The 47th annual Glenfiddich Piping Championships kicks off this morning at 10:00 (GMT). This year’s event will go down in piping history because, due to the coronavirus panedemic, it is being held behind closed doors at its usual venue, Blair Castle in Perthshire, Scotland.
Bagpipe.News will be there to record this unique event journalistically. Stuart Letford’s article will appear here next week.
The event is being recorded live with the broadcast going out tomorrow from 10:00 (GMT). The stream will remain online for 24 hours after the event for viewers to re-watch.
Competitors, judges and a small technical team are adhering to strict COVID-19 risk assessment and guidelines.
The 10 pipers invited to compete are: Callum Beaumont, Bruce Gandy, Finlay Johnston, Jack Lee, Stuart Liddell, Willie McCallum, Angus MacColl, Roddy MacLeod MBE, Connor Sinclair and Iain Speirs.
Finlay Johnston is the defending Glenfiddich Champion. The remaining nine invitations were extended to still-competing past Glenfiddich champions and, because of duplications, to second overall placings.
The judges for the Ceòl Mòr competition are Iain MacFadyen, Willie Morrison and Dr. Jack Taylor. For the MSR, Walter Cowan, Colin MacLellan and Ian McLellan will adjudicate. Stewarding is being provided by Angus Clarke and Logan Tannock of the Atholl Highlanders, whose regimental headquarters is Blair Castle. The fear an tighe (emcee) is John Wilson.
