perhaps inferring that the man who wrote such great tunes as The Taking of Beaumont Hamel, South Hall, The Men of Argyll, The Bloody Fields of Flanders, Campbeltown Kiltie Ball, The Dream Valley of Glendaruel, The Fiddler s Joy, Glen Caladh Castle, My Home Town and The Highland Brigade at Magersfontein amazingly wasn t a top piper. PAGE 12 PAGE 13

8 The memorial tablet in Castle Gardens, Dunoon The last tune was written about the battle during the Boer War when as a young piper in the Highland Light Infantry Jock McLellan won the Distinguished Conduct Medal for gallantry in the field. It would be unlikely that McLellan was anything other than a fine piper, even if he didn t rise to the top rank of solo competitors. He won the Burgh Cup at Cowal Highland Gathering in 1904 and 1905 which would certainly indicate that he was at the least a first rate player. The intricate finger work required to master many of his tunes is evidence that his understanding of syncopation, extension of melodic lines and mastery of the principles of music show his undeniable abilities. For his part, Quigley s father was a Territorial Army pipe major while he himself is perhaps best remembered as a steward at the annual Cowal Highland Games, a role in which he published a book largely of McLellan s tunes in 1906 called The Cowal Collection of Modern Bagpipe Music. Soldier, poet, piper and fiddler John McLellan was a man of immense talents. But few pipers alive today know that he is also the man who composed the original of the tune which later became immortalised by the likes of Harry Lauder in music halls over the world as The Road to the Isles. A little plaque in Castle Hill Gardens, Dunoon was, until the erection of the grave-side memorial, all that recorded his lifetime although in 1950 the Cowal Gathering Committee inaugurated a PAGE 14 Cup in his name in the Open Piping March contest which has been continued ever since. McLellan s talents will live on forever wherever pipers play because even today his tunes are still classics in the repertories of solo players and bands alike. And his music is also standard in Scottish dance bands. McLellan was born in His father was an Islay man while his mother was from Jura. In 1890 he composed a striking March which he named The Bens of Jura in honour of his mother (later he also called another tune after her, Mary Darroch ). That tune was to undergo a name change twenty years later and become, along with some of the tackiest words ever written, The Road To The Isles (it has also been known at various times as The 71st s Farewell to Dover and The Highland Brigade s March to Helibron ). This was before the days of what he know as copyright or royalty. In 1892 he enlisted in the 71st Highlanders and over the next 10 years spent his time overseas in Malta, Crete and South Africa. Shortly after being demobbed he joined the-then Govan Burgh Police as a piper, the forerunner of today s Strathclyde Police. At that time the Govan Police was a haven for Highlanders and greatly encouraged Scottish traditions and sports. McLellan joined the 8th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders in 1912 and then on the outbreak of World War I he became a regular soldier once more. After the war he became Pipe Major of the famous unit and served in that capacity until 1930 when he retired at the age of 55. In all he has had nearly 100 tunes published which I am sure represent a fraction of what he had written during his long and successful life. Occasionally I still come across yet another unpublished tune written in his very neat hand on manuscript. Jock McLellan lived out the remainder of his life in Dunoon, which he immortalised in that great tune, My Home Town. The final word on this great and modest man, who died in 1949, fittingly should be written by Jim Henderson, one of his direct descendants and himself a first class piper and a fine and respected teacher: John McLellan, as I remember him, was a very shy and quiet person not given to pushing himself or promoting the great talent he possessed. My late father, Neil Henderson, who was Jock s nephew, told me that Jock would do almost anything rather than talk about himself. I remember as a boy asking him about how he won his D.C.M. He said it was a long time ago and couldn t remember. PAGE 15

9 The Balvenie Medal: for often unsung heroes FLASHBACK: current Balvenie Medalist Iain MacFadyen competing at Dingwall in the late 1980s. T HE Glenfiddich Piping Championships were first started in Since that very first date the contest has captured and held the imagination of the piping world. The right time of the year, a mix of the right players, interest of the world s press, its superb setting, the acclaim of the competing pipers - whatever makes it the world solo championships, de facto if not de jure, the simple fact is that it is. In 1985, Glenfiddich introduced another award - the Balvenie Medal, given for services to piping. There have been some notable pipers who have been awarded the Balvenie, including John MacLellan, Bob Hardie, Duncan Johnstone and Donald Macpherson. But there have also been a number of people who have been more noted for their background support rather than skill on the competition boards. Some, like the first recipient, the late Duke of Atholl, were not even playing pipers but it was their support and dedication to the art which saw them honoured. Liz Maxwell, one of the mainstays of the Wm. Grant & Sons competition, is adamant that those who give so much but get so little in return should be honoured. We have really seen the Balvenie Medal awarded to all of those who were obvious candidates, she said. Now the Balvenie Medal is more about those who go unrewarded for their efforts in piping. Maybe it isn t about the professional pipers anymore. After all they get their rewards on the contest boards. There have been a number of extremely popular medalists in the last few years. But I have to stress that it isn t us who decide who gets the medal. It is the public. Before anyone is considered for the Balvenie Medal we need to get a nomination in writing. Then the decision is made. It is often harder to actually get the person along to the Glenfiddich without them knowing what is going on. If anybody thinks that someone working behind the scenes should be nominated I would be delighted if they contacted us. But I have to stress that the nomination is also made in writing. Then we have to make sure that we get the right person to make the award and that person has to know enough about the medalist's background for PAGE 16 PAGE 17

10 them to be able to make the presentation during the competition which is held in October each year at Blair Castle. Is there a potential BalvenieMedalist in your midst? Despite the fact that the annual award is much acclaimed it hasn t really been made a focal point yet with Scotland s many piping societies and organisations. But perhaps that is the beauty of the whole thing, it is more about unsung heroes, people just going about their daily basis but in doing so giving so much to the art of piping. The Balvenie Medalists 1985 His Grace, The Duke of Atholl 1986 General Frank Richardson 1987 Bessie Brown 1988 Seumas MacNeill 1989 John A MacLellan 1990 Robert G Hardie 1991 James Campbell, Kilberry 1992 Andrew Macneill 1993 Tommy Pearston 1994 Allan Cameron 1995 Maclean Macleod 1996 Duncan Johnstone 1997 Donald Macpherson 1998 Lt. Col. David Murray 1999 Angus John MacLellan 2000 Duncan MacLellan 2001 Rose Fletcher 2002 Jimmy McIntosh 2003 Willie McCallum senior 2004 Harry Denyer 2005 Annie Grant 2006 Sir Ian McKay 2007 Andrew Wright 2008 Iain MacFadyen Andrew Wright, Dunblane PAGE 18 PAGE 19

11 Pipe Major Bill Robertson: leading the way in piping tutorial technology B ILL ROBERTSON has been at the top of the piping tree for a long time, half a century in fact. But that doesn t mean that he isn t up for a challenge, far from it. That willingness to keep abreast of a piping scene which is changing rapidly due to the effect of technology has seen his Piping Light Music and Piobaireachd interactive DVD tuition web service at the top of the hit charts. However, is more than just a portal to Bill s teaching, it is itself a treasure trove of information and an in to a man with a passion for piping and a wealth of knowledge to back it up. With such an immense background in piping at all levels, solo and pipe band, it isn t any great surprise that he has chosen to follow a such teaching path in his retirement but it is the magnitude of what he is doing which is truly awesome. One of Bill s earlier works was the major manual of piping and technique, The Great Highland Bagpipe: A Comprehensive Guide. That book and CD combo now is in three sections, dealing with light music, maintenance, reed setting etc., and Piobaireachd technique etc. He also has two other ground-breaking CDs one for beginners and another with an amazing 115 Piobaireachd tutorials including extra folders on technique, written music etc., and stories/histories supplied by Ron MacLeod. Add to that the sheer depth of material available via his web based system and you d be allowed to ask the question of what drives him to keep up to date in this shifting technological world. I was naturally keen on helping others in piping starting in my National Service days in The Royal Scots, Pipes and Drums under Pipe Major Willie Denholm, he says. A fellow compulsory soldier who became a good friend, George Small, (son of George Small senior, well known piping teacher in the Boys Brigade, Edinburgh) joined the P&D in Munster, West Germany, as a beginner, and was in the same barracks room as myself and four others. I spent much of my spare time teaching George who through that and being in the environment became a PAGE 20 PAGE 21

