Members of the New Brunswick Piobaireachd Club will host an evening of bagpipe music November 26 at the Royal Barbershop on Queen Street.
Matt Carter
Come on. Admit it. You love the bagpipes.
Bagpipes have to be one of the most marginalized instruments in music. The brunt of many jokes. Right up there with the soprano sax and the banjo. And rightfully so. Fewer instruments sound worse before they are tuned than the pipes do. With four separate reeds that function independently, powered entirely by the cardiovascular prowess of the musician involved, it’s no wonder they get a bad rap. They are easily one of the hardest instruments to play, properly. But when placed in the hands of a competent player, the bagpipes can sing like no other instrument.
On November 26, members of the New Brunswick Piobaireachd Club will gather to share and enjoy some of the instrument’s most demanding music – piobaireachd, a Scot’s gaelic word pronounced loosely and phonetically as “pee-brock”. The club is made up of dedicated pipers from the Fredericton region who share a passion of what is commonly known in piping circles as, The Big Music.
“The New Brunswick Piobaireachd Club is a group of pipers dedicated to showcasing the classical music of the Great Highland Bagpipe,” said Colton Patterson, one of the event’s organizers. “Over the course of the evening, members will perform a tune of their choosing. Before each performance, the member will provide the audience with the background and historical context of their piece.”
For the uninitiated, piobaireachds are slow, emotive airs, often composed to commemorate a historical event. Many of these compositions date back hundreds of years. In more straight forward musical terms, piobaireachds are the opposite of a flashy guitar solo, but no less moving.
If you are a fan of the pipes or are simply interested in learning more about the instrument and the culture that surrounds it, attending the upcoming gathering of the New Brunswick Piobaireachd Club is a must.
“Although our initial audience mostly consists of people with a connection to the piping world, there has been plenty of interest from folks outside of that circle, including those involved in the academics of music,” said Patterson.
“Our mission is to foster appreciation for the art through demonstration and discussion. Having more people involved in the discussion would carry that mission forward in my eyes.”
The evening’s performers include local pipers Patterson, Adam Tingskou, Andrew Rogers and Gord Perry.
Third Session – NB Piobaireachd Club | November 26 | 7 p.m. | The Royal Barbershop, 530 Queen | View Event
Photo: Fredericton piper Andrew Rogers in Glasgow.
