Joyeux Noël on Remembrance Day

November 11, 2009 on 10:25 am by Michael Grey | In Music, Video | Comments Off on Joyeux Noël on Remembrance Day

In honour of the day, here’s a short clip from a really good “war movie”, Joyeux Noël from 2005, based on the true stories of the World War I Christmas ceasefires along the Western Front. It’s one of those movies that uses bagpipes in a rare authentic way.
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The Piper as Jack O`Lantern

October 30, 2009 on 8:15 pm by Michael Grey | In News | Comments Off on The Piper as Jack O`Lantern

An interesting image of an old postcard, circa 1912, provided here:
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Aged to Perfection (Ravi Shankar)

October 19, 2009 on 8:57 pm by Michael Grey | In Music, Solo Piping, Stories | Comments Off on Aged to Perfection (Ravi Shankar)

I had a great night last Saturday. I was treated to a concert of Indian classical music. And what a treat. None other than the world’s greatest exponent of the art was centre stage, sitar in hands. Ravi Shankar, the eighty-nine years old living legend, and his twenty-eight years old daughter, the remarkable, Anoushka, enthralled the sold out audience with non-stop musical virtuosity.
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A Good Use of Time (Maybe)

September 27, 2009 on 5:06 pm by Michael Grey | In Stories, Tips, Whinges | 4 Comments

I was watching the local news last week and a segment popped up that talked about the release of new internet stats. I can’t find the link to the piece otherwise I’d happily provide it here. Anyway, the story centred on the internet: now preferred over TV for entertainment and info-gathering.
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Tea with Lord Lovat

September 2, 2009 on 7:04 pm by Michael Grey | In Pipe Bands, Solo Piping, Stories | 6 Comments

When I think of early September I think of the Northern Meeting in Inverness, Scotland. The grand daddy of all solo bagpipe competitions. It’s the number one event on the solo piper’s calendar; or, maybe more correctly, the solo piper with the most experience, the nimblest fingers and s/he amongst the select global one hundred and fifty or so pipers who aspire to `the medals`: the oldest, most venerable prizes offered in the Highland bagpipe world. Of all the indelible memories I have of times spent at the Northern Meeting none stand out more than the one not directly related to bagpipes: tea with Lord Lovat.
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It’s a Small Worlds After All

August 15, 2009 on 6:58 pm by Michael Grey | In News, Pipe Bands, Whinges | 7 Comments

BBC’s live streaming of today’s World Pipe Band Championships worked beautifully. In one marvelous effort the BBC has transformed, in one big-servered swoop, the perception of the the grand event as a need-to-be-there happening, at least for observers. A good set of speakers and high speed internet access provided any listener, anywhere, with at least as sound a listening post as those on the Green tenth row back from the ropes. To those who have never attended the event the broadcast has allowed a look-in to how things work and gives a fair representation to the scale of the event. To those pipe band zealots who have been (many times before, like me) and couldn’t attend, BBC’s magnanimity provided a fix that helped ease the angst of not being there.
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Memorable

August 10, 2009 on 1:21 am by Michael Grey | In Stories | Comments Off on Memorable

I write this while standing outside the entrance doors at Paris’ CDG airport; a cloud of smoke enveloping me as a dozen smokers take their last, desperate pre-flight drags. The flight home awaits but not before a few moments of quiet(ish) reflection.
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Lorient Cheese Nazi

August 4, 2009 on 2:55 pm by Michael Grey | In Pipe Bands, Stories | 6 Comments

Just as you should expect the music at the festival is superb. I’m still savouring the great tunes delivered by the first grade bagads at Saturday’s competition. It seems to me the best bagads play with a level of musicianship that exceeds even the best of pipe bands. It’s inspiring.
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All Wet in Lorient

August 1, 2009 on 7:57 am by Michael Grey | In Stories | 1 Comment

After a seriously long journey to Brittany (7 hours by plane, 8 hours by bus) we arrived. I suggest anyone planning to head to Lorient from Paris travel by high-speed TGV train (a 3 and a half hour journey) instead of bus (as mentioned, 8 arse-numbing hours).
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Off to Lorient

July 29, 2009 on 3:38 pm by Michael Grey | In Stories | Comments Off on Off to Lorient

The band’s away to France tomorrow evening and we’re all pretty much set for nine days of music and, we expect, a lot of fun. Most of you will know the Festival Interceltique in Lorient is our final destination. This year marks the 39th year of the festival, and with attendance figures topping over 650,000, the “FIL” has become one of Europe’s largest music festivals. Continue reading Off to Lorient…

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