12 fully fledged basic piper in about six months or so. Another piper in our room was another NS man, Jimmy Turnbull of Edinburgh, who some might know today with his piping at various events and functions in Edinburgh. Later when I was Pipe Corporal and with the influence of Pipe Major Hugh Fraser (ex Cameron Highlanders and that piping legacy) I took a great interest in assisting Hugh in teaching the pipers in our care to become better pipers whether or not they were NS or regular soldiers. It was to the benefit of the Art as much as that of the piper and the band that mattered. Sadly our attitude to piping did not apply to at least one regiment. When I was Pipe Sergeant to Hugh and with two other regimental Pipes and Drums in a large tournament about the mid 1950s all of the bands were tuning up for rehearsal when some of our pipers could not help but listen to other pipers playing individually from one of those regiments. Later on these pipers of ours told me that the other pipers they listened to were playing all sorts things badly i.e. poor execution and lacking expression etc. Later I asked their pipe sergeant about it and he told me that the piper major was not interested in the national service pipers as long as they could play the tunes after a fashion, so to speak. Some years later, when settling here in New Zealand, I continued to be driven more to pass on what I had and improve band standards as before rather than solo Being at the top of the game in the world of the web must seem light years away from his early days as first a piper in The Royal Scots and then pipe major. Every army piper has a host of stories and reminiscences Bill, who was known as Robbie in his days with the First of Foot, is no exception. In earlier times, about 1950, P/M Willie Denholm (ex KOSBs) and one of his more senior NS pipers Bob Gibson, and NS drummer George Stewart played as guests with P/M Donald Ramsay s then-top Edinburgh City Police Pipe Band. Bob, as most would know, joined the E.C.P. Pipe Band after his National Service. As a result of this our Pipes and Drums were given and played many of the selection of tunes of Donald Ramsay s band especially the little Strathspeys and Reels some of which I still remember, and some, I discovered later, in Donald s settings such as Stumpie, Duke of Gordon, Left-handed Fiddler, Mason s Apron, and others with names I cannot recall. Of interest is The Royal Scots Polka composed by Willie Denholm and the setting played by us with him in the early 50s was with conventional second times. Some little time later it was changed to that of today with the rundown second times that I think might have been influenced by Donald Ramsay s suggestion; being with him then. I remember Willie Denholm in those days to be a fine piper with good technique and lovely set of silver and ivory pipes with I think called Runic design that one seldom sees today with some unique raised engraved bubbles. When P/M Hugh Fraser took over our Pipes & Drums my piping awareness went up another level. He made us aware of what I termed the commonsense of grace notes in piping in knowing the logic of where to put grace notes and more important, where not to, in the light music. Pipe Major Hugh Fraser (right), Cyprus He was also happy for me to attend to the care of pipers reed setting, tuning, and proper individual maintenance, tuning the band, taking practice chanter sessions and individual training of pipers when he wasn t available. I still recall the enjoyment we used to have when Hugh would some times pick up his pipes and rattle off Jig after Jig, and some little Hornpipes. Most of us had never heard many of the Jigs before. Hugh told me that when he was back in the Cameron s (as Pipe Corporal or P/Sgt.) one of his young NS pipers was the famous John D. Burgess who used to pester Hugh to write out some of the Jigs that Hugh had played for him. PAGE 22 PAGE 23

13 I could then understand why. When pipers sometimes used to look down at the ground when playing Hugh used to tell them that is was no use looking down there for their lost grace notes keep their heads up! Hugh encouraged me in playing Piobaireachd, especially as I was soon to attend the so-called Pipe Majors Course under the famous Pipe Major Willie Ross BME at the Castle. Earlier when Hugh took over our band he advised me to change from my older fashioned way of playing High A if I wanted to attend a P/M Course because Willie Ross would not accept me playing that way. It did not take me long to change to the acceptable High A with the third finger on not the second finger. P/M Willie Ross from time-to-time would have some quips he liked to relate to the three of us on the Course (others being Cpl. Davie Aitken HLI, and Cpl. Farquhar MacIntosh SG. Only three of the six on the preliminary course were accepted for the full remaining six months course. Two of Willie s quips come to mind: One - The Highland sentry at the Castle gates late one dark evening challenged someone approaching from the esplanade with the words: Who goes there?. The person answered MacNeill of Barra. The sentry then said Advance MacNeill, but leave your barra behind. The other was about the Castle guide conducting some tourists at the upper end of the Castle, when a tourist asked a question. The guide had to take everyone back to the beginning and start all over again. Willie Ross liked to refer us to General Thomason s book on Piobaireachd with its unique shorthand DO YOU WANT A COPY OF THIS DIGITAL MAGAZINE? DO YOU HAVE A FRIEND WHO YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE INCLUDED ON OUR MAILING LISTS? Pipe Major Bill Robertson, 1st Battalion The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment) just send us your address with the tag PIPING WORLD in the subject line or body of your text and we will promptly dispatch you or your friend a free copy of the latest issue of PIPING WORLD pipingworld@hotmail.co.uk PAGE 24 PAGE 25

14 that is said to have influenced the system of music writing of Piobaireachd in the Piobaireachd Society books that I wish could all be re-written/revised in a more-as-played way, even more so in the much later and better few books. We did a lot on Piobaireachd, and writing music by hand twelve of everything in full including Piobaireachd. At times Willie Ross would demonstrate on the practice chanter. My impression was that he had a fluid/flowing kind of style in the light music with good clear execution, but not much in the way of the expected expression. Of course that might not have been his way when younger and competing. His Piobaireachd style was in some ways much as we listen to it today, although certain notes in some Urlars were timed differently to what is generally played today. The echoes of the echo-beats were longer than today and also than those of other authorities I had in Hugh Fraser and P/M Donald MacLeod later. One of Bill Robertons greatest influences in the army was Pipe Major Hugh Fraser, so much so that he composed a Piobaireachd in his honour. Lament for Pipe Major Hugh Fraser was also highly commended in the BBC commissioned composing competition in 1965 when it won third prize. It has also been published by the Piobaireachd Society. Yet, sadly, unless the tune is set for competition by the Piobaireachd Society it is likely to just remain a curio, perhaps only really played by Bill Robertson and a few others. They say that all the great tunes have been written, but they have also been saying that about light music for many years. The truth is that the lack of encouragement given by a system which takes away the public platform of performance is as much to blame for the dearth of modern Piobaireachd as anything else. Perhaps you are correct about the public platform, adds Bill Robertson. I think that Piobaireachd composing competitions, commissions, and rewards help to stimulate and promote new Ceol Mor. Perhaps I would not have had a stab at composing Ceol Mor if there had not been the challenge. I tend to like the shorter Piobaireachd these days akin to some of P/M Donald MacLeod s ones. My feeling about playing Piobaireachd is that it provides a worthwhile and interesting diversion and outlet from the light music. It also shows to its best the sound of the bagpipes as well as good harmonics of a well balanced set which is enjoyable. I feel that in playing Piobaireachd one has to think of some basic points such as knowing the structure of the piece to help with memorisation, and subtle phrasing; having a songlike Bill Robertson on the waterfront at Kowloon with the lights of Hong Kong in the background. he writes: I think the attached from which can select might be of interest.they are the group that took part in the workshop I ran in Hong Kong at their request for five and a half days at Easter fromt 9am to 9pm.All went very well. I saw the bright lights etc., and was well looked after, and all these keen, good students spoke English well.the leader is Tony Ma, a good piper, is immediately to my left with the spectacles. approach; application of the nuances of the phrasing as well in the doublings of most variations with that touch on the last long theme note of each little phrase where possible, but barely noticed and maintaining the flow seemingly. All this requires good solid technique and a well balanced rich sound, not too high-pitched and thin. Naturally that are few areas of piping that don t grab his critical eye and ear. That includes pipe band competitions, where he has a particular interest. I wonder about bands, say in major competitions, that tend to sets trends in the overall playing and style in other PAGE 26 PAGE 27

