There is probably no place in the eastern half of the USA where you will find nine Highland Society of London Gold Medalists (five double golds), three World Champion pipe bands represented (out of seven Grade 1 bands represented), a husband and wife, and a father and son all in one place and playing in the same bagpipe competition. If you were at the Ramada Inn at Newark, New Jersey on Saturday for The Metro Cup, you were there to bear witness to the first such combination.
Think you’re a hardcore piper or bagpipe enthusiast? This was your chance to prove it. This year’s invitational contest was a series of “firsts” in many regards, bringing together sixteen of the world’s top solo competitors for what was a marathon eleven hours of straight bagpiping (the longest Metro Cup ever) with piobaireachd in the afternoon right into the free form medley competition in the evening. Kudos to judges Jim Stack of New Jersey, Colin MacLellan of Edinburgh, and John Cairns of Ontario for sticking through it all with minimal breaks. Colin MacLellan also marked a first for his use of a digital collection of piobaireachd music which he used throughout the piobaireachd contest on a portable e-reader device.
It was Bruce Gandy who emerged as the overall winner of the Metro Cup (for a record sixth time) with a first placing in the medley event and a fourth in the piobaireachd. Read More
The PoPo’s have prevailed.
Pure genius from Michael Grey at Dunaber.
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