Happy Andermas.
Dec. 1st, 2008 03:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
daibhidcYes, St Andrew's Day was yesterday, but I wasn't online.
Last night, I was at the St Andrew's Day concert in the carpark of the Highland Council. (It was supposed to be in the Northern Meeting Park, but for some reason it wasn't.) It started off with the Gaelic choir, then a folk group led by Blazin' Fiddles founder and local boy Bruce MacGregor. They did some excellent songs, and the wee girl who won Inverness Has Talent did a brilliant version of "Caledonia", although she seemed to come down with very bad stage fright.
And then the Red Hot Chili Pipers came on. I'd never heard before, although I've heard of them, and I wasn't sure what to expect. They are awesome.
I've severely underestimated the bagpipes all these years. I like them, of course, because I'm a Highlander, and am therefore obliged to. But I've always thought that they were limited. There were songs written especially for the bagpipes, and they were the only things you could play on the bagpipes. And most of them were dirges or marches, so you wouldn't want to listen to them for a long period.
The Red Hot Chilli Pipers played "Clocks" by Coldplay. They played "Hey Jude" and "You're The Voice". They did a duel between the lead piper and the electic guitarist[1]. And just when they'd completely altered my ideas as to what bagpipes could do, they launched into a beautiful version of "Highland Cathedral" (especially appropriate since we were, in fact, opposite the cathedral).
I have a new entry in my list of favourite musicians.
[1]There was also a duel between the drummers. Which turned into a more literal duel when they started swordfighting with drumsticks without ever missing a beat!
Last night, I was at the St Andrew's Day concert in the carpark of the Highland Council. (It was supposed to be in the Northern Meeting Park, but for some reason it wasn't.) It started off with the Gaelic choir, then a folk group led by Blazin' Fiddles founder and local boy Bruce MacGregor. They did some excellent songs, and the wee girl who won Inverness Has Talent did a brilliant version of "Caledonia", although she seemed to come down with very bad stage fright.
And then the Red Hot Chili Pipers came on. I'd never heard before, although I've heard of them, and I wasn't sure what to expect. They are awesome.
I've severely underestimated the bagpipes all these years. I like them, of course, because I'm a Highlander, and am therefore obliged to. But I've always thought that they were limited. There were songs written especially for the bagpipes, and they were the only things you could play on the bagpipes. And most of them were dirges or marches, so you wouldn't want to listen to them for a long period.
The Red Hot Chilli Pipers played "Clocks" by Coldplay. They played "Hey Jude" and "You're The Voice". They did a duel between the lead piper and the electic guitarist[1]. And just when they'd completely altered my ideas as to what bagpipes could do, they launched into a beautiful version of "Highland Cathedral" (especially appropriate since we were, in fact, opposite the cathedral).
I have a new entry in my list of favourite musicians.
[1]There was also a duel between the drummers. Which turned into a more literal duel when they started swordfighting with drumsticks without ever missing a beat!
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Date: 2008-12-02 03:20 pm (UTC)