15 ANNOUNCING THE THIRD RE-PRINT OF THE HOLYROOD COLLECTION: BOOK 1 80 FAVOURITE MARCHES FOR THE HIGHLAND BAGPIPE First published August 2004, Second edition August 2005, Third edition DUNTROON PUBLISHING ISBN pages, soft cover RETAIL FREE WORLDWIDE POSTAGE PayPal payment option INDEX OF TUNES: 42nd Highlanders (The Gallant Forty Twa), the; 51st Highland Division, the; 79th's Farewell to Gibraltar, the;all the Blue Bonnets are Over the Border; Back of Bennachie, the; Badge of Scotland, the; Barren Rocks of Aden, the; Battle of the Somme, the; Black Bear, the; Bluebells of Scotland, the; Bonawe Highlanders; Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond, the; Bonnie Dundee; Bonnie Galloway; Bonnie Lass of Fyvie, the; Braes of Glenorchy, the; Brose and Butter; Brown Haired Maiden; Cabar Feidh; Caller Herring; Cam' Ye By Atholl; Campbells Are Coming, the; Campbeltown Loch; Cockney Jocks; Cock of the North, the; Colonel Robertson; Crusaders March, the; Drunken Piper, the; Dundee Military Tattoo, the; Far O'er the Sea (to Erin); Gallawa' Hills, the; Glendaruel Highlanders; Green Hills of Tyrol, the; Greenwood Side; Haughs of Cromdale, the; Highland Laddie; Highland Brigade at Tel El Kebir, the; High Road to Gareloch, the; Hot Punch; Hundred Pipers, a; I See Mull; Jenny's Bawbee; Johnnie Cope; Kenmure's Up and Awa; Killiecrankie; Kilworth Hills; Liberton Boys Pipe Band; Lea Rig, the; Leaving of Liverpool, the; Leaving Port Askaig; Lochanside; Loch Maree; Lord Lovat's Lament; MacDonald's Awa' to the Wars; Meeting of the Waters, the; Mhari's Wedding; Minstrel Boy; Mucking of Geordie's Byre, the; My Home Town; My Land; My Love She's But A Lassie Yet; O'er The Water to Charlie; Piobaireachd of Donald Dhu, the; Piper's Cave, the; Piper's Polka, the; Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee; Rantin' Rovin' Robin; Road to the Isles, the; Roses of Prince Charlie, the; Rowan Tree, the; Scotch on the Rocks; Scotland the Brave; Shoals of Herring; Siege of Delhi, the; Steam Boat, the; Sweet Maid of Mull, the;teribus;we're No Awa' Tae Bide Awa;When The bands, he adds. I feel that having listened to bands and soloists, especially in major competitions through tapes from BBC FM radio over many years up until the internet, that some things need attention. In general the pitch of the pipes is getting too high and losing that certain richness of sound we used to get, in some top bands and soloists. Much the same took place a good number of years ago then reverted to a better slightly lower pitch, yet bright enough. Lack of expression especially in 2/4 Marches reminds me of some time ago when Simon Fraser University Pipe Band was not long on the World s scene and playing at the World Championships with the 2/4 March P/M MacAllister with good expression, but not winning. A year or so later that changed to the more strict regular way that other top bands were playing better results followed which is now history. Clarity in simple tachums and cuttings could be better too. Similarly competition Reels could have better clarity of execution where clarity of G, D, Es, tachums, and certain doublings of a more open character need it. Tunes in Medleys could be better balanced between the rounder, sometimes clever and quite effective tunes, and the more melodic tunes. I think it is now time to change the position of judges in band competitions to that where the judges are at a suitable distanced fixed position so that bands are judged as bands and not as today with judges creeping around and listening mostly close-up to individuals, not as a band. Bands could still march on playing and forming a kind of horseshoe formation facing the fixed piping judging panel and the main audience; the drumming judge if necessary could be somewhere to the rear side of the drummers. Today, Bill still keeps his hand in; he stills plays, and up until recently he taught at schools, and his own few private pupils but his main thrust is his web site. To my mind that isn t slowing down, it is speeding up because Bill Robertson is setting trends for the rest of us to follow in his wake. Army pipe major, judge, prize winning piper, teacher, writer and composer it sounds like Robbie has done it all, but the chances are that there are more chapters still to come. Bill Robertson s web sites can be checked out at PAGE 28 PAGE 29

16 The road to the World Pipe Band Championships T HE Homecoming Scotland Road To The Worlds Tour has confirmed that the next cities to be given a taste of the World Pipe Band Championships will be Toronto and Manchester. Part of Scotland's Homecoming celebrations, the tour has been visiting cities across the UK, to promote the World's to a wider audience and to attract new fans back to the event at Glasgow Green on Saturday August 15th. As the North West's most successful pipe band, the Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Band are practicing hard in the quest be named Grade 3 champions this August. To mark their preparations they will perform for passengers at Manchester Piccadilly Station on Thursday 23rd July. Says Pipe Major Rick Brown: "The World Pipe Band Championships is the ultimate date in the calendar for pipe bands around the world and we will be thrilled to make the trip to Glasgow once again this August to compete. By taking part in the Homecoming Scotland Road To The Worlds we hope to interest new fans from the North West to come and support us." One of Canada's most successful bands, the 78th Fraser Highlanders (Ontario,Toronto) is making sure there is an international flavour to the tour as they work towards the coveted Grade One Champions title. The band will promote their own personal Road To The Worlds by distributing Worlds brochures and T-Shirts at some of Ontario's major Highland celebrations in July including the Kincardine Scottish Festival, The Oshawa International Festival and the Glengarry Highland Games. Says Pipe Major Bill Livingstone: "We have been attending the World's for so long that we don't even consider the reasons anymore, but it's pretty clear that this annual pilgrimage to Scotland is driven by some strange passion. Hopefully we can spread this passion along the way as part of our Homecoming Scotland Road To The Worlds." PHOTO: Pipe Major Bill Livingstone, 78th Fraser Highlanders PAGE 30 PAGE 31

17 DUNTROON PUBLISHING Scotland s tradition bearers THE ROYAL PIPERS By Robert Bruce Campbell Published November 2006 ISBN pp including illustrations and music Retail Price: 6.50 P&P: free AVAILABILITY First class pipe music shops Direct from us (we accept PayPal and UK cheques made payable to GS Campbell ). Direct from any book shop in the world through the computer book order system or through AMAZON.CO.UK Queen Victoria s love of the Highlands is well known, less well known is the appointment of Angus MacKay, the first superstar of the piping world, to be her personal piper in 1843.That post has been maintained through to the present day with a total of 11 pipers occupying the position. This account also includes details of Bob brown and the Balmoral Estate pipers and the Royal Guard. Manuscript of the pipe tunes Balmoral Castle, The Balmoral Highlanders and Prince Charles March are included. MacKay was the first appointment as piper to a sovereign since the days of the ancient Scottish kings. He was an enigmatic character whose genius flamed the piping world. He was also to become the first superstar of piping, his moves covered by the press of the time in detail. This is a fascinating role with every encumbent having their own tale to tell. Author Bruce Campbell has spent a lifetime both playing and studying piping. THE ROYAL PIPERS is his fourth book on piping. This book is extensively illustrated. A pontefract pipe band closes its doors T ONE TIME the northern English town of Pontefract had its own Highland Gathering as well as a flourishing pipe band. In fact, in 2004 Pontefract & District Pipe Band won the Grade 2 title at the All-England Championships, surely its pinnacle performance. Sadly, the Highland Games folded just a few years ago and now the pipe band has followed. It is always good news to report on the birth of a new pipe band, a major achievement or even attaining the magical mark of one hundred years. And it almost like a death in the family when the collapse of another pipe band has to be reported. "I have had to concede defeat in my efforts to keep the band together and maintain a semblance of our past achievements in Grade 3 and Grade 2, said the band s pipe major, David Waterton-Anderson. Once you lose a key player that drops numbers below that needed for competition. It isn't long before others begin to strike out for other bands in order to compete and before long the band is decimated and on it's knees. Such has been my lot and regrettably it has now fallen to me to wind up the band. Part of David s duties now include the selling off of Pontefract s pipe band gear, including instruments. That includes five Premier sides which are quite new (only had two seasons playing), two mid tenor drums, a broad tenor drum, and two bass drums. All of these drums have carrying cases and there are five harnesses for the sides also. David can be contacted via at dwa@pipingscot.co.uk CONTRIBUTIONS to PIPING WORLD are welcome and may be either magazine-style or academic (complete with footnotes, references etc). Longer articles may be serialised. Ownership of all articles will remain the property of the author although we reserve the right to claim copyright in publication. PAGE 32 PAGE 33

