The Bagpipe Society

Grace Notes

As mentioned in my last ‘Grace Notes’, 2026 is the 40th anniversary of the founding of The Bagpipe Society. I am very grateful to Jon Swayne, Honorary President of the Society, for his reflections on the years since the 30th anniversary. He mentions the undoubted influence of Le Son Continu and its predecessor festival, Luthiers et Les Maîtres Sonneurs, on the growth of the European bagpipe revival as well as the development of the International Bagpipe Organisation and its biannual conference. We are left in no doubt that 50 years on from the first event at St Chartier, the world of bagpipes is not only a much larger one than it was then, but it is a soundscape that is much more familiar to many more people than I think could ever have been envisaged all those years ago. There is always a thirst to find new tunes to play! Benôit Kensier describes the planning and production of a new tune book, with over 300 tunes suitable for a G-bagpipe (16 pouces) which has recently been launched as a subscription only edition. His article is also a very good lesson in how to launch a project in this new digital, AI world!

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