The All-Ireland contest has attracted entries from over 60 bands and will be recorded by the BBC for two programmes to be shown later in the year.

For this year’s event the Northern Ireland Branch of the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association, with support from the Ulster Scots Agency, has pulled out all the stops to ensure this is a festival for all the family.

A Highland dancing competition, historical re-enactments, Scottish country dancers and children’s activities are all on the agenda, however the pipe band championship remains the priority with focus, as always, on the Grade One competition.

The Grade One bands will be playing twice on the day beginning with the March Strathspey and Reel and then the Medley selection.

There are five bands entered with Field Marshal Montgomery looking to retain their All-Ireland title won last year at Letterkenny.

Richard Parkes’ outfit are virtually unstoppable when it comes to the All-Ireland and their main challenge this year may well come from St Laurence O’Toole.

The Dublin band is in good form and has featured regularly in the prizes at the major championships in recent years.

This season they have been collecting silverware at the two ‘majors’ to date - fourth at the Scottish Championship in Dumbarton and sixth at the British.

Under Pipe Major Terry Tully and leading drummer Steven Creighton, St Laurence have already beaten Field Marshal this season when they took first place at the Malahide Piping and Drumming Festival in May.

Bleary and District get the Grade One MSR competition underway followed by Field Marshal, St Laurence, Ballinderry Bridge and Ballycoan.

Grade Two has an entry of five bands with Phoenix Honda Glasgow Skye travelling over to compete against All-Ireland holders Killeen, Cullybackey, Seven Towers and Ravara.

Entries in all other grades are in double figures, with Grade 4A attracting 15 bands.

On the judging panel for the day are John Wilson, Linden Ingram, David Clark, David Brown, Finbar Connolly, Denver Cardwell, Ciaran Mordaunt and Gordon Parkes.

Judge for the dancing competition, which has 42 dancers, is Jean Swanston, from Pitlochry, Scotland.

n The RSPBA Northern Ireland Branch are running a concert on Friday, August 3, in Trinity Methodist Church Hall.

Featured on the night will be the Hamilton Police Pipe Band from Hamilton Ontario, Canada, and The College of Piping Pipe Band from Summerside PEI, Canada.

This event is the night before the Ulster Championship where both bands will be competing in their respective grades.

Also appearing is solo artist Ryan Canning, a piper from the Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band.

The concert starts at 8pm and tickets are priced £5 and £3 concession.

More good news for fans of traditional music will be the appearance of Scotland’s Tannahill Weavers at Moira Demesne on August 4.