18 sgoil ceol nam piobaire: piping in the Italian mountains I by Bruce Campbell N mid-june I found myself high in the Italian mountain area of Tuscany as the guest instructor at Pietro Malaguti s inaugural Sgoil Ceol nam Piobaire s piping workshop. I had first flown into Pietro s home town of Bologna where over two days I had a guided tour of this beautiful and ancient city. I was a bit surprised at the fact that there was any serious piping in Italy at all although already that year there had been another school a bit further south of Bologna. I was to find out the full intensity of piping in Italy and was astonished at the number of Highland pipers as well as those who played either the Zampogna or Piov, both Italian native bagpipes. Thursday evening saw me piping with Pietro and his star pupil, Paulo Iori, in the Scottish pub close to Bologna. Then on mid day Friday it was off to Pietro s school, sited in the small mountain village of Molino del Pallone. The set-up for the two-day workshop was very impressive: a custom made building which included hotel style accommodation as well as the large hall which we used for teaching and piping. Close by, in fact just five minutes pleasant walk away, was the restaurant where we had our daily meals, all taken in the usual Italian style of everybody around the one table. Meals weren t the quick bite between gracenotes that you might be used to at Scottish workshops, and instead were more of a social occasion. The result was that the group bonded very quickly and were soon swapping experiences and solutions to their own problems. Teaching a group of mature students has its pluses and minuses no matter where in the world the workshop is and I found no exception in Tuscany. On the plus side was the amount of practical application to the pipe itself as well as a better understanding of the art of musicianship. On the down side was the fact that strict gracenote patterns had been mostly replaced by a laissez-faire approach to piping. While I have always shunned dogmas in piping, believing instead that as long as it works it was good, when it comes to a G Gracenote there is only one way for it to be played! The same with all of the piping fundamentals. As a result much of the planned syllabus was swept away to be instead replaced by a strong look at the funda- TOP: Pietro Malaguti (left) - piping is sinple was a theme of the workshop. BOTTOM:The Sgoil Ceol nam Piobaire groupo, 2009 mentals of piping and the importance of playing on a well-tuned and set-up instrument. In the pursuit of this Pietro Malaguti proved to be a superb translator as well as assistant. I am sure that the foundation is now laid to progress this particular group to the next stage while the enthusiasm for playing the Great Highland Pipe has obvious been extended to Italy. For that Pietro Malaguti, who has received tuition in the past from the late Angus MacDonald and Willie Cochrane, is to be thanked. PAGE 34 PAGE 35

19 S Sandy McPhee - on the boards at Sydney in 1935 from Ayr to Sydney and back to Skye OME time ago CELTIC WORLD ran a photograph of two pipers at Sydney s New Year s Day Highland Gathering. One of the men pictured was Sandy McPhee while the other was unknown. Then Kevin Loader of Hyams Beach, New South Wales, produced another photograph, identifying the unknown piper. It was Tom MacKay who was for a long time Pipe Major of the NSW Highland Society, at one time one of Australia s top bands but now no longer in operation. Like the Society, which had once run the famous New Year s Day Games, the winds of change had swept through. Kevin remembers Tommy MacKay as a top piper and excellent pipe major. Then in our post came another surprise: a photo copy of Archie Galloway s booklet, Queensland Piping Reminiscences. It was published by the Queensland Highland Pipers Society in 1972 and remains a valuable primary source half a century of piping lore. Some of the content detailing Sandy McPhee is reproduced here: Sandy McPhee... was of short stature and had been a piper in the HLI before the First World War. He worked in the Railway PAGE 36 PAGE 37

20 David MacKenzie (right) with Skyeman Alex MacPhie at the Sydney Highland Gathering in 1935 PAGE 38 Department and moved from Brisbane to Townsville. I was a very small boy (the article was written by Archie Galloway) living at Ayr in North Queensland and I can just remember him in the very early 1920s. He used to play at a terrifically fast tempo and practically ran around the platform when playing a March and as for Strathspeys, Reels and Jigs - they were like flashes of lightening. In those days the winner of the Open piping was expected to play for the Highland Dancing events and I well remember one particular incident involving Sandy McPhee on New Year s Day at Ayr. Sandy, who wore a white pith helmet to ward off the fierce tropical sun (he had a ruddy complexion), was playing for some competitors in the Jig. They were up on the platform which was about three to four feet high and Sandy was on the ground beside the platform. When playing the pipes, Sandy was in a world of his own, and so far as he was concerned the dancers for whom he was piping may well not have existed; he ignored them completely and merely played a Jig When playing a Jig he seemed to tap his foot violently and his legs seemed to get further and further apart and he, as a consequence, got lower and lower to the ground. With his helmet cocked over his right eye to avoid the bass drone he had his back to the platform and the dancers and his tempo got faster and faster with the result that the dancers could not possibly keep pace with him and gave up the unequal struggle and the (male) judge then started to shout down at Sandy, trying to make himself heard above the sound of the pipes Sandy, for G s sake man, slow down. Sandy competed at Ayr on New Year s Day for many years. I personally competed against him on a number of occasions when I was quite young and he was getting on in years. I managed to beat him on New Year's Day, 1930, and old Sandy did not take it too kindly. However, I succeeded in repeating the performance in 1931 and he graciously conceded that age had to give way to youth. He retired ultimately from the Railway Department and returned home to his native Skye and, I believe, judged at Inverness in The late Wally Ruthven - a well known figure and judge at Warwick and Tenterfield and other Gatherings and a prominent pastoralist in Northern New South Wales in past years, visited Sandy in Skye when on a trip home to the Old Country some years ago and found Old Sandy in a little old cottage, in front of a peat fire. Sandy said he was born in Skye and he had returned to die there and in this respect his wish was granted. I, who remember "Old Sandy McPhee so well, feel something quite moving in this little story. PAGE 39

