PROFILE
Photo: Stuart Curnow
‘In my mind, innovation is about new music that’s presented in a way that is appealing and entertaining, not just for the sake of being innovative’
of many people over many years. Sound and harmonic
development, stability of the instrument through the use of synthetics, chanter volume and projection — all were key characteristics of Victoria Police Pipe Band. What stood out above much of this was musical development. The music is at the core of the band. Murray Blair was at
the core of the music. Six out of the nine tunes of the 1998 medley were written by Murray Blair. He credits pipe major Nat Russell with his development as a tunesmith and as a performer. “Nat Russell had a huge influence on my piping, encouraging me throughout my time in the band and motivating me to write,” said Murray. “In the later years I was fortunate to be closely involved with the bands concert productions and CD recordings, due in part to my formal training as an audio engineer. On a personal level, I gained much support from Nat who opened up opportunities that I never imagined possible. I’m deeply grateful for his help and enjoy his friendship still. When I left the band, it was quite sad as I enjoyed the camaraderie but was pleased to leave on such good terms and maintain a close relationship with them. “Within the pipe band world, you hear a lot of talk about
‘new’ music. Around the Victoria Police pipers’ table, every- one had an input into the tune selections. Essentially, we used whatever worked and much of the music that didn’t make it to the medleys would be used in the concerts. Over the years many pipers came and left, including the well-known names. For me, being in Victoria Police was about being part of a team, and many of the unsung members who performed the daily work of the band were vital to any success. One of the driving forces behind Victoria Police Pipe Band was loyalty; loyalty to the band. “There are notions that the band were conservative in their music
construct ion and I feel that is
misinformed. In my mind, innovation is about new music that’s presented in a way that is appealing and entertaining, not just for the sake of being innovative. I feel the band were very innovative in their tune selection, but only if it had musical merit within the medley idiom. In competition at the Worlds, we played Riverbeat, a 6/16 changing into 7/16 mid-way through as a finisher to our set.
PIPING TODAY • 12
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52