Wake Up! It’s Time for the Party
Ever been to a party that starts an hour before dawn and ends in the afternoon? Dragging ourselves up at 4:45 a.m. on a Saturday morning, we hop into the car and head over to band mates Will & Kathleen’s house. It’s time for the North Georgia Pipes & Drums’ World Pipe Band Championships watch party!
The World Pipe Band Championships is already streaming live by the BBC from Glasgow Green in Glasgow Scotland. Will & Kathleen have a BIG screen TV. We can hear the bass drum outside in the driveway! (Reminds me of the Most Fascinating Man meme: “I don’t always listen to bagpipes. But when I do, so do the neighbors.”)
The Worlds
It on! For pipe bands, The World Pipe Band Championships is the Superbowl.
Every August pipers and drummers gather around screens connected to the internet to catch the live stream of the World Pipe Band Championships. Unless, of course, they’re at the Worlds. There were 216 bands from around the world there this year. That’s 8,000 musicians across nine different grades, including several bands from the U.S.
Our band, North Georgia Pipes & Drums, has gotten together to watch the Worlds for several years now. This year’s hosts unlocked their door at 4:30 a.m. Band president and fellow piper Bob was the first one there (as he is at pretty much every band event).
The hosts’ two huge Newfie dogs greet arriving band members. It’s a BYOB breakfast potluck. There were quiches and Scotch eggs, fruit, sausages, donuts, and pigs-in-a-blanket. Beverages include Mimosas, tea, coffee, Guinness and Scottish Ale. These are pipers and drummers we’re talking about.
MSRs, then the Medleys
The first part of the program on tap is the grade 1 band MSRs (march/strathspey/reel sets) — the “compulsories” of the competition. Basic, technically challenging music, fantastic execution. After the MSR, a break, and then the main event: the medleys. In the medley, the bands get to be more creative in selecting and arranging a combination of tunes of a variety of styles. Judges look for creativity and ensemble musicality along with the tone, tuning, execution and expression.
We watch and listen closely: the quick, light fingers of the pipers, jazzy lead strokes and following snares, flourishing tenors and sonorous bass drums. Time signatures, key changes, tempo shifts, double and triple harmonies. We evaluate. Or just listen and enjoy. Because at the grade one level, it’s all good! These are the top pipers and drummers in the world.
We have to rely on the internet streaming for what we’re hearing, of course. That gives us latitude to argue over what we hear and to compare with on-site commentator Bob Worrall. Bob is a renowned Canadian piper and adjudicator. With his trained ears and amusing erudite descriptions that have been turned into a drinking game around the world, Bob provides gently delivered, deliberate critiques after each band’s performance. (And who, after our messaging him every year, finally included us in his shout-outs to listeners at parties around the world: “North Georgia Pipes & Drums tuned in today”!)
This year, like last, not only are the grade one bands streamed, but the grade two medley final is as well. Given that this is where the best U.S. bands are competing, we’re particularly attentive. And as each band marches into the circle, we’re busy spotting and calling out the folks we know or recognize. Of course we make our judgements and picks here too.
The Results
After a full morning (for us in the U.S.), it is all over but the waiting. The BBC stream goes on hold for about an hour and a half before returning with the “march on.” That’s when all 216 bands march past the review stand and take their places on the field to hear winners announced. It takes a very long time. With everyone finally in place, the winners are announced, starting in the lower grades and moving up to the grade one champions, who are the champions indeed.
This year, it’s Field Marshall Montgomery from Northern Ireland. FMM has been fairly dominating in recent years and today’s victory saw it tie the record for most Worlds won by a band. The question now is will renown pipe major Richard Parkes retire? (Answer: No!)
Inveraray & District (Scotland) was 2nd; St. Lawrence O’Toole (Dublin, Ireland) 3rd; Scottish Power 4th; Simon Fraser University (BC, Canada) 5th; and Police Scotland Fife 6th.
In grade two, it was a great day for us Yanks, with three bands in the top six: Dunedin (Florida) in 1st; St. Thomas Alumni (Texas, including a couple of Atlanta’s best) 2nd; and Worster Kiltie (Massachusetts) 5th. And in grade 3B, friends we made two years ago at Stone Mountain, Pasadena Scots (including John MacDonald, the filmmaker) took 1st place.
Our party host, Will, wins our band’s “Top Six Picks” contest, scoring some free band swag and (more importantly) bragging rights for a year. He and drummer Jon are off running a tough mudder in the afternoon, but he tracked the results with us. After his race, pretty sure he needs a new t-shirt.
And now it’s all over but the merry-making going on in Glasgow tonight, and the arguing over the judges’ placing! Until next year.