21 DUNTROON PUBLISHING Scotland s tradition bearers DO YOU HAVE A BOOK YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE PUBLISHED? DUNTROON PUBLISHING has been involved in publishing Scottish related magazines and books since Our small but specialised catalogue has a heavy slant towards Scottish traditions and we have a remit to publish books of Scottish traditional culture interest. If you have a book you would like to be considered for publishing please in the first instance contact us by giving an outline of the project along with size and the possible quantity of any photographs/illustrations. Note that you should expect to wait for 6-12 months to have a project published with us. CONTACT US duntroonpublishing@hotmail.com TELEPHONE: MOBILE: MAIL: 120 St Oswalds Avenue, Prenton,Wirral CH43 7ZH M the oldest pipe band ORE information on the subject of the oldest pipe bands in the world continue to come trickling in which sees our lists updated yet again. This time it is bands from outside of Britain and we have started lists for Canada and Australia. These area all lists in progress and we will gladly update them with reader information. The Canadian band, Sons of Scotland, lays claim to being the oldest pipe band in continuous existence in Canada while two Australian bands, Ipswich Thistle and City of Melbourne, celebrate their centenary this year. Our pipe band is known as the oldest civilian pipe band in Canada, and since the Americans are fairly new to the game, probably that can be stretched to North America, writes Lachlann Bissaillion. We are the Sons of Scotland Pipe Band, currently based in Ottawa, and number, all ranks, around 75 people. Founded in 1896, we are a teaching band, so we range from kids on chanters up to a street band, a grade 5, and a grade 4 competition band. THE OLDEST PIPE BANDS IN BRITAIN 1882 Edinburgh City Police (now Lothian & Borders Police) 1883 Govan Burgh Police (now Strathclyde Police) 1885 Accrington (the first civilian pipe band formed in England) 1887 Colinton & Currie (the oldest civilian pipe band in Scotland) 1887 Wallacestone 1889 Langholm 1890 Kelty & Blairadam 1890 Motherwell 1898 Coalburn Rechabites 1899 Stonehouse 1902 Torphichen & Bathgate 1903 West Calder & District THE OLDEST PIPE BAND IN CANADA 1896 Sons of Scotland THE OLDEST PIPE BANDS IN AUSTRALIA 1894 Royal Caledonian Society (SA) 1898 Coastal Scottish (WA) 1898 City of Melbourne (VIC) 1909 Ipswich Thistle (QLD) 1909 Williamstown RSL (VIC) THE OLDEST PIPE BANDS IN NEW ZEALAND 1897 City of Invercargill 1898 City of Dunedin As usual readers response is most welcome: pipingworld@hotmail.co.uk PAGE 40 PAGE 41

22 a piping legend re-visited: THE MASSACRE AT DUNAVERTY Dunaverty as visitors would see it today - with the ancient fortress almost totally obliterated and only the spectacular beauty of Kintyre to remind us of what happened by Bruce Campbell K INTYRE is almost like an island, cut off from the rest of mainland Argyll by a narrow isthmus which runs from Tarbert to West Tarbert. Tarbert aptly means narrow land and it is this small strip which marks the boundaries of Kintyre with Knapdale. The peninsular of Kintyre is well known for its amazingly beautiful beaches and stunning seaward views with aspects of the islands of Islay, Gigha and Jura. With the future of Campbeltown s ferry link to Ballycastle in Northern Ireland still very much uncertain, the economy of the region is also in the balance. Perhaps tourism is the key to Kintyre s future and certainly the drive from Glasgow, up through Glen Croe, sweeping down and around the shores of Loch Fyne and then over the Tarbert isthmus is one of peace and tranquility - with some of the best scenery in Scotland on the offing. It is also an area steeped in history, particularly because of its ownership at various times between the MacDonalds and their main adversaries, the Clan Campbell. Kintyre is also steeped in piping lore, with centuries of great players. Today that tradition continues as much through the young pipers as well as the great McCallum family. The full McCallum story is still to be written but one aspect which is extremely curious is the lack of Piobaireachd connected with Kintyre. The only tune directly linked with one of Argyll s major land areas is Leaving Kintyre which was published in book 15 of the Piobaireachd Society s Collection. Their source are the manuscript collections of Colin Campbell and Angus MacKay. Other than that there is only really the attachment, more by legend than anything else, of the story of the Massacre of Dunaverty with the Piobaireachd, The Piper s Warning to His Master. According to legend, one day, while the MacDonald chief was absent, the Campbells captured his castles. All of the garrison were either executed or imprisoned in the castle dungeons with the sole exception of MacDonald's piper. Because of the love that the Campbells had for pipe music and also out of respect for his position the MacDonald piper was allowed freedom of movement within the castle walls. Every day the piper played and one such day while he was playing his pipes on the battlements he saw his chief's galley sailing towards the castle. So as to warn his chief of the fall of the castle he played a Piobaireachd that was well known to the chief, but he played it in such a fashion that the chief immediately realised that something was amiss and sailed away to safety. The Campbells were so enraged at this that in a vicious act of retribution they cut of the piper's fingers so that never again would he be ab1e to play a tune of warning. That then is the traditional story attached to the tune. There are three castles which in different accounts are said to be the scene of the Warning - Duntroon, Dunaverty and Dunnyveg. The association with Dunaverty is tenuous at best. The first record of this Piobaireachd, Donald MacDonald's unpublished manuscript, names this tune MacDonald's Warning (Cholle Mo Run), although in later sources it is invariably called The Piper's Warning to his Master. The MacDonald chief concerned in this incident is said to have been Colla MacDonald, but this same name has been used by many historians for both Coll Ciotach and his son Alasdair MacColla. Coll Ciotach is also known as Colkitto, or left handed, but then again so is his son. In the early 1600s the Campbells PAGE 42 PAGE 43

23 were in the process of ousting their MacDonald rivals from Kintyre,and in 1615 they seized Islay. The MacDonalds of Islay fled to Antrim and Coll MacGillespic (Coll Ciotach) became their leader. Later under his leadership they seized control of Colonsay. His son, Alasdair MacColla, led the Antrim MacDonalds throughout the campaigns of the Marquis of Montrose and further added to his reputation as a great warrior. It is impossible to give a definite date for the composition of this Piobaireachd, as it is similarly impossible to say which castle or MacDonald was involved. It is said that this tune has survived in the mutilated form in which it was played as a warning. The irregular metre (8:6,8, in the Piobaireachd Society Collection) is said to be further evidence of the authenticity of both the tune itself and the story attached to it and, again according to lore, the original tune has been lost in the passage of time. The late Professor Alex Haddow had indicated in his location map of Piobaireachd that Dunaverty was the home of this tune - but he also had Islay listed. Haddow also had a large essay on this tune in his manuscript (later published after his death) and was quite clear that the association with Dunaverty was unlikely. The massacre of the garrison at Dunaverty Castle in 1647 was one of the actions that ultimately led to the execution of the Earl of Argyll (the later massacre of the Lamonts at Dunoon was another), But in all likelihood Dunnyveg Castle was the castle involved, and in actual fact the Gaelic name of this piobaireachd is "Piobaireachd Dhunnaomhaig", "The Dunnyveg Piobaireachd". There is a tradition at Duntroon Castle that "Duntroon's Ghost", the spectre of a MacDonald piper slain by the Campbells, plays at night through the castle grounds. Many years ago the floor in the main hall was opened up and underneath was found a skeleton with mutilated hands. However, this same ghost story is also told in connection with Dunnyveg Castle. In all probability some 300 were slaughtered after surrendering the garrison although some sources have the figure as high as 500. Nearly 100 were MacDougalls and the bulk of the rest were MacDonalds. At the time it was a major national scandal. probably giving life to many stories and legends - with clearly the Piper s Warning being adroitly copied from a pre-existing legend. Today, Dunaverty Castle is in the same ruinous state that it has lain since it was destroyed some time about the year Only a few fragments remain and can easily be seen by scrambling over the steep hills. Dunaverty is a few miles south of Campbeltown and past the little village of Southend. PAGE 44 PAGE 45

