Dr JKS Frater with supporting pipers Dr Innes Smith and Fiona Manson. Both pipers impressed everyone with the quality of their playing.
flight winning the RSPS Silver Star for the FormerWinners’ MSR at the Northern Meeting. Where I would not fully agree
with that quote from ACK is regard- ing the difficulty of piobaireachd. He, of course, is not alone in expressing such views. I think that its difficulty, by which I assume is meant
inacces-
this respect. In other musical forms there are pieces which are easy listening, whereas something else from same source can be difficult: Rachmaninov’s
second piano ‘I know quite a few
sibility, can be, and often is, overstated. Yes, piobaireachd may be an acquired taste, but that can apply to lots of things, including piping in general. The OldWoman’s Lullaby,Lament
for Mary MacLeod, and the tune we have just heard, Black Donald’s March, are surely readily enjoyable. Some pieces are more challenging, but piobaireachd is not so very different from other forms of music in
29
pipers who have reached maturity without playing piobaireachd . . .’
concerto is a very popular piece, but his second symphony is not so i m m e d i a t e l y appealing, though worth the effort. There are plenty of similar parallels from Scottish music. The point
is
that
piobaireachd is not unique in this respect. My experience is that many who have not been piobaireachd players have taken to it once overcoming their reluctance to make a start, myself included. In other words, it’s not that difficult a taste to acquire, both in terms of playing and listening. I know quite a few pipers who have reached maturity without