Pipers launch world contest
THREE pipers from the 2007 world championship band -the Field Marshal Montgomery- launched this years world championships, which will take place in Glasgow on August 11.
They played around a newly branded taxi, which will be on the streets in Glasgow in the weeks leading up to the event.
Around 50,000 spectators are expected at the championships with over 200 bands and 8000 pipers and drummers travelling from Eastern Europe, Australia, Canada USA Pakistan and New Zealand.
This year the organisers have tried to make watching the worlds as enjoyable as possible with new seating arrangements. There will be a standing only area to the right of the bands as they enter the arena. There will also be two large screens at each end of the park provided by the BBC who will once again be recording the Grade 1 event and possibly some of the other grades.
Field Marshal Montgomery will be busy in the week leading up to the Worlds.
On Wednesday, August 8 they will be performing in concert at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in the annual event organised by the Phoenix Honda Glasgow Skye Pipe Band.
The band is five times and current world champions and their concert performance is entitled RE-CHARGED. It promises to be the LIVE pipe band performance of the year - RE-CHARGED and ready to set Glasgow alight.
Unger the leadership of Pipe Major Richard Parkes. they promise a brilliant and exhilarating mix of new material, classic tunes from the master composers and also from the contemporary composers.
Tickets are available from The Concert Hall on telephone 0141 353 8000 or at www.grch.org After the break for the holidays the competitions recommence on Saturday 21st July with the North -Down Pipe band Championships in Bangor.
There are 32 bands entered for this event and the adjudicators are Alistair Aitken, Tony Sloane, Harry Stevenson and Sandy Steele.
There is also a solo-piping contest at Bangor starting at 3pm for age groups under 14-under l6 and under 18. Enter on the day of the contest at the registration tent.
July 28 will see the third of this years five major championships with the European, which will be held in Inverness Scotland.
Following that event the action returns home with the Ulster Championships this year taking place at Moira.
The 2007 World Solo Drumming Championships will be held this year in Glasgow. Last year the event, which was a great success, took place at Monkstown Community School.
It will take place on Saturday, October 27 at Glasgow Caledonian University near the city centre. Glasgow City Council has promised to provide the marketing and promotions for this event.
Chief Executive Ian Embelton has said" We want to make this event an internationally event, something of which Glasgow and the rest of the world can be proud.
The city centre location will make hotel accommodation and access better for everyone. We are closer to TV and radio stations and media organisation and who knows wnat that might bring. But everyone should be reassured that the competition will be run as before with similar events for all competitors and the same judging set up."
The 2007 championships will continue to be sponsored by Northern Ireland based company Andante percussion owned by Sam Hodgen from Rathfriland.
Current holder of the senior world title is Steven McWhirter wno drums with the Simon Fraser University Pipe Band.
Ulster Star
20/07/2007
