Highland Games Season

Hard to believe that after preparing for the better part of 9 months, the highland games season lasts only 5 or 6 weeks! At this point we have competed in 3 games with one more to go - our home games here in Fredericton. So far the season has been a success both personally and for the band but our ultimate goal is to win at home. As a middle-aged novice piper I have modest goals - play my best each time, play better this week than last and better again next, and finally to contribute to an overall good performance and experience for the band as a whole. So far, I seem to be meeting my goals. In the solo competititions I have played as well as I can play (for the most part) and will the band I have had solid performances every time. I've been placed in the top 6 in 2 of my 3 solo competitions and our band has placed 1st or 2nd in G5 March Medley and in G5 Medley at every Games.

Starting to see progress

With the competition season starting in just two weeks, I am finally starting to feel a bit more comfortable with my state of readiness both for solo and for band activities. On the solo front, my March tune, The Atholl and Breadalbane Gathering, is coming along. I have a couple of key focus points - calm steady tempo on the dot/cut runs and nice strong off-beat notes to give good lift to the tune. Insofar as my Jig tune is concerned, The Fittie Boatman, it is still very much a work in progress. I feel reasonably comfortable with parts 1,2 and 4 but part 3 is a challenge. My big focus is to play at a calm pace and focus on being even with each the of G-D-E triplets. For the band performances, I feel good about my playing in the 4-tune March Medley. The 5-tune open Medley is not yet at the same standard but its improving day by day. The focus for the next 2 weeks will be on the Jig and the Reel plus to a lesser degree the Strathspey. Had a busy weekend playing for two events. The Brain Tumour Spring Sprint on Saturday was particularly fun because I piped for a group of young girls who danced the 2.5k course to show support for one of their dance friends who was diagnosed last year. Then on Sunday I played for the Arthritis Society Walk held down on the riverfront trail. It was a gorgeous day and I saw many friends out running. On my way back to the car I passed by the Royal New brunswick Regiment monument and felt moved to stop and play a lament, Mist Covered Mountains, in remembrance of the events in Normandy 70 years ago and in Moncton last week.

June Already

Yikes - the month of May has flown by and with the turning of the calendar to a new month it means that Highland Games season is upon us! This month we play in both the Moncton and Summerside games. I'll be playing in two solo divisions (Grade 5 March and Grade 3/4/5 Amateur Jig) plus our band will play in both Grade 5 categories - March Medley and Medley. This weekend we had a special guest instructor with us for our practise on Saturday. Bob Worrall is a true living legend in the world of piping. He is a top-flight adjudicator, an instructor, a champion solo piper and the voice of the World Piping Championships on BBC TV (and around the world via live streaming). This is the second time that he has spent a day with our band and he is a remarkable teacher and wonderfully nice man. Practise went very well and then yesterday I had a very productive session on my own. I've been struggling with my pipe set-up but I've made two changes and they seem to be helping. First, I shortened the drone cords because my drones felt like they were going to slip off my shoulder. I have also reverted to a round mouthpiece from the oval shaped one I've been using. It's probably just psychological but I felt like I was able to sustain the air pressure much better. It allowed me to play all teh way through my 4-parted (with repeats) march tune plus all the way through the band's 5-tune Medley.

Piping Along The Route

As mentioned in my earlier post, this weekend was Fredericton Race Weekend. As part of a group representing Team Diabetes, I was out bright and early on Sunday to set up a cheering zone. We were located at the turnaround point for the 10k route. This meant that all the 10k runners as well as the Half Marathoners and the Marathoners passed us at least once. Total registrations were well over 2000 runners so I'm guessing at least 1500 passed by where we were set up. I brought my pipes, dressed in a kilt and Team Diabetes shirt and played for them. Got lots of great reactions! A couple of people called out special requests (eg. Amazing Grace) and one runner asked for a Strathspey and she stopped to dance a few steps. Lots of smiles, clapping, "thank you"'s and "I love the pipes" from the runners.

Fredericton Marathon

This weekend is Race Weekend in Fredericton. The Marathon, Half-Marathon, 10k and 5k take place on Sunday morning. I have run in this event a few times but since I've not been running much of late, this year I am giving time as a volunteer on Saturday and as a Cheer Team member with the Team Diabetes group on Sunday. As long as the weather is decent, I plan to bring my pipes and "serenade" the runners. For some, those who love the pipes, this will cause their hearts to beat all that much stronger and will push them on to a strong performance. For those who claim to hate the pipes, this will cause them to pick up the pace to get away from the noise. Truly a win-win and best of all, I get some outdoor practise time plus I will be promoting the NB Highland Games Kilted 5k fun run/walk that I organize for July.

Music Repertoire

At this stage of my development as a piper, I am still trying hard to broaden my musical repertoire. Here are the tunes that I have (mostly) mastered: Mairi's Wedding & Brown Haired Maiden Scotland The Brave, The Rowan Tree & Wings A Tune For Emily & Onaping Falls Lord Lovatt's Lament & March of the Champions Supreme Mist Covered Mountains Flowers of the Forest MacDougall's Lament Muir of Ord I See Mull Green Hills of Tyrol & The Battle's O'er Auld Hoose, We're No Awa Tae Bide Awa, Bluebells of Scotland Melodie Loudeac, Crags of Tumbledown Mountain, Castle Dangerous & The Gardens of Skye Currently working to improve on: McFail from Bunessan, The Fittie Boatman, The Fair Swan, Molly Connell & Merry Boys of Greenland The Atholl and Breadalbane Gathering Atholl Highlanders, Bonnie Dundee & Steamboat And about to start on a new 4/4 march entitled Prince Edward Island

Spring Tea & Ceilidh

One of the fun events that our band puts on every year in late April/early May is a "Spring Tea, Ceilidh and Silent Auction". Not sure how many years it has been running but I suspect its been for several decades. It is a combination of end of year music recital and fundraiser. Everyone from the Pipes & Drums Academy program as well as from the Band is encouraged to play a solo or as a duet or small group. The beginners play on their chanters and drum pads while the more experienced play on pipes and drums. There are also highland dancers on the agenda and of course the band plays to wrap things up. These once-a-year events are a great time to assess one's progress. Last year I played a solo, "MacDougall's Lament" and really struggled to get all the way through it. This year I played a well know Slow Air, "Mist Covered Mountains" and while I was far from perfect, I felt way more confident and my technique was definitely better. I was also much more solid playing with the band on our parade marches - 4/4's Lord Lovatt's Lament & March of The Champions Supreme, 6/8's A Tune For Emily & Onaping Falls, and our competition march medley Melodie Loudeac, The Crags of Tumbledown Mountain, Castle Dangerous & The Gardens of Skye. Also good news that we raised about $1500 at the event.