ISSN 1352-3848 June 2010 VOLUME 27 NO 1 THE JOURNAL OF THE LOWLAND AND BORDER PIPERS’ SOCIETY Jock Agnew and Martin Lowe launch ‘The Wind in the Bellows’ IN THIS ISSUE From the Archive(4): New Tune Book(5): Music Resources(6): John Armstrong’s Sword(7): Tutor Launch(9): Melrose(11): LBPS Annual Competition(13): Stock Imagery(18): Piper Gould(24): Revival or Survival?(26): Event Reports(35): Nate Banton Interview(41): Coming Events(48): Reviews(51): Back Lill(55) 1 President Julian Goodacre Minute Sec. Jeannie Campbell Chairman: Jim Buchanan Newsletter Helen Ross Treasurer Iain Wells Membership Pete Stewart Secretary Judy Barker Editor CS Pete Stewart THE JOURNAL OF THE LOWLAND AND BORDER PIPERS’ SOCIETY EDITORIAL ol 25 no 1 is the 47th issue of some from far-flung parts of the world; Common Stock [issues were there were lowland pipers in America, in V rather erratic in the early years], Australia, in Germany and the Nether- but it is the first I have supervised as lands, in India and in Oman, it seemed, editor. It is extraordinary to find that I and they were all keen to become part of am only the third person to hold this this new organization and share their privileged position. It is indeed a privi- enthusiasm. lege to take over a publication which has And because they did, I am now given recorded the trajectory of bellows piping the honour of editing the journal they from the days nearly thirty years ago first produced in Dec 1983. when various enthusiasts around the This revisiting of the early days has world began to discover that they were been largely the result of the work that not alone in their interest and that there has been done recently on preparing the was demand for an organization which Society’s records for deposit in the Na- would represent it. Since then the face of tional Library of Scotland. I have intro- Scottish music has been changed, and duced a new section of the Journal those early pioneers can be said to have, which I hope will revisit some of the if not originated then certainly focused, momentous occasions recorded in this that process. archive. Looking back through the archive, I One outcome of this archive-gazing have been surprised to find that has been the emergence of a new per- amongst the early letters that responded spective on the revival; indeed, one be- to the article Mike Rowan published in gins to wonder whether survival might the ‘International Piper’ magazine were The views expressed in Common Stock are those of the contributors and not necessarily those either of the Editor or of the Lowland & Border Pipers Society. The contents of Common Stock are protected by copyright. None of them may be repro- duced without the written consent of the copyright owner. The copyright in the individual contributions belongs to their authors and the copyright in each edition of the magazine as a whole belongs to the Society. 2 be a more appropriated term. In addi- peth Gathering received no entries. tion to all those pipers across the world There are a number of similar competi- who responded to Mike Rowan’s 1981 tions at festivals around the border re- proposal, it is now becoming clear that gion and most of them are poorly there were not only players but also supported by pipers, whether Society makers of Lowland pipes between the Members or not. Such competitions are period of the Half-long revival in the a valuable channel for presenting the 1920’s and the ‘new revival’ in the pipes and their music to the general 19080’s. Paul Roberts has made a major public who may be unaware of their contribution to the unearthing (if that is existence, and the Society encourages the right term) of this information and you to support them if you can. The some of his research is included in this next such event is at Newcastleton Folk issue. Festival 2-4 July (see back cover). While this is a good time to look back Whilst attending the concert in celebra- at our history, it is also a good time to tion of Colin Ross in Newcastle I was look forward, to consider what a vision prompted to wonder why so many of the Society’s future might reveal. One women play Northumbrian smallpipes, development that is imminent seems to while so few play Scottish smallpipes; be the re-launch of the North American this issue contains comments from two, Lowland Pipers’ Association, under and we know of a few others, including whatever new title it chooses. Accord- some professional players, but my im- ing to reports on the Bob Dunsire Bag- pression in Newcastle was that women pipe Forum, plans are well underway to there outnumbered men. Lowland pip- establish a web presence. The LBPS ing offers an escape from the