2014 World Pipe Band Championships

As the athletes and, of course, this boy leave a legacy of

sport for Scotland, we're joined by more friends from around the world.

It's time to get Glasgow going again.

Welcome to one of the biggest musical events of the year -

The World Pipe Band Championships 2014.

Hello and welcome to this world-famous competition.

Bands come here to find out who really is the best of the best

and over the next hour we'll be bringing you all the action

and telling you who gets their hands on this coveted trophy

and earns the title World Pipe Band Champion.

Coming up, great music from the entire Grade 1 competition.

Can last year's winners, Field Marshal Montgomery,

make it four in a row?

We'll be showing some of the highlights from both

the Juvenile and Grade 2 finals taking place in the main arena.

And, of course,

it's the competition all the top bands have been working towards...

Who will be World Pipe Band Champion 2014?

There is so much to look forward to,

and even a grey day like this isn't going to dampen

the spirits of the thousands of pipers and drummers who've come

here from New Zealand to Canada, from Northern Ireland to the USA.

They're going to be competing across all categories and age groups

which means some fabulous performances are guaranteed.

Now, I'm pleased to say I'm joined by our piping expert once again -

Bob Worrall.

Bob, you're going to take us through the competition,

but first, remind us of the rules.

The bands in the Grade 1, there are 12 of them,

they play twice during the course of the day.

They play a march, strathspey and reel, which is very prescribed

and then they play a medley which is much more free form -

five to seven minutes.

And to the untrained ear, there's not a lot between the top bands,

so what are the judges listening out for?

Fine differences in sound, how the

tone is sustained through the performance.

Fine differences in the level of technical clarity, how precise

the playing is within each of the chorus and between the chorus.

And, of course, ultimately, the overall musicality,

and this can be just tiny things, like a tiny tempo thing,

a tiny expression thing that can make the difference.

This competition has been dominated by Field Marshal Montgomery

in recent years. Who should we look out for this year?

It has been dominated by Field Marshal and I would expect that

they're going to be a force again today, without question.

They've won three of the first championships this year.

Inveraray won one of the other championships.

Do not rule Inveraray out, do not rule Scottish Power out -

they were second in a couple of those championships,

and do not rule out Boghall because Boghall is playing extremely

well, and St Laurence O'Toole since Alen Tully has taken over,

has improved, and they're back in form again.

It's a horse race.

You've given us some ones to watch, anyway. Thank you very much, Bob.

We'll be telling you some more about some of those

bands as the programme goes on, but first let the competition begin.

Let's head over to the main arena.

Starting off this year's competition

and first to face the rain...

The first overseas band to win the Worlds back in 1987.

Now led by Pipe Major Douglas MacRae.

Tempo came on quite nice.

It was good. It was cold!

Certainly cold on the hands,

but the rain came down as we were

tuning up, stopped,

then came back, then back on the field,

so it's just a guessing game, but we're happy with it.

The sound held pretty well.

Superb alacrity entering that strathspey. Brilliant!

Excellent...

The ideal scenario is sunshine and a bit of heat, you know.

The hands are cold

and it's difficult to get them

to move in this temperature,

so it's tricky,

but everybody is in the same boat, so you've got to just try

and deal with it as best you can.

Snares and the pipe chord definitely

on the same musical page in this tune.

Good. It was a good, solid run for us.

The conditions, obviously, as you can see are not pleasant but,

yeah, overall happy.

You can talk to the rest of the guys,

it's the same all the time.

But fairly happy with that. I felt it was quite confident.

We'll have more from the Grade 1 arena in just a moment,

but if you're new to the world of pipe band competition,

here's a closer look at some of the bands

who've made it past the qualifying stages and into that final.

Field Marshal Montgomery are back

defending their world title for the fourth year in a row.

If they can achieve this, it will be the first time

since Strathclyde Police managed it way back in the early '90s.

However, their recent impeccable form took a slight dip

when they finished fourth at the Europeans earlier this year.

Out of the four championships so far,

we've won three

and we were fourth in the other.

So a pretty good year, but the fourth was a bit of a disappointment for us.

There's a lot of good bands out there,

so all you can do is do what is in your control and try and play

the best you can and then it's in the hands of the judges after that.

With nine World Championships during his 33 year reign,

the formidable Pipe Major Richard Parkes

will be eager to avoid disappointment.

He will be hoping to guide the band to his tenth win this year.

With top three finishes at the Worlds over the last three years,

Scottish Power are strong contenders.

They head into the competition having built up some momentum

through the season,

finishing second at the Scottish and European Championships.

I think we have been second throughout the four majors

so far this year.

We've been playing fairly well, pretty consistent performances,

which is the main thing.

That's what it's all about.

Knocking on the door, so hopefully, fingers crossed.

Next up, we have Republic of Ireland's St Laurence O'Toole.

They have had a great season

and are coming into the Worlds full of confidence.

We were third in three majors

and we were fifth in the last major coming in,

but we had our best performance of the year.

So we're feeling very good and confident coming in here.

We also won the All-Ireland Championships

back at the start of July, so...good and strong.

This is Alen Tully's first year as pipe major after taking

over from his father Terry.

I've just finished 30 years of being pipe major.

My father before me was the pipe major.

There has been a Tully pipe major since 1964 in our band,

which is almost nearly half the band's lifetime.

So with big shoes to fill, we'll have to wait and see

if Alen can write a new chapter in the family history.

Here we have Boghall and Bathgate Caledonia Pipe Band,

last year's runners up.

The World Championship still remains the only title to elude them.

They've shown glimpses of good form over the season so far,

placing sixth in the Europeans, third at the Scottish

and second at the British Championships.

Our form this year has been pretty good,

we have been playing pretty well.

The results have been a bit up and down this year.

But we haven't lost any confidence in our ability on the back

of those results.

I think our performance at the last major championship,

the Scottish Championship, I thought we had a cracking run there.

And I think it's probably carried on to this one.

Contenders Simon Fraser University have been setting a very high

standard since the late 1990s, having won the Worlds six times.

Last year was the first time

they placed out of the top three since 1999.

They have also been going through a major transitional period

with Alan Bevan taking over from influential pipe major Terry Lee.

We've done