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I thought for all of you at fort erie highland
games yesterday and maybe for a few others (john!) and especially for ma and pa
gomez, that you may be interested in reading the day afters comments by the pipe
major.. ron bowen. and also the comments by the judges. i think that
braemar is going to do very well this summer.
wendy
Let me begin by again expressing my thanks and gratitude to each and every one of you. I think that we all shared a tremendous feeling of pride and achievement, regardless of the outcome of the contest itself. With the unstable weather, it was a very challenging day for the bagpipes. Fortunately your hard work paid off. Our preparation was relatively painless and our sound was exceptional.
Just a quick recap. Seventeen bands were registered in Grade 4. Three bands scratched for some reason so fourteen actually competed. The four judges� scores were very consistent for the first 4 places, which means that things were pretty clear-cut from the judges perspective. Here�s the rundown.
Piping Judge # 1 Jim McGillivray - Intro - drones together, in-tune but a bit ragged - Tone � Drones bright and full � chanters full � overall blend very good - Execution � good - Expression � very good - Finish � clean - Overall assessment � overall a strong performance on good pipes with a couple of slips but good general unison - Detailed comments � early chanter, slips in first tune, good big sound, drones not really locked, good jig, overall quality of unison pretty good, good lift to strathspey, muddy work in Sleepy Maggie (bottom hand) - 3rd place with 63 pts.
Piping Judge # 2 John Rechnagel - Intro - drones together, in-tune but a bit ragged � early �E� - Tone � drones bright and full � chanters bright and full � overall blend very good - Execution � good - Expression � good - Finish � clean - Overall assessment � nicely played from start to finish. Sound held well throughout! Some parts of the jig were rough � strathspey was played together but needs more tempo. Ended on some good reels. Playing above grade! - Detailed comments � nice opening tune well played. Good break to jig � rough unison in 2nd part of jig. Good break to Slow air. Strathspey could use more lift. Nice reels! - 3rd place with 69 pts.
Drumming Judge � Brian McCue - Sold entrance to performance - March � watch that your figures don�t disrupt 6/8 feel - 9/9 Jig � tenors good � nicely done in this tune � well presented slow - Strathspey � good feel here - Reel � rough break � don�t let it get away � keep it clean � excellent tempo, very exciting! - This was a well prepared performance, excitingly presented. All sections of the drum corps are well coordinated and balanced. Good work by tenors & bass to enhance overall picture. - Execution � pretty clean except for the rough spots here and there � no major issue. - Tuning � snares good, bass excellent, tenors good - 4th place with 87 pts
Ensemble � Judge Noel Slagle - Tonal integration (tuning/clarity � pitch/volume balance � intonation � timbre/quality � stability) Very good. - Musicality (expression � phrasing � dynamics � rhythm � tempo) Very good - Technical integration (intro � transition � finish � intra corps unison � inter corps unison) Very good - Quality / Muscianship of Arrangement � Very good - Overall assessment � Outstanding performance for Grade 4 (?) Tune selections are excellent and controlled exceptionally well! Well done Lads and Lassies!! - Detailed comments: o Attach - excellent o Intro - very confident entry � Intonation of whole band is excellent at this point o Transition (jig) � solid � playing well for grade 4 (or maybe grade 3) well done o Mid-section doing an excellent job o Bass could be a bit softer o Sides in Slow Air excellent & tenor also - 1st place with 75 pts
Overall rankings (for first 5 places were - 1st - 8 Wing Pipes & Drums - 20 pts. - 2nd � Braemar � 28 pts - 3rd � Windsor Police Pipe Band � 32 pts - 4th � Guelph Pipe Band � 44 pts - 5th � Hamilton Police Pipe Band � 51 pts
PM�s comments � I think that we can say �Mission Accomplished� for our first time out. We produced the largest pipe band of the day and one of the nicest performances in our grade. The judges� comments were very fair and very positive. I was very pleased with the general focus and attention of the band throughout the day. As usual, we helped each other to get ready. Both Ed and Geoff Neigh remarked to me later how amazed they were to hear a Grade 4 band with 20 pipers with our sound. Many others were equally complimentary of our band.
Things to work on: - The early �E� could have cost us more in a major contest. It is impossible to overlook something so obvious and very easy to penalize a band just on this one point. We must improve our attacks. Remember�10 our of 10. - There were mistakes and sloppy playing down both sides. There were also pipers cutting in and out. A certain amount of that can be �hidden� in a big band, or �forgiven� if the band is otherwise performing to a high standard. - My position: In every band there are members who are leaders, there are members who are solid performers, and there are members who need to work harder to pull their level of performance up to the band�s standard. Our program is all about building for the future. The progress that the band and specific individuals have made is amazing. Even those players who have not yet competing with us have made tremendous progress. We have a very healthy attitude within and throughout the band that is vital to keeping us healthy and growing. Winning is a consequential event. Before a band �wins� many things have to be in its favor, including a bit of luck. I want all of us to balance our desire to win with other important aspects of a healthy band, namely relationships, respect, commitment, desire to improve, etc.
Thank you all. I understand that Barrie is a 3 � minute �quick march� medley. Please work on �Jack Dunbar� as we may fit it onto the front of our small 4/4s medley of tunes. I haven�t timed it yet. If anyone has any other ideas, please email me. Practice is on Tuesday. We will regroup and go forward at that time! Thanks again and enjoy today!!!
Ringo |
