History of the Argyllshire Gathering: the 2004 competition

• PART 69 •

BY JEANNIE CAMPBELL MBE.

In 2004 the dates for the Argyllshire Gathering were 25th and 26th August. The Gold Medal began at 9am in the great Western Hotel with judges Iain MacFadyen, Hugh MacCallum and Tom Speirs. There were 33 entries. The set tunes were The Earl of Seaforth’s Salute, Lament for Patrick Og MacCrimmon, Beloved Scotland, Mary’s Praise, The Battle of Bealach nam Brog, His Father’s Lament for Donald MacKenzie. Four were to be submitted.

Some listeners thought it would be better if the list of Gold Medal set tunes was widened to provide more variety.  With several pipers submitting the same choices some tunes were heard six times in the day. The winner was Stuart Liddell playing Lament for Patrick Og MacCrimmon. The full result of the Gold Medal was:

1. Stuart Liddell – Lament for Patrick Og MacCrimmon
2. Alan Bevan– Beloved Scotland
3. Donald MacPhee – The Battle of Bealach nam Brog
4. Richard Hawke – His Father’s Lament for Donald MacKenzie
5. Marion Horsburgh – His Father’s Lament for Donald MacKenzie.

The Senior Piobaireachd began at 10am in the Royal Hotel. There were 17 entries and the judges were Andrew Wright, Malcolm McRae and Walter Drysdale. The set tunes were In Praise of Morag, Lament for Donald Ban MacCrimmon, Lament for Macleod of Colbeck, Lady MacDonald’s Lament, Lament for the Children, Donald Gruamach’ s March. Again, four tunes were to be submitted. The result was:

1. Angus MacColl – Lament for Donald Ban MacCrimmon
2. Murray Henderson – Donald Gruamach’s March
3. William McCallum, – Lament for MacLeod of Colbeck
4. Stuart Liddell – In Praise of Morag
5. Dr Angus MacDonald – Lady MacDonald’s Lament.

The Silver Medal was in the Corran Halls, starting at 9am. The judges were John Wilson, Gavin Stoddart and Ronald Lawrie. There were 31 names listed plus another four reserves. The set tunes were Catherine’s Lament, Lament for Donald of Laggan, MacLeod’s Controversy, Melbank’s Salute, The Little Spree, The Massacre of Glencoe. Four tunes were required. The result was:

1. Gordon McCready, MacLeod’s Controversy
2. Darach Urquhart, Melbank’s Salute
3. Alastair Dunn, Massacre of Glencoe
4. James Beaumont, Catherine’s Lament
5. Simon McKerrell, Massacre of Glencoe

The MacGregor Memorial was in the Regent Hotel, starting at 9am. There were 24 competitors and the judges were Finlay MacNeill, Neill Mulvie and George Lumsden. The result was:

1. Andrew Douglas, MacLeod’s Controversy, Battle of the Pass of Crieff
2. Andrew Lewis, Park Piobaireachd No. 2, Lament for Donald Duaghal MacKay
3. Fraser Maitland, Massacre of Glencoe, The Little Spree
4. Matthew Mitchell, Rory MacLoude’s Lament, The Big Spree.

The Former Winners MSR was due to start at 5pm but was delayed until 5.50pm. With a large entry of 21 pipers and tunes played twice over, this went on until after 10pm despite a couple of withdrawals and a couple of breakdowns. The judges were James Young, James Banks, Walter Cowan and the result was:

1. Gordon Walker
2. Roddy Macleod
3. Angus MacColl
4. Andrew Mathieson

At the prize giving, the man in charge, Jamie Fraser, pointed out that any profits from the competitions, the Games and the Ball go directly towards providing tuition in local primary schools and this was good for the local area.  A slightly different viewpoint was given privately by local lady. She recalled that when she was a small girl the Gathering Day was a holiday locally and families were able to enjoy a day out together. Now all the children were at school and the adults at work so they were no longer able to attend the Games even if they could afford the admission prices.

The Games Day

Games day started dull but dry for the start of the march, with the pipers lead by Stuart Liddell starting off with the Campbells are Coming and Glendaruel Highlanders. As they neared the park the rain came down and Stuart called for The Little Cascade to be played. This was followed by The Argyllshire Gathering as the pipers entered the field. On arrival in front of the Members’ enclosure the pipers and stewards were offered a dram then the Duke spoke with the new Gold Medallist and they posed for photographs. Heavy showers later in the morning caused everyone to seek what shelter was available, the Oban Distillery stall in the Heritage tent proving especially popular, perhaps due to the free samples of their products that were being offered. There were 45 entries for the A March and 47 for the A Strathspey and Reel. The B Grade events had 47 entries.  The local adult events had eight entries and the local juvenile MSR had 13 entries. Five platforms were in use throughout the day and most events were finished by mid afternoon.

A March: 1. Neil Smith. 2. Jack Lee, 3. Alan Bevan, 4. Margaret Houlihan, 5. James McHattie. Judges Andrew Wright, Tom Speirs, James Banks.

A S&R: 1. Jack Lee, 2. Simon McKerrell, 3. James Murray, 4. Neil Smith, 5. Alan Bevan. Judges John Wilson, Iain MacFadyen, Walter Drysdale.

B March: 1. Adrian Melvin, 2. William Geddes, 3. James Beaumont, 4. Neil MacPherson, 5. Ryan McFarland. Judges Gavin Stoddart, Finlay MacNeill, George Lumsden.

B S&R: 1. Andrew Douglas, 2. Adrian Melvin, 3. James Beaumont, 4. Fiona MacKay, 5. Marion Horsburgh. Judges Malcolm McRae, Ronald Lawrie, Walter Cowan.

Jig: 1. Robert Watt, 2. Alan Bevan, 3. James Murray, 4. Adrian Melvin. Judges James Young, Hugh McCallum, Neill Mulvie.

Local March. 1. Fraser Wylie, 2. Gavin Stewart, 3. Jamie Forrester, 4. Calum MacLean. Judges: Gavin Stoddart, Neill Mulvie.

Local S&R: 1. Fraser Wylie, 2. Gavin Stewart, 3. Jamie Forrester. Judges: Gavin Stoddart, Neill Mulvie.

Junior local MSR: 1. Alasdair Henderson, 2. Struan Thorpe, 3. Gavin Ferguson, 4. Craig Killen. Judges Tom Speirs, Hugh MacCallum.

The Oban pipe band played during the day.