24 BINNEAS IS BORERAIG CDs BINNEAS IS BORERAIG: DISC ONE Piobaireachd by Malcolm Ross MacPherson ARGYLL MUSIC The Campbells are coming: a tune needing study T HE Campbells are Coming is a very old Scottish song. It is also a pipe tune, with the same name and melody, although it isn t known if the song tune or the pipe tune is the elder. Certainly the pipe tune was popular by the time of the 15 Rising when Argyll s pipers are recorded as having played the tune as they entered the Royal town of Stirling. It raises a few interesting questions, well beyond the scope of this short article. One is that it totally blows away the myths that pipers only played Piobaireachd - and that they never played in concert. I have not come across any analysis of the words either - and clearly there is deep topical comment in the three verses and chorus. NORMAL PRICE Available until 30 June 2009 for 10 - world wide post included by PAY PAL secure link from or cheque by mail payable to GS Campbell, 120 St Oswalds Avenue, Prenton, Wirral CH43 7ZH 01 The Lament for Donald Duaghal MacKay 02 The Children s Lament 03 MacLeod s Salute 04 Craigellachie 05 MacLeod of Colbecks 06 The Menzies Salute 07 The Blind Piper s Obstinacy 08 MacLeod s Controversy 09 The King s Taxes 10 MacFarlane s Gathering 11 The King Has Landed in Moidart 12 The MacKays Banner 13 The Vaunting 14 Praise of Marion 15 Glengarry s March 16 The Bells of Perth 17 The Glen is Mine 18 The Big Spree ARCHIVAL RECORDINGS The Piobaireachd on this CD have been digitally remastered from original vinyl recordings which themselves have been recorded off reel to reel tapes. While every effort has been made to capture a quality sound, the real beauty is in the preservation of one of the great names in the modern history of Piobaireachd.c Produced by Argyll Music 2009; Digitally re-mastered by Glass Studios The Campbells Are Coming The Campbells are coming Ho-Ro, Ho-Ro! The Campbells are coming Ho-Ro, Ho-Ro! The Campbells are coming to bonnie LochLeven The Campbells are coming Ho-Ro, Ho-Ro! Upon the Lomonds I lay, I lay, Upon the Lomonds I lay, I lay, I lookit down to bonnie Lochleven And saw three perches play-hay-hay! The Great Argyll he goes before, He makes the cannons and guns to roar, With sound o'trumpet, pipe and drum, The Campbells are coming, Ho-Ro, Ho-Ro! The Campbells they are a' in arms, Their loyal faith and truth to show, With banners rattling in the wind, The Campbells are coming Ho-Ro, Ho-Ro! PAGE 46 PAGE 47

25 The clue of the Black Book by Mairi A. MacDonald Condensed from The Joseph MacDonald Theory which appeared in THE SCOTS MAGAZINE December T HE story of Joseph MacDonald s Compleat Theory of the Scots Highland Bagpipe has a plot which rivals that of many a detective novel - a mystery which a black notebook in the Library of the University of Edinburgh helped to solve. The Theory, compiled about 1760, was printed and published by James Johnson, Edinburgh, in 1803 and shortly afterwards practically all trace of Joseph MacDonald and his Theory seems to have been lost. The discovery of a copy in 1927 in a saleroom in Inverness caused quite a stir in the piping world, where it was hailed with the assurance that it would settle certain points in the execution of piobaireachd about which the leading pipers were at variance. The late Mr Alex. MacDonald, who had purchased this copy, published a second edition of the Theory in He, unfortunately, died suddenly on the eve of its publication. A great number of leading pipers studied the work, but all were confused and perplexed by its contents. The Theory contained written instructions with regard to the playing of the bagpipes, as taught by the first masters of the instrument, and examples of the various types of bagpipe music, complete with the intricate variations of the Piobaireachd. These written directives were illustrated by staff-notation examples of the music referred to, but the written directive and the staff-notation failed to agree. The consensus of opinion was that Joseph must have been an extremely careless notation scribe - so careless, in fact, that the work was worthless and should therefore be returned to the limbo where it had already been for over a century. The more I studied the meticulous accuracy of the written word, however, the more I became convinced that Joseph was anything but a careless student of his subject, and that there must be some very adequate explanation of the highly intelligent work that was in his Theory. My first step towards the solution of the mystery was to find out everything possible about this man Joseph MacDonald. Joseph, I learned, was one of the sons of the Rev. Murdoch MacDonald, minister of Durness, Sutherland, a man of no mean ability in both literary and musical spheres. There were two particularly promising musical members of his family - the older, Patrick, who published his Collection of Highland Vocal Airs in 1784, and the younger, Joseph, eventually acknowledged as a musical genius. When Joseph was about sixteen he was sent to Haddington and later to Edinburgh, where he enjoyed an exceptional and extensive musical education. Although Joseph loved Italian music, he loved his native music above all other, and, upon his return to Strathnaver, some years later, gave all his attention to its study. He collected and noted down all the airs he could glean - especially those suitable for the bagpipe. This was during the period when a great part of our music might otherwise have been lost, as it was unlawful for a Highlander to play the bagpipes (Editor:- this is one of the most inaccurately reported features of piping history. Although Jamie Reid was executed for his role in the 45 his crime was rebellion, not playing the bagpipes. Piping was never included in any of the subsequent acts which were meant to subdue the Highlands and in fact flourished despite the collapse of the clan system). Joseph MacDonald s supposed self portrait Pipe Major George S McLennan In 1760 he went to work with the East India Company, but before leaving home completed a copy of his choice native airs. One of Joseph s letters to his father gives us an illuminating glimpse of his character and ambitions: There is nothing brings to my mind a more natural and soothing joy than the playing and fingering our sweet Highland luinings (ditties), jorrams (rowing songs), etc., when by myself, for, alas! I have none capable of sharing the pleasure with me...what would I give now for one night of my own beloved society to PAGE 48 PAGE 49

26 Sgoil nam Piobaire THE PIPING SCHOOL a dedicated service for the piper based on THE EASY METHOD get your piping under control with a structured learning and practice plan MUSIC BOOKS PIPING CDs PIOBAIREACHD CD ROM E BOOKS WORKSHOPS SEMINARS SCOTTISH SCHOOL OUTREACH PROGRAM DVD LESSONS CD ROM INSTRUCTIONAL SERIES Bruce Campbell pipingschool@hotmail.co.uk Mobile sing those favourite, simple, primitive airs along with me? O! that I had been more at pains to gather those admirable remains of our ancient Highland music before I left my native country. It would have augmented my collection of Highland music and poetry, which I have formed a system of in my voyage to India, and purpose to send home soon, dedicated to Sir James MacDonald or some such chief of high rank and figure in the Highlands, in order that those sweet, noble and expressive sentiments of nature may not be allowed to sink and die away, and to show that our poor, remote corner, even without the advantage of learning and cultivation, abounded in works of taste and genius. Fate intervened at this date, however, for Joseph MacDonald died in the East Indies of a malignant fever when only twenty-three years of age. His effects, including the manuscript of the Theory, were collected and brought home to his brother Patrick by a fellow bagpipe enthusiast, Sir John Murray MacGregor, to whom later the work was dedicated. In consideration of these facts, how could I agree that a man of such ability and repute could have allowed this travesty to flow from his pen? My next move, in the hope of solving the mystery, was to try to discover the original manuscript of the Theory. I learned it had been handled often in the Signet Library, Edinburgh, by a distinguished member of the Piobaireachd Society in his student days. Over the years, unfortunately, this manuscript had mysteriously disappeared. Quite unexpectedly the first clue to the mystery presented itself when I was reading a chapter on Scottish music in Logan s The Scottish Gad (1878): The appoggiaturas in modern music are usually the next in degree to the chief note, and any great departure from this rule is accounted a barbarism. In Scots music they are some degree distant, and appear very graceful. This is most remarkable in pipe tunes, to which instrument they are indispensable. Was it possible that Joseph s original notation had been tampered with before publication and that the meddler had mixed up those two apparently almost identical musical ornaments, substituting appoggiaturas - notes of definite length - for grace notes which know no time value, and are produced by a mere flick of the finger? If so, who was responsible for this tampering? I applied the supposition that Joseph s grace notes had been treated as appoggiaturas and calculated how the staffnotation extracts should have been noted in such a circumstance. To my joy I found that I had discovered that this was the fundamental error that underlay all the careless PAGE 50 PAGE 51

