In This Issue Getting the Act Together Peebles Collogue
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IN THIS ISSUE GETTING THE ACT TOGETHER PEEBLES COLLOGUE PASTORAL PIPES C.1780 LBPS COMPETITION Price 2.50 From John Creager, Santa Rosa, CA, U.S.A. From Colin Ross, Monkseaton, Whitley Bay I noticed in the Lowland and Border Pipers I notice there has been some discussion Society Newsletter that articles were wanted regarding the production of a CD of Lowland for COMMON STOCK. Im sending you the piping by the Society. Can I warn you of this local contest results, hoping that they might straight away in the light of the experience be of some interest. gained thru our own exercise in doing the same in the Northumbrian Pipers Society. We Editorial LETTERS still have over 800 left our of our 1000 Scottish Small pipe Event produced some years ago now and are still The more observant readers of COMMON From Philip Gruar, Brook Cottage, Carnforth STOCK will have spotted that although the Santa Rosa Indoor Piping and Drumming nearly 1000 out of pocket. Contest I warned the Society at the time that it December issue forecast articles on Mary Scott Re. Bill Tellers article in the December and Medieval Travel, they are not to be found Piner Elementary School, Santa Rosa, should have been done professionally so that COMMON STOCK, last year I did pipe in the California in these pages. The reason? Space. Happily the a we were not involved in production costs i.e. haggis, unkilted, playing Border pipes, at March 6, 1993. recording studio time, printing of sleeve, and papers forwarded from the 1992 Collogue in Burns supper near Kendal. Peebles have put all the available columns to pressing of disc, and also more important be- good use. So perhaps in the December issue we 1st Place - Martha Yates cause the professional company could have a Pipes H.Moore, Key of A will return to Mary Scott and Travel, in the distribution network that could get the meantime, those who, like myself, were unable Tunes: The Martha Yates Polka (by Donald production sold. In the end it was the lack of From R.W.Odlin, Sedro-Woolley, U.S.A. Shaw Ramsay), Drops of Brandy, Ash Grove to attend last years Collogue, can savour some distribution facilities that left us with the (Martha sang along with this tune). remainder with the subsequent foss and no ofthe atmosphere and learn some of the detail "Hugh MacDiarmid." = Ahern! = Are we to from the papers which are published here. be impressed with this prosy old drone from profit on a project that in the worst sense was 2nd Place - John Allan a "vanity production" lacking any overall the Bolshie Hive? If I can find Roy Campbells Pipes M.MacHarg Drones, H.Moore chanter, artistic direction. And Gordon Mooney writes I hope to get Alan crack I shall include it here . "I think be- key of A. Jones collections of bagpipes over to the U.K. If the L.B.P.S. is determined to produce a cause of Basils presence we were able to Tunes: The Old Man on the Most, "Elie recording for sale to the public as well as to tour and also exhibit at Old Gala House attract many good American poets to give Merry Boys of Greenland, high over Bun- (Galashiels ). If anyone wants a lecture recital readings in the tower, and he was generally members please bear this in mind as it could achton. destroy the financial base of the Society which and display of all Alans 70 odd sets of pipes, pleased to see them. But the poet whom he does not have the capital to enter into a please get in touch to book him. Time frame is enjoyed meeting most was Hugh MacDiarmid. 3rd Place - Paul McAfee project like this. September/October.' On the way to the tower in a taxi, Basil told Pipes J.Anderson, Key of A. Leave it to the professionals like Hamish or MacDiarmid that he was the finest Scottish tunes: Leaving Loch Boisdale. The Merry Boys The growing interest in Cauld-wind piping is Dougie McLean who have the time and poet since Burns, and MacDiarmid, chuckling, of Greenland, Forest Lodge motivation (perhaps) to do it. The cauld wind reflected in the MEETINGS AND EVENTS agreed. Both men had known and respected here on the back page - particularly the ' had never met. pipes are well served by existing recordings listings each others work, but anyway. activity in North America. Some of the MacDiarmid read, amongst other things, the Advertisement circumstances that led to this growth is beautiful Island Funeral, ' and after the read- ' The pipes offered for sale are as follows: described in Hamish s (or is it Maggies?) ing we went back to our . flat. The old men article with the suggestion that pipers from this were bubbling with the Glenfiddick Fire Water 1: The actual set of side