Episode 1 All Ireland Pipe Band Championships

Hello and welcome to the 60th All Ireland Pipe Band Championships.

And where else could we be this year but the UK City of Culture 2013,

Derry/Londonderry.

It's the first time this competition has visited Derry.

We're here in St Columb's Park on the banks of the Foyle

right in the heart of the Maiden City.

In this first programme, we'll be featuring the prestigious

Grade One competition and, as always, we're in for a real musical treat.

TANNOY: Grade One World Champions 2012.

Field Marshal Montgomery.

They're officially the best pipers and drummers on the planet -

the reigning Grade One World Champions, Field Marshal Montgomery.

Richard Parkes' band have made an impeccable start to this season

and going by the form book, they are the band to beat.

Hot on their heels - St Laurence O'Toole from Dublin.

With Pipe Major Terry Tully at the helm, the 2010 World Champions

will be trying to take this coveted title south of the border.

Cullybackey Pipe Band also know what it's like to

be on top of the world.

Since winning the Grade Two title,

Robert Cupples' band have been steady performers in the top flight.

They may be the newcomers to

Grade One but already this season

Seven Towers from Ballymena have tasted championship success.

Can David Reid's band repeat their early season performance

and upset the odds in Derry?

And last, but certainly not least, Ravara from County Down.

Sam Connolly's band have consistently been on the Grade One

podium this season but can they spring

a surprise at the biggest gig in the Irish piping calendar?

To guide us through the competition this afternoon I've enlisted Robert Wallace.

He's the principal at the College of Piping

and a well-known commentator on the piping scene, as well.

Robert, great to have you with us.

What do you think the judges are looking for in this grade?

The first thing will be sound.

They must have volume, they must have steady tone.

They must have clarity,

they must have a true scale from the of the chanter to the bottom.

That's the absolute prerequisite in Grade One.

After that, the pipe tunes must work with the drummers.

The pipers and drummers, there must be no conflict between the pipes and the drums.

This is where the ensemble comes in.

And when you hear the clash where they don't quite marry up,

you'll see the judge lifting his pencil.

The other thing would be the tunes -

the breaks from the march to the Strathspey or to the slow air.

These all have to be absolutely precise and controlled

all the way through. The Pipe Major is a conductor.

The pipers, the drummers will all be watching him.

If they get it right, it can be a marvellous orchestra of pipes and drums.

To win the All Ireland title, our bands must impress the judges

over two performances.

So earlier this afternoon, each band played their traditional march,

Strathspey and reel set.

After the MSRs, the unofficial word at the ringside was that it was

probably too close to call between Field Marshal and St Laurence,

with Cullybackey not too far behind in 3rd.

But that could all change as the bands step up to the

line for their medley set.

A selection of tunes put together by each Pipe Major to

show off the band's technical and musical abilities.

First into the ring then, Pipe Major Robert Cupples with Cullybackey.

THEY PLAY A PIPE MEDLEY

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Cullybackey in fine form to these ears,

but what about the expert ears, Robert? What did you make of it?

This was a different band.

The march and Spey reel, they were a bit sluggish.

Here they were totally in control and it was absolutely first class.

You wouldn't have believed you were listening to the same band.

They were so much more relaxed throughout the whole performance.

Every break was right on the money.

The Pipe Major had it just ticking over beautifully.

And the sound sustained.

Because there were more relaxed, the blowing stayed steady.

So they will be very pleased with that performance.

And not only that but the quality of the medley was good.

It was entertaining from start to finish.

There was hardly a duff tune, as we say in Scotland.

In the mix, you know.

You heard the silence in the crowd, if I can put it like that.

I think the Pipe Major will be delighted with that performance.

Very, very positive, indeed. That's what we think here.

But what about the band themselves, how do they feel about it?

Claire's with Pipe Major Robert Cupples.

It's been a tough day for pipes. First part of the day was warm

and it's cooled off a wee bit and there's the threat of rain.

