Comments on: Q-School: World Pipe Band Championships Style

By: mike

mike — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 02:17:40 +0000

Stephen! Great info – and inspiration! The wheels are turning! Will float this with the band! Cheers, Mike

By: srmdrummer

srmdrummer — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 09:48:37 +0000

Okay – more detail: Should have been Caloundra (oops), Easter weekend (1st week in April?). NZ Champs at Masterton (Wellington) possibly on 12/13 March though is is unconfirmed. Hmmm… might be doable! Come on all you lot up there in the northern hemisphere, give it some serious thought!
Stephen

By: srmdrummer

srmdrummer — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 10:56:34 +0000

Okay Mike – try this for size…

Not sure where the 2010 NZ Champs are on yet (they will hopefully synchronise the two champs as they used to), but the 2010 Aussies are during Easter in Coloundra – that’s the Sunshine Coast, Queensland (Google it and see for yourself). How could you pass that up? Plenty of time for you TPPB blokes to get your acts together and organise the trip. And in fact, the way the Aussie dollar is going (against the US, at least), you could almost make a profit out of the trip if you play your cards right! Seriously – consider it… Stephen

By: mike

mike — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:56:44 +0000

Stephen – the 2-for-1 championships idea sounds incredible!

Well, Ian, to many it would be heresy to make a suggestion like yours! Lots of interesting ideas there!

I’m not seeking such dramatic change: just the elimination of Q school!

Thanks for your notes. M

By: iain_rm

iain_rm — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 14:57:17 +0000

Would it be heresy to suggest the RSPBA shouldn’t own the right to stage the World Pipe Band Championships…that no one national association does?

What if the pipe band associations of the world formed an international pipe band society and it staged the world championships in a manner that reflects and promotes the international nature of the pipe band world? This would include staging a week long festival in advance and moving the whole show around the world annually with the host national or regional association and its regional associations working with the world association to organise the event. A model similar to international sports bodies like the International Ice Hockey Federation or the International Olympic committee…etc…

I know this is far-fetched, but real change has to start somewhere…

Iain Ricketts-Moncur

By: srmdrummer

srmdrummer — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:57:30 +0000

Mike – For the record, if you came to Oz or NZ you’d NOT need to qualify. Admittedly our respective Grade 1s are small by ‘Worlds’ terms, but we don’t run qualifiers. In 2001 (I think) SFU came over to the Aussies (and won) and it was fantastic. If TPPB were to come you’d be most welcome. Incidentally out Nationals are on in two weeks and there are only three Grade 1s entered (two of whom were obviously at the Worlds too). Normally our championships are around Easter, near to the NZ champs… you you could get two-for-one and lots of great fun and sightseeing as well!

By: mike

mike — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:14:20 +0000

Strabbie – you should really be more passionate about what you’re saying! You do point out a sad truth regarding the “freshness” of bands going through from Q school to the afternoon world championship; especially challenging should it be a rainy morning.

Andrew – I am not the official voice of the TPPB. I’m only expressing my own opinion – not band consensus or band-vetted or band-approved statement. In fact, they’re probably annoyed at me for “stirring it up”. And while I’m all for what the group as a whole decides – I also support what you suggest. I think we’d have way more fun and a great life experience heading to, say, Australia or New Zealand to play at their championships (if we qualify). M.

By: aberthoff

aberthoff — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 19:32:25 +0000

The big question that maybe you could answer is, Knowing the risks before you decided to make the trip to Scotland, then why did TPPB go to the World’s in the first place? After all, the RSPBA has pretty much said to all bands, If you don’t like it, stay home. It is their event and, even if “overseas” bands wanted to change it, they can’t because they have no official say in RSPBA matters. The only potential way for non-RSPBA bands to have a chance at effecting changes is not to enter. I often think that, even if the overseas bands did stay home, the RSPBA still wouldn’t change the event, and would just as soon go back to 1975 before all these upstart bands started obsessing over it. However, the lynchpin is Glasgow City Council’s massive investment in Piping Live! Without the overseas bands coming for the World’s, I’m afraid the festival would have huge challenges. But Piping Live! is not officially connected with the RSPBA. There’s the rub.

By: strabbie

strabbie — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 16:24:54 +0000

I don’t think it comes down to semantics at all. Every single band in every grade (other than the bands playing in the Grade 1 qualifier) were playing equaly IN A CONTEST for a prize. They ALL jumped through the same hoops for that prize.

Now look at the Grade 1 band contest. The 14 bands that played in the morning were in the “World Pipe Band Championships Qualifier” of which only 6 went on to the “World Pipe Band Championships”. You say that, for instance, TorPol was 23rd out of 25th. Well the RSPBA don’t agree becasue the bands that didn’t qualify don’t show up anywhere on the “Grade One World Pipe Band Championships” final tally. It’s like they were never there……..

Then what about the bands the did manage to qualify. Those “lucky” six bands then had to play again – against all the remaining 8 “fresh” bands. Can you imagine the same thing in football: Okay, play your European qualifier in the morning then play again – in the final against a fresh team in the afternoon – hardly a fair contest is it – even for those lucky few bands.

Add to this the unfairness in the method used for pre-qualifiying. It is patently unfair to overseas bands and totally biased for UK based bands (That’s the way the RSPBA likes it and that’s why it will likely never change).

I had tallied up the total mileage travelled by the overseas bands that travelled to Galsgow for the “Qualifier” and never got through. It came to over 70,000 miles! That’s collectively over 70,000 miles all those musicians in grade one bands travelled and never got to squeeze out one note of a medley. F$#%ing disgraceful and the RSPBA should be ashamed!

By: mike

mike — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 14:02:17 +0000

Cam – I think at one point numbers might’ve been teetering on the 30 side and the Q school thing was meant to address that – though, really, not entirely sure

Stephen – I like this picture you’ve painted way better!!! LOL. Thanks! M