An Edinburgh piper has made history in Perthshire as the was crowned the overall winner at the prestigious Glenfiddich Piping Championship at Blair Castle.
Ten premier solo pipers were invited to contest the title today, October 31, and the 53rd annual event proved an incredible showcase of piping talent and prestige. They performed in front of a sold-out audience in Blair Castle’s Victorian Ballroom and hundreds of international viewers watched via the online livestream. You can still purchase the livestream to rewatch until December 1 at thepipingcentre.co.uk/the-glenfiddich-piping-championship.
The Glenfiddich 2026 competitors:
- Stuart Liddell, Inverary, Scotland
- Finlay Johnston, Milngavie, Scotland
- Alasdair Henderson, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Sean McKeown, Toronto, Canada
- Greg Wilson, Tai Tapu, New Zealand
- Calum Brown, Aberdeen, Scotland
- Calum Beaumont, Guardbridge, Scotland
- Chris Armstrong, Glasgow, Scotland
- Iain Speirs, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Alan Bevan, Abbotsford, Canada
Founded in 1974, the Glenfiddich Piping Championship is the premier competition in world solo piping. Organised by the National Piping Centre, Scotland’s centre of excellence for piping and drumming, and supported by the William Grant Foundation, the event celebrates over five decades of excellence in Ceòl Mòr (Piobaireachd) and Ceòl Beag (light music).
The 2026 overall champion is Alasdair Henderson, hailing from Edinburgh, Scotland. Brought up in Dunoon, Alasdair received his initial tuition from his uncle P/M Jim Henderson. His piping took him to Glasgow, where he enrolled on the BA (Scottish Music-Traditional Piping) degree at the RSAMD.
Alasdair Henderson also took home the first-place trophy in Piobaireachd, and Chris Armstrong placed first in the March, Strathspey and Reel.
As a leading solo piper, Alasdair’s accomplishments include winning both Gold Medals; the Senior Piobaireachd and Former Winners MSR at the Argyllshire Gathering and the Piping Live! Masters Overall title this summer.
About his win, Alasdair said: “It’s the best day of my piping life!
“It’s unbelievable. I’ve worked an entire lifetime towards this. It feels fairly surreal at the moment, I was very happy with the way I played today, I thought I put two really good runs together.
“I can’t believe I get to stand here and hold the trophy.”
The runner-up was reigning champion Stuart Liddell, with Iain Speirs taking 3rd place.
The Glenfiddich Piping Championship 2026 results:
Overall Winner: Alasdair Henderson
Second Place: Stuart Liddell
Third Place: Iain Speirs
Piobaireachd Winner: Alasdair Henderson
MSR Winner: Chris Armstrong
This year’s recipient of the Balvenie Medal for Services to Piping was Alberto Massi from Italy. This was the 42nd presentation of this medal, first presented in 1984. Alberto was awarded the medal for his service in Italy, where he has blazed a trail to bring the Highland Bagpipe, its music and culture to Italy, expanding playing across the country and developing teaching and performance pathways there over the past few decades.
The judges for the day were Alan Forbes, Murray Henderson and John Wilson for the Piobaireachd section, while James Banks MBE, Ian Duncan and Iain MacFadyen BEM judged the March, Strathspey and Reel. Fear An Tighe (Master of Ceremonies) was Gary West.
The ten competitors qualified through individual events across the year. Stuart Liddell was selected as the reigning 2025 Glenfiddich Champion and was also the Overall Winner at the Scottish Piping Society of London; Finlay Johnston was Bratach Gorm at the Scottish Piping Society of London & Former Winners MSR at the Argyllshire Gathering; Alasdair Henderson was the Overall Winner of the Piping Live! Masters Solo Piping Competition, and Sean McKeown was the Gold Medallist at the Argyllshire Gathering.
Also qualifying at the Argyllshire Gathering was Greg Wilson, who was crowned Senior Piobaireachd winner, and Iain Spiers, who was second in the Senior Piobaireachd. Callum Beaumont was the Northern Meeting Clasp Winner in the Senior Piobaireachd, with Alan Bevan coming in second. Chris Armstrong was Silver Star Former Winners MSR at the Northern Meeting. Finally, Calum Brown was the Northern Meeting Gold Medallist.
The Glenfiddich Piping Championship will return on October 30, 2027. Visit www.thepipingcentre.co.uk/glenfiddich-piping-championship for more information.