The Bagpipe Society

Promoting the bagpipe revival since 1986

International Bagpipe Day Conference

You are warmly invited to a conference to mark the first International Bagpipe Day, a celebration of the world’s bagpipes and bagpiping traditions.

Photos from the conference here.

This one-day conference will be hosted by the School of Oriental and African Studies  (www.soas.ac.uk) and the Institute of Musical Research in central London, supported by the SOAS music department, the Bagpipe Society and the British Forum for Ethnomusicology. We aim to create a productive and friendly environment for all people interested in the ethnomusicology of bagpipes: academics, music experts, instrument makers, folk musicians, dancers and music lovers alike. This is an exciting interdisciplinary opportunity to debate various questions relating to the ethnomusicology of bagpipes in the twenty-first century.

Saturday 10th March 2012

The Conference 9:15 – 17:30

Chancellor’s Hall, Senate House, Malet Street, London

Doors open at 9:15 am. Tea and biscuits.
Thirteen papers will be presented by as many bagpipe specialists during the day.
A light lunch will be served at midday (all refreshments are included in the conference price).
The conference ends at 17:30 closed by a paper given by the Keynote Speaker, Jean-Pierre Van Hees, an eminent bagpipe scholar and musician from Belgium.

Speakers and talks

Susana Moreno – Portugal (Trasmonte) – Bagpipe playing in contemporary Portugal : some key processes within a vibrant musical practice.

Manuel Ponferreteiro – Spain (Galicia) – The Galician bagpipes.

Barnaby Brown and Julian Goodacre– Scotland (Highlands) – Lessons learned reproducing Highland piping’s most precious relic.

Peter Cooke – India (Rajhastan) – The bagpipe in India.

Sophie Jacques de Dixmunde – France (Languedoc) – Revival of the Languedocian bodega

Joan-Miqueu Espinasse – France (Gascogne) – The boha, black sheep in the family or incredibly talented phenomenon?

Olle Gällmo – Sweden (Darlana) – On the origin of the screeches : the evolution of the Swedish bagpipe

Graham Wells – England (Northumbria) – The Northumbrian smallpipes : a missed opportunity ?

James Beaton – Scotland (Glasgow) – Noting the tradition : Collecting the Oral history of the Great Highland Bagpipe

Arnold Myers – Scotland (Edinburgh) – Creating a university collection of bagpipes

Pete Stewart and Paul Roberts – England (17th Century) – The common bagpipe- some new aspects of piping in mainland Britain in the period 1670-1820

Clive Matthews – England – The forgotten world of bagpiping in the nineteenth century England

Jean-Pierre Van Hees – All pipes (taxonomy / organology) – Essay on a new typology of bagpipes

The Concert 19:00 – 20:00

Brunei Lecture Theatre, SOAS, Russell Square, London

A one hour concert will showcase different types of bagpipes in a first half, all played by renowned musicians, including a demonstration of the Baroque Musette by Jean-Pierre Van Hees. The second half will present Zephyrus, the one and only English bagpipe orchestra formed by Jon Swayne in 1998.

The Spring Folk Bal 20:00 – 23:30

Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Russell Square, London

Organised by the SOAS French Folk Dance Society and featuring

Angles (UK)

Skeller (UK)

Olle Gällmo (Sweden)

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Tickets

Online sales are now closed. Tickets are available on the door for all events. We expect the evening dance to sell out, so please arrive early to avoid disappointment.

 

  • £45 / £33 concs. for Conference, Concert and Evening dance (including light lunch and refreshments)
  • £35 / £25 concs. for Conference and Concert (including light lunch and refreshments)
  • £8 / £6 concs. for Afternoon concert only
  • £12 / £10 concs. for Evening Dance only

 

Speakers are invited to the conference and to the evening dance.

Concessions: Bagpipe society members, SOAS Staff and Students, Students, Pensioners, Unemployed, Under 18

Meals

Refreshments will be provided in the morning and the afternoon.

The conference price includes a light lunch at midday.

Sunday 11th March

There will be a free outing organised at the Horniman Museum on Sunday 11th March 2012 early afternoon. Margaret Birley, Keeper of the Musical Instruments, will conduct a short guided tour. The Horniman Museum hosts one of the largest bagpipe collections in England after the Chantry Museum in Morpeth and the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford. The Museum is in the middle of a lovely park and has a cafeteria where tea can be taken after the visit.

Accommodation

Finding accommodation with friends would be the best arrangement. For those of you who wish to stay at hotels, Travelodges have good prices when booked in advance.
For cheap accommodation, hostels also have good deals with private and shared rooms, http://www.hostelbookers.com
Russell Square is also close to several small hotels: booking.com

Conference Venue

Chancellors Hall
Senate House
Malet Street

Map

Contact: Cassandre Balosso-Bardin (School of Oriental and African Studies)

Downloads

 

International Bagpipe Day Information (113.5 KB)

 

International Bagpipe Day Conference Form (16.5 KB)

Writing and content by Andy Letcher.
Site by Joe Wass.
Illustrations by Rima Staines.
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