intense looks forward to working closely with world of highland piping, surely it offers this group. It is my intention that Com- an alternative to the locker-room too? mon Stock should also spread its net This issue turned out to be another across the world; this issue contains bumper one, and there’s already a stack reports from several international events of fascinating material lined up for the and an extended interview with US next issue. (including an article on the pipemaker Nate Benton. I hope this will much rumoured ‘Border Pibroch’) but be the first of an ongoing series that will that doesn’t mean I dont’ want to hear look at bellows-piping activities and from you. All contributions are always practitioners internationally, and wel- welcome. I’ve greatly enjoyed putting come contributions and suggestions for this one together, particularly establish- future articles and interviews. ing some links across the world; I hope Some rather dispiriting news came you find something to enjoy here too. from Morpeth earlier this spring, where the Border pipe competition at the Mor- Pete Stewart [email protected] 3 Lowland Pipes on the streets of Edinburgh for the first time in 200 years ociety President Julian Goodacre has been preparing the Society’s archives for eventual deposit at the National Library of Scotland. This is a surprisingly Scomplete record of the history of some very significant changes in the Scottish music scene and it is planned to include a series of extracts in subsequent issues. Here, Dr David Hannay, destined to become Society treasurer in the following year, describes the opening event of the 1982 Edinburgh Folk Festival. The Edinburgh Folk Festival this year At the end of the meeting the chairman had a contribution from the Lowland of the Lowland pipers’ Society, Mike Pipers’ Society, with two of their mem- Rowan, … said that the Society now bers, Ian MacDonald and Dr David had sufficient members to be put on a Hannay – playing at the “Proclamation more formal basis and this would be of the Folk Festival” at the Mercat done at the next meeting of the society Cross on March 27th. The opening cere- on June 6th” mony included a pipe band and groups When asked for his memories of this of dancers who paraded along the High event, David said: Street and across George IV Bridge “I do not have a copy of what I wrote with the two Lowland pipers playing in at the time [Ed.- fortunately the archive the procession. This may have been the does], nor can I remember what I played, first time that Lowland pipes have been but I do remember the event. Myself heard in the streets of Edinburgh for and another lowland piper, were due to about 200 years. play at the Mercat Cross by St Giles Later that day Ian MacDonald gave a Cathedral, for the opening of the Edin- talk at the School of Scottish Studies on burgh folk festival. I was playing a set of “The Lowland Pipes in relation to the half long pipes I had recently acquired European Tradition”... As well as the from Colin Ross. We started playing Lowland pipes, he gave a demonstration outside St Giles with various groups of on the Uilleann and Breton pipes, dancers milling around, causing suffi- amongst others. Great interest was cient obstruction for us to be eventually shown by an enthusiastic audience moved on by the police. We then all which included Francis Collinson, Wil- marched, or rather ambled, up the High liam Sinclair and Jimmy Wilson. Mr Street and up George IVth Bridge be- Sinclair had made Lowland Pipes with fore stopping at the Bedlam Theatre. I Robertson’s of Edinburgh in the 1920’s had never really marched with the bel- and for many years Jimmy Wilson was lows pipes before, nor have I done so probably the only person still playing since.” them in Scotland… 4 “A Collection of Pipe Tunes” A revised and enlarged edition of an old favourite, this collection of classic border tunes will be available again from mid-June ock Agnew and Jim Richmond’s Northumbrian Minstrelsy (first pub- Joriginal edition was produced in lished 1882) in good versions suitable 1993, when little other appropriate for Border pipes and Scottish small- music was readily available for the Bor- pipes.” Some versions have been der pipe, and finally went out of print sourced from other Northumbrian and about a year ago. In the last 17 years, the Border publications or MSS. bellows pipe revival of the Scottish A few tunes in the original edition have Lowlands and Borders has blossomed: been omitted completely as they were but despite the plethora of suitable mu- adaptations of originals often extending sic now available, the two Societies feel well beyond the nine-note pipe range.