27 work of the Theory. Had the ornaments been read as grace-notes, and the staff noted accordingly, written directives and staffnotation would have agreed. I re-applied myself to the unsigned introduction in the Theory addressed To the Public. Here, after a short description of the discovery of the manuscript and the work of Joseph MacDonald, was a discourse upon bagpipe and harp music followed by a strange digression in praise of Ossian s work and its translation. Why, I ruminated, should the writer of this introduction digress from his subject and make opportunity for such an oration? It was now 1947, and Edinburgh was preparing for the first Festival. The different libraries had been invited to contribute any very interesting old manuscript in their possession, and what had turned up amongst those lent by the University Library but the manuscript of Joseph MacDonald s Theory. No time was lost in getting to Edinburgh to examine the find. The member of the Piobaireachd Society already referred to was the first to inspect the manuscript and almost stunned those present by immediately declaring that this was not the manuscript he had handled before. The only conclusion possible was that there must have been two manuscripts. There, in front of us, lay a medium- back issues of PIPING WORLD are available from our web site there is a small admin charge to cover the cost of sending out back issues but current and future issues of the magazine are sent to subscribers free of charge TO SUBSCRIBE TO PIPING WORLD send a message to pipingworld@hotmail.co.uk with the message send Piping World in the subject line sized notebook, bound in glazed black covers, the pages of which, cut from paper of Dutch manufacture extensively used in the 18th century, were covered with closely written copperplate, and neatly constructed notation tables. On the last page was a coloured sketch of a Highland piper playing a three-droned bagpipe, each finger correctly placed on the chanter. This was obviously the work of a piper and an artist - the work of Joseph himself. We had before us Joseph s original manuscript of the Theory. The work was undoubtedly the work of a genius - careful, neat and inspired. Faultlessly accurate notation tables agreed in every case with the written directive, and so ably was the work executed that the music simply leapt at one to explain and express all the intricacies of this wonderful instrument. The use of appoggiaturas had in every case been avoided. Now it was clear that the Theory we had known had been printed from the manuscript which had gone astray, a manuscript which had without doubt been prepared by someone other than Joseph or Patrick. Idly turning the pages back again we saw what made us all gasp - Eldin, The MS. had been acquired by the University Library from the estate of a collector, Mr D. Laing, who had bought it in 1833 at the sale of Lord Eldin s Collection. John Clerk, Lord Eldin, was an antiquary and a firm friend of Dr Blair - champion of Ossian s poems and their translation by Macpherson. Now we were again confronted by the dubious work of these antiquaries. The unnecessary laudation of Ossian s Poems and their translation, amounting almost to advertisement, contained in the preface To the Public confirmed this. At last the mystery was solved. Patrick at the time of the publication of his brother s Theory (1803) was seventy-four years of age - an old man; and none too rich. It would seem that, anxious to have the Theory published, he handed it over with a letter of dedication to the antiquaries. Not knowing much about bagpipe music, they had employed some hack to dress up the manuscript for publication. This person, mistakenly under the impression that Joseph s notation must be old-fashioned, tried to alter it into the more fashionable notation of his own day, with the disastrous results that confront us in the printed Theory. The first manuscript found, which had eventually gone astray, was that of this hack. We are now, however, in possession of Joseph s own manuscript, accurate and illuminating in every detail - a monument to the genius of one whose work has survived death and time. PAGE 52 PAGE 53

28 T tony field: wiggling his way to the top HE WIGGLES are the latest children s group to make their way to the top in the United Kingdom - after already having done just that in their native Australia as well as the United States, the biggest English speaking market of all. The Wiggles, in fact, are one of the top money earning acts in the world with a string of hit albums and other accolades. One of their members, Tony Field (the blue Wiggle), was also voted at one time in the late 1990s Australia s Most Eligible Bachelor. Even in Australia few realise that Tony ever played the pipes and it must seem a million miles away to the days when he was a young piper in the Royal Australian Regiment. Back in those days I was Tony s pipe major and he had an amazing amount of talent. He was one of those pipers who you teach who pick everything up so easily and he was a valued member of a very young pipe section. But he also had a problem with his time-keeping. Turning up late for the office might be a slap on the wrist in a normal job but missing parades was a strict no-no in the army. Tony then was playing with a pop band called The Cockroaches and it seemed he often got back late from gigs. So we struck a deal; he would park outside the band building and I would give him a shout on the way in if he was still sleeping. Personally I didn t see the attraction of being in such a bizarrely named band - until he gave me a couple of tickets to see them in concert one night. Being the polite sort of person I am, I went along as an encouragement - but there wasn t any needed. Instead of what I thought would be a crowd of 50 or so desperates and Entertainment superstar Tony Field (circled) in his days as a young piper in the Royal Australian Regiment. dateless there was an audience of about 2,000 - nearly all of them young teenage girls. No wonder he was late, they were all mobbing him at the front of the stage trying to get hold of whatever they could. How could you come back to The Barren Rocks of Aden after that? His band was also making a fortune, the vast majority of it sunk away into trust by a very astute management group. Pretty soon playing in one of Australia s top pop bands, and with a string of Top 10 hits behind him, was too much pressure and he called it a day on his army piping career. Surprisingly Tony went off to Uni to study as a teacher, found his way into children s entertainment and the rest is history. But he had one very important part still to play. In /7 RAR entered the very first pipe band competition in its history, at the Maclean Highland Games in Northern New South Wales. Grade 4 then was still fairly new and there was, as there is now, a considerable amount of interest in the event. Because 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment had never competed before we were allowed to enter Grade 4. With three Open grade pipers in our line-up (one was Barry Gray, the ex- Blacktown Grade 1 pipe major, who PAGE 54 PAGE 55

29 Announcing the launch of Duntroon Publishing s latest piping book My King Has Landed in Moidart: Pipers of the Forty Five PIPING LIVE FESTIVAL 2pm TUESDAY 11th AUGUST The Street Cafe, National Piping Centre McPhater Street, Glasgow Sgoil nam Piobaire BOOK 1 TRADE ENQUIRIES WELCOME A specially written book of 50 tunes which have all been adapted for pipers whose technical knowledge is limited to basic levels only (that includes the use of only basic gracenotes as well as B and C doublings). In e-book format on CD ROM with back-up music on sound files in both Wave and BMW formats; signed on temporarily to help us make up numbers) it might have seemed easy meat but we didn t have a bass drummer. The problem was solved when Tony brought along the drummer from The Cockroaches. To say that his pal took to the pipe band genre is an understatement - he was outstanding. There were a few red faces amongst the NSWPBA when we won the Grade 4 event, fairly easily. The truth was that despite a few good players most of the band were novices and even on the day one of the experienced players nearly blew it with a series of note errors. Mike Stubbings, still very prominent in the NSWPBA, told me a good story some years later. In those days the bands used to march from the caravan park playing as they went, winding around in front of the Argyll Hotel and then past a dias in the main street of Maclean (where the official party was situated) on their way to the Games park. It was one of the highlights of the event, and was well attended. Mike was on the platform along with the late Dave Scotland, then the iron fist behind the control of the NSWP- BA. To pass the time they were guessing which band it was before they came into sight. Apparently our little band (Australian army pipe bands always had a small establishment so getting numbers was always a problem) impressed Dave Scotland so much that before seeing us he identified us as Queensland Irish, then the Grade 1 Australian champions. Mike never told me who he thought we were but did say that David Scotland MBE exploded when he saw that it was us. That day we wrote our own wee piece of history - along with the help of Tony and his pal from the Cockroaches. After Tony left the army I did a couple of on-stage performances with The Cockroaches, in front of huge crowds of adoring fans. In 1987 I left the army to return to Scotland while Tony carried on with his university studies and in 1991 formed The Wiggles, an act which has taken him to the very heights of fame. Bruce Campbell DIGITAL EDITION 6 CD ROM EDITION 9 Trade enquiries welcome PAGE 56 PAGE 57