A few spits, but it was a good performance. We're very happy.

And how do you feel about the competition?

It's a big competition. It's big stakes.

Two of the top six bands in the world are here.

But that's what we have to measure ourselves against and take ground on these bigger bands.

So, it's good for ourselves

and Seven Towers to be playing against guys like Field Marshal

and St Laurence who are at that level already

and we're aspiring to get to that level to the top table of piping.

Next into the ring, it's Seven Towers.

They may be the new boys and girls of Grade One

but have they got what it takes to impress the judges?

Well, let's find out.

THEY PLAY A PIPE MEDLEY

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Well, Seven Towers were in the McLean tartan

so they have a place in my heart.

But did they do enough today to be placed, Robert?

I think they'll be struggling to be placed, to be quite honest. They're just new to Grade One

and whilst I have no doubt that their position in Grade One is

justified, they've a fair bit of work ahead of them

and I'm sure Pipe Major Reid is well aware of that.

They started off well.

Sounded good but when we get into the more difficult

tunes like the Strathspey, they lacked cohesion.

You could hear the pipers not quite together at the difficult passages.

Also I felt the jigs at that tempo...

You play a roundish sort of jig, you must get the tempo up.

If you don't lift the tempo, it can sound very sluggish and it's a

rare thing in an Irish band that the jigs aren't up to scratch.

But I felt today that they just needed to go for it a wee bit more.

But the band can be pleased that they're in Grade One.

They've got a good couple of hard winters work to start to make

an impression.

OK, it's a tough, tough grade and an unforgiving grade

but let's find out what the word is on the other side, Claire?

First day out for a couple or three weeks so quite happy, yes.

-Stiff competition today, of course.

-Very stiff.

Some good bands in Grade One so we're very much the novice band.

We enjoyed it with two good performances,

so that's all I can ask. Very good.

Next up, it's St Laurence O'Toole.

Now, they're always up there with the big boys in Grade One and deservedly so,

but can Terry Tully's team pull off a winning medley this time?

THEY PLAY A PIPE MEDLEY

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

A predictably strong

and impressive performance from St Laurence O'Toole, but was it

-strong and impressive enough, Robert, in your expert opinion?

-Absolutely.

Tommy Millar coined the phrase, "The greatest sound in the world."

You heard it there in that slow air. It was just absolutely superb.

The tone of the pipes.

If you've got any hair on your head,

it must have been standing up at the very sound of it.

Very, very high quality band

and the way they tied the slow air in with the final tune at the end,

that's brilliant orchestration the way they did that.

So, they'll be thrilled with that performance. It's a magical medley.

A very entertaining band.

Always extremely musical so it was a joy to listen to them.

A very strong performance again and let's find out what the main

man in the band himself thought, Pipe Major Terry Tully.

He's with Claire.

Well, it was very good for us.

As I said to the guys there, it's as good as we're going to do it.

It's a new medley.

That's only the third time that it's been played this year.

Each time we play it, it's getting better.

That was very good. I'm really, really pleased with that. Really pleased with it.

Our penultimate band this afternoon is Ravara.

After the first round, they have a fair wee bit of catching up

to do if they want to claim a place on the podium.

Let's see how they get on.

THEY PLAY A PIPE MELODY

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

A spirited performance from Ravara there.

Now, the standards of Grade One are so high, Robert, and the

margins for error are so slim, do you think they did enough today?

Well, coming on after St Laurence is always going to be difficult.

And I'm not convinced about the quality of the tunes in the medley.

One or two of them, OK.

But to me there were too many pieces in there which didn't grab

the ear and if you don't grab the attention of the judge and the

listeners, it's very difficult, no matter how well you play.

It's a characteristic of all the top bands when they win,

they've usually got some sticking-out tunes, you know?

And I think the Pipe Major needs to have a wee look at the medley,

content of the medley.

They played well. They played better in the march, Spey and reel.

