Author: Barnaby Brown

I started piping when I was 8 at the College of Piping in Glasgow with Tommy Pearson, Seumas MacNeill, and Fred Morrison senior. After 5 years of evening classes and 2 years with Knightswood Novice Juvenile Pipe Band, I took 10 years out as a classical flute player. I returned to piping in 1997, captivated by the Campbell Canntaireachd manuscript. That winter I transcribed all the unpublished tunes, and 17 years later I'm still trying to understand what lies behind that extraordinary document!

New site launched with a permanent endowment within the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

5 August 20225 August 2022 Barnaby BrownAnnouncements

We are delighted to announce that a gift of £200,000 secures the vibrancy of this site in perpetuity. The intention of the donor is that it seed a permanent endowment, the purpose of which is[…]

Pibroch Network Conversation #1: Our Draft Mission, Vision, and Values

22 January 202227 January 2022 Barnaby BrownAnnouncements

Barnaby Brown, Josh Dickson, Jimmy Carnegie, and Kate Carpenter launch a public consultation Purpose: To gather feedback on plans for altpibroch.com, a digital collection of source materials built by the late David Hester, now moving[…]

Rejuvenation & Streamlining

12 September 202114 September 2021 Barnaby BrownAnnouncements

This post marks a new beginning. Let’s call it Phase 2. Today is the 2nd anniversary of David Hester’s death. David built this network of resources, pouring his astonishing energy into making things happen. Big[…]

The End of the Little Bridge: Gesto’s setting – Part 1

8 March 201929 May 2019 Barnaby BrownLearning Interpretations

Gesto’s setting of this battle tune presents rich opportunities for a creative artist. There are so many options! I find it alarming how quickly we become attached to one interpretation. What we come up with[…]

J David Hester – KKRN The Piping Hour (Sept 2018)

9 September 20187 September 2018 Barnaby BrownAnnouncements

Our Member, Dr. Stephen Rooklidge (Shasta Piping Society), hosts a weekly radio broadcast called The Piping Hour. It is an excellent hour-long broadcast of old and new recordings of ceòl beag and ceòl mòr. He[…]

The pipe is not played but sung

11 March 201711 March 2017 Barnaby BrownHistorical Documents

This is a little interruption to my series on canntaireachd. It is not altogether unrelated. Keith Sanger recently sent me a cutting from The Scotsman that set me thinking. Dastaram gu seinnim pìob (PS 91) literally means ‘I am seized by[…]

Using colour to convey musical pitches – Part 5

4 March 20178 October 2017 Barnaby BrownLearning Interpretations

1. The rift between vocal and written canntaireachd 2. The rationale behind a proposed colour scheme 3. Case study 1: Hiharin hiodreen – One of the Cragich (PS 36) 4. Case study 1 (cont.): testing a coloured vocable score Part 5 concludes case study[…]