Solo piping and drumming season

As our pipe bands move up through the gears in their practice regime aimed at being ready for the start of the 2019 outdoor contest season many of those same pipers and drummers are putting in additional practice in preparation for two of our most popular solo competitions.

The first of those is the 32nd Annual Solo Piping & Drumming Competition organised by Cullybackey Pipe Band which will be held on Saturday, April 6.

The organisers have introduced a Piobaireachd Competition into their programme this year which is in response to the increasing popularity of the piping discipline and follows the inclusion of bass and tenor drumming in recent years.

The syllabus and entry form will be available from Friday, February 22.

This competition has in recent years served as a warm up for the Ulster Solos which will take place on Saturday, April 20, in Lisnagarvey High School, Lisburn.

The syllabus for this event is currently being finalised and will be published soon.

If any of you good folk out there would be interested in helping the NI Branch I would remind you that they are looking for some volunteers to help make the Ulster Solos run smoothly.

They are looking for individuals to assist the stewards to relocate competitors from their practice rooms and to the final tuning area.

If you or any band members are interested, please email the NI Branch Secretary Danielle McCartney at [email protected]

Is the time right for a re-introduction of quartet piping and mini band competitions?

I was looking through a Bandsman Column from a mid-1990’s newspaper recently and I found a local pipe band scene that was saturated by numerous quartet piping, miniature band and solo events that were sanctioned by the NI Branch.

Now we are down to just two solo events and not a quartet or miniature band competition in sight.

I am somewhat surprised that local bands don’t try to revive some of these competitions as a fund raiser.

Joseph Forde Memorial Pipe Band Table Quiz

Many of our local bands are busy fundraising in preparation for the season ahead and the Table Quiz appears to have become one of the more popular methods of swelling the coffers.

The Grade 4B Joseph Forde Memorial Pipe Band from the Portadown area will be holding a Table Quiz in the Head O’ The Road Bar/Restaurant, 39 Clantilew Road, Portadown, on Thursday, March 21, commencing at 8pm.

Fred Morrison in concert at the Theatre at the Mill

Ballyboley Pipe Band is one of a number of our local bands who are celebrating their 100th anniversary which is a magnificent milestone for any organisation to reach.

As part of their celebrations they have secured the services of the virtuoso piper Fred Morrison to play in a concert in the Theatre at the Mill, Newtownabbey on Saturday, April 6, at 7.30pm.

Tickets, which cost £15, can be purchased through the theatre box office.