of the Atlantic might well take advantage seminal Scott pastoral pipes played by Hamish Moore on Roslyn Castle; a track on his and the youngsters blissful on beer and Cauld Wind Pipes album, with a D chanter, which overblows to give 2 full octaves, and a regulator pies 5 drones. of a piping holiday over there. Further focus on marijuana. They have recently been refurbished and re-reeded by Chris Bailey, the maker, and there is a Idler from him the North American scene is supplied by Al confirming the provenance. Own a piece of cauld-wind piping history: the first pastorals on record (probably!). James who has sent detailed description and BB MacDiarmid, this working class lad here With650. case and bellows, vgc, Oire measurements of an ancient set of Pastoral spells xxxx (expletive deleted.Ed ) with a K, pipes which were lurking in his local museum but writes marvelous poetry.... 2: A Musette de Cour (French Small Pipes) in D;GAm by Dave Shaw, with 2 (large and small) chromatic (chanters in the same stock and shuttle drones giving 6 possible drone notes. Well maintained and recently in Canada working class... refurbished by maker, in beautifully matured honey-coloured boxwood with simple case. Fits standard NSP HMcD I hate the xxxxxxx bellows (not included) . Suitable for early music and Border repertoire: Oiroo 695. Clearly there remains a great deal to unearth eyes all night long, and discover about all breeds of cauld-wind Mischeif sparkled in their 3: A student cabrette-type set, with chanter and one tee-side tenor drone mounted parallel in the same stock, play- pipes - and no-one makes this point more and Bunting sang from his seemingly endless ing in D/G with some overblowing. Made by Soefirne in rosewood. Uses Uillean reeds, easily obtainable, vgc: forcefully than musicologist John Purser in his repertoire of bawdy songs." (From BROKEN Offers invited (Uillean type bellows can be included for 50). article GETTING THE ACT TOGETHER ... RECORD: Reminiscences by Roy Campbell). Please call George Howard on 0942 812536 after 7pm or leave message on answerphone at other times. Delivery can be arranged. Jock Agnew II Ulting Lane, Langford, Essex 2 3 TUITION IN NORTH AMERICA (see also back Cover) This summer, Hamish Moore will be spending six weeks in the States and Canada, furnishing an ever-increasing demand for tuition on Scottish small pipes from the fast-growing band of enthusiasts scattered over the continent. He will be running his own piping schools in North Carolina, California and Vermont, as well as spending three weeks in the Gaelic College on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. But how did it all start? Hamish began teaching in the US in 1986, when he joined the staff of the Augusta Heritage Center, West Ylrginia , an organisation promoting traditional music, dance and crafts through its programme of summer schools. In 1988 he also started teaching at the Ashokan Fiddle and Dance camp in New York State, where the Celtic Week was a fine amalgamation of Scottish, Irish and Cape Breton music and dance. In 1990, after 3 years at both Augusta and Ashokan, Hamish branched out and set up his own piping school in Vermont, the idea being to provide a smaller venue, where an informal atmosphere would encourage folk to get the most out of their musk. In the following two years, he set up new branches, first in North Carolina and subsequently in California. These ventures succeeded with the help of three enthusiastic and hard working co-ordinators; Matt Buckley in Vermont, Jo Johnston in North Carolina and John Creager in California. (Contact addresses on back coven Ed). The numbers on each course vary between ten and twenty, with a second tutor being brought in if there are more than ten students. In North Carolina and California , Maggie Moore will be running dance workshops in association with the piping schools. The social and set dances of pre-twentieth century Scotland will be explored, including the oldest and only indigenous dance form; Reels. Various regional styles, especially those of the outlying islands, Orkney, Shetland and the Hebrides, will be covered as well as the most popular dances which have survived through the centuries and are still danced at ceilidhs, weddings etc. In the past, pipers from the States and Canada have made the trip to Scotland to join the piping schools which Hamish runs in Perthshire. Perhaps this year the flow will go the other way and some British pipers may decide to mix travel with piping. The Vermont school is purposely time-tabled to fit in with the Bagpipe Convention at North Hero. only forty-five minutes away by car, which is a Mecca for hundreds of pipers of all hues.