30 Alastair MacSween ALASTAIR MacSWEEN: AUSTRALIA S PIPING GENIUS by Charlie McInnes A LEXANDER Norman MacSween was born at Tullymorgan, near Maclean, New South Wales, on Christmas Day, all of 12,000 miles from the village of Glendale on the Isle of Skye, home of his revered piping forebears. Alastair, (he was Christened Alexander, known as 'Alastair' but never 'Neil'), was born to play the Great Highland Bagpipe with a genius unseen in Australian-born pipers to that time, and arguably since. He was inordinately proud of his Highland heritage and answered critics of hi allegiance to things Scottish with the philosophical proposition that: If you were born in China you wouldn t call yourself a Chinaman, would you? Though his father, Charlie MacSween, was a Skyeman and competent piper (and in all probability Alastair's first piping tutor), it was from his mother that he inherited his piping genes. She was Christina Bruce, who with her brothers John and Peter (by repute the best pair of pipers who ever crossed the line) had sailed to Australia aboard the Arabian in They settled around Warrnambool, Victoria where she met her future husband. The brother's father, Alexander (Sandy) Bruce and his brother John (erstwhile piper to Sir Walter Scott and the model for his John o Skye of the Waverley novels) were among the most accomplished and favourite pupils of the last of the great MacCrimmon pipers, Iain Dubh and more particularly, Donald Ruadh. Their father taught his three sons (Malcolm, piper to Macintosh of Moy Hall, stayed in Scotland) and his nephew, Angus MacPherson, father of Calum Piobaire, in turn the father of Angus MacPherson of Inveran, John (celebrated piper of Nova Scotia) and Malcolm (the Monkey piper, who spent time in Australia, much with MacSween). The old Angus MacPherson (Sandy Bruce s pupil) was the founder of today s influential MacPherson School. His son Angus was piper to the US steel magnate Andrew Carnegie while Angus's son Malcolm was the compiler of Binneas is Boreraig. Angus acknowledged MacSween as my cousin. Alastair s first language was the Gaelic and, perhaps, the most important development in his young life was moving to Maclean which promised PAGE 58 PAGE 59

31 Skyeman Donald MacSwan both the opportunity to attend school and learn English and, decidedly more importantly, to receive piping tuition from Donald Matheson, a native of Inverness, the outstanding local piper of his day. Donald lived on a corner adjacent to the MacSween s new Maclean home but, alas, the best laid plans, (and Alastair was to become an authority on Burns in later life), then as now, life wasn t meant to be easy and Donald resolutely declined to accept a pupil under the age of 14. Undaunted, Alastair approached his cousin, Donald MacSwan, another locally bred Gaelic pupil of the aforesaid Donald Matheson. So it was that each Saturday for the next several years young Alastair crossed the South Arm on his father s ferry where MacFarlane s Bridge now stands and trudged six long, dusty miles up the rough track to the MacSwan s farm on Poverty Creek where the family engaged in mixed farming. Alastair s progress on the chanter was nothing short of spectacular and with tunes of glory ringing merrily in his ears the sprightly march back to the ferry was never as long. His father, Charlie, had little difficulty in keeping the inspired Alastair dedicated. We are told that the older MacSween concentrated his son s practice on piobaireachd exercises and jigs. But there came the day that Alastair attained the age of 14 and the now accomplished young piper presented himself and was welcomed as a pupil by Donald Matheson. Thereafter Alastair was ever at pains to point out that convenience (remember the 12 mile hikes?) was the sole reason he changed tutors. But it remains a fact that it was from Matheson that he gleaned most of his early knowledge of Ceol Mor and Canntaireachd. An not-withstanding all the above, it was from his mother that Alastair inherited much of his Canntaireachd while he was ever proud to play his father s set of Burns A Man s A Man. Piping aside, Alastair s education advanced apace. He was a brilliant mathematics student, possessed of a remarkable memory and only opportunity deprived him of a professional career. He attended the Maclean Free Kirk and subscribed to the tenets of Calvinism. He married early and his wife, with two small girls, declined to release him for military service during World War 1. This proved an unfortunate restriction but Alastair compensated as best he was able by serving in WWII. However, when my father returned form WWI he was disappointed to find Alastair, a tee-totaller at the outbreak of hostilities, was not averse to a dram though, like most things, handled it with aplomb. Although Alastair never set foot on PAGE 60 PAGE 61

32 Alastair MacSween s father, Charles - originally from Kingsborough, Skye Scottish soil he never failed to impress the several pre-eminent Scottish musicians with whom he came in contact. Willie Dunlop, who J Scott Skinner (G.S. McLennan s Strathspey King ) dubbed the Strathspey Prince, and to whom he gave his collections of manuscript, was an outstanding virtuoso of violin and a respected judge of Piobaireachd. He was widely quoted for his observation: MacSween is one of the greatest pipers I have ever heard. Archie MacColl, Oban gold medallist, winner of the MacCrimmon Shield and prodigy of his famous uncle John of Kilbowie Cottage fame admired MacSween s piping with enthusiasm equaled only in its reciprocation. He taught and encouraged MacSween no end and some measure of his esteem is evident in his famous dream. Archie dreamt he was invited back to Oban to judge the Open Piobaireachd. When he entered the competitor's tent and confronted the cream of Scottish pipers he deemed it appropriate to comment: Be on your top today, lads - I have just heard young MacSween from Australia. Malcolm the Monkey Piper MacPherson held his music in the highest regard and once commented: With twelve months in Scotland or that period of tuition by myself he would be unbeatable. Farquhar Finlayson told my father after his first encounter with MacSween: he s a revelation and was quoted in the press as saying MacSween is fit to compete in any company in the world. An accountant by calling, he was a very able mathematician, a champion drafts an chess player and sagacious crossword enthusiast. He was the very young manager of the Woodburn General Store, severely mauled by the economics of the Great Depression but on to manage leading Lismore emporiums. MacSween had two daughters: his younger daughter Mrs. Heather Prowse who now lives in Muswelbrook and Mrs. Heather Woodley, the mother of Gold Coast piper, Alex Woodley, who is now deceased. Of his three piping uncles, Peter Bruce, the youngest, is generally regarded as the best of three equals and was third in the tri-annual Edinburgh Competition of 1843, inning a silver pistol for his efforts at the tender age of 16. But it may well be that John has won immortality per the Maclean, the Scottish town in Australia, committee. A caricature by Keith Howland, drawn from an ancient photo held at the MacLean Stone Museum, has been printed on countless letter-heads, embossed on business cards galore, has been painted on shop fronts, awnings and facades, not to mention banners and flags flown proudly from mast heads throughout the town in times of celebration. PAGE 62 PAGE 63

33 THE DIGITAL PUBLISHING REVOLUTION CONTINUES... SCOTTISH WORLD covering the best of Scottish traditions and culture available every month on the 8th FREE if you would like to receive a free subscription to this quality publication send an to scottishworld@hotmail.co.uk with SEND SCOTTISH WORLD in the subject line Competitors at a Maclean Highland Gathering - Alastair MacSween is in the centre. PHOTO courtesy Charlie McInnes Alastair passed away in 1955 after a long period of heart problems. Indeed, army mates acknowledge he had problems when, at nearly sixty, he insisted on playing the boys through long route marches, sometime night after night and for weeks on end. He did not lack courage. Finally, Alastair wrote considerable music including no less than seven Piobaireachd. I doubt any Australian audience received a Piobaireachd more appreciatively than did that at the Maclean MacSween Memorial Centenary Competitions in 1988 when Alastair s great octogenarian friend, Archie Galloway, first pipe major of the celebrated Brisbane band, St Andrews, elected to play a non-competitive Donald Matheson, and play it he did. Scottish World is published by HIGHLAND MEDIA NEXT ISSUE OF PIPING WORLD: 15 AUGUST 2009 PAGE 64 PAGE 65

34 FROM THE ARCHIVES The Pipes & Drums of The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards THIS photo of the Pipes & Drums of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards was taken on the regimental square at Osnabruck, Germany in 1974.The pipe major was Tony Crease (Peebles) and the pipe sergeant was Jock Dickson (Dundee), one of the best army pipers of his era.also included are the regiment s next two pipe majors, John Allan (Edinburgh) and John Bruce (Peebles).The other pipers were Davie Morris, Bruce Campbell (both from Edinburgh),Willie McVean, (Inveraray) John MacKenzie, Duncan MacRae (both from Dornie), Rab Veitch (Peebles), John Bannerman (Musselburgh),Vincie Bowie (Aberdeenshire), Stevie Gordon (Southend, England), Pete Dugan (Ireland), Davie Ward (Glasgow) and Campbell Baxter (Cumbernauld). PAGE 66 PAGE 67