The drums enhanced the ensemble very well,

but at times I did feel the tenors were overbearing,

especially in the slow air.

They took away from the effect of that.

A good band, well worth their place in Grade One.

With better content, they'll do better.

Robert, hard but fair. Let's hear what the band thought of it.

Claire's with Pipe Major Sam Connolly.

Well done there. How do you feel it went compared to the MSR?

I had a bit of a nightmare myself, actually.

It was two reasonable performances. We need to do that every week.

Just trying to take it onto another level.

-Tough at that level.

-Hard act to follow after St Laurence O'Toole.

Absolutely. They have been in Grade One for quite some time

and the World Championships back in 2010.

We're only into the grade two years now.

We're doing all right.

Last band into the ring today are Field Marshal Montgomery.

They're the current World Champions

and they are currently in first place after the MSR round.

Let's see if they complete it with a great medley.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

The Field Marshal Montgomery, for so long the gold standard in piping

and with impeccable standards, as always.

Were they up there on that performance?

Well, it's just a machine but what a beautifully musical machine it is.

The sound, the drones, the quality of the tunes, the breaks,

the accompaniment, the dynamic... assistance from the drummers

because, as you know, pipes don't have any dynamic control

so you've got to rely on the drummers to give us that dynamic

and St Laurence had that in spades, as well. But that was just...

I'll be hard pushed if they play like that... They'll be hard pushed to

knock off their perch at the World Championships.

And above it all,

from a piper's perspective, their beautifully precise technique,

it's a joy... I said joy earlier on but it is a joy to listen to.

I don't want to overuse the word,

but when you hear the precision and the work that band produced

there, it gladdens your heart. It really does.

Let's find out what the main man in the band,

Pipe Major Richard Parkes, thought of it. He's with Claire.

That was a really good medley performance.

That's one of the best I ever remember playing with the band.

And that goes back a long time. I'm very pleased with that.

And as reigning champions, you'd certainly like to retain your crown?

Oh, absolutely always we want to do that.

We had a wee hiccup at the start of the MSR,

but aside from that, it was a really good performance.

The band's playing really well this year.

And, you know, it's going to take a good performance to beat that, I think.

What would it mean to you?

Well, you know...the All Ireland is the biggest competition in

Ireland and the biggest competition we play on home soil every year.

So, it's very important to win it.

So, a confident Richard Parkes.

Well, our bands have done all they can to impress the judges.

So while the marks are being totted up, they have to wait patiently

and enjoy the finale from the 61 bands who have taken part in

this year's All Ireland Championships.

BANDS PLAY "Scotland The Brave"

AUDIENCE CLAPS IN TIME

Quite a spectacle. But now the waiting is over.

It's time for the all-important results.

Grade One. All Ireland Champions for 2013, winning the

Tom Geddis Memorial Trophy...

Field Marshal Montgomery.

APPLAUSE

Richard, congratulation. All Ireland Champions again. How do you feel?

Well, it's great to win it.

We've won it a lot of times in the past

but it's always one where you can trip up. So it's part of our season.

It's one of the major championships so I'm very happy to have won it.

And looking ahead to the Worlds now, great hopes for them, I'm sure.

Well, the band's playing really well this year.

We just need to keep it going and try and improve.

I felt some improvement today on some aspects of our performance,

which is good.

So, I'm looking forward to that.

Well done to Field Marshal Montgomery who

claim their 21st All Ireland title,

that fabulous performance in the medley helping the band to

a clean sweep of the piping and drumming prizes.

St Laurence delivered another strong overall performance to take 2nd.

That's about it from this year's Grade One Championship

but next week, we'll be looking at the competition

in all the other grades.

We'll also be introducing you to the woman who won, but didn't,

meeting the band who have risen from the ashes,

and getting an exclusive

behind-the-scenes look at the World Champion who is

breathing new life into one of the most famous bands in the business.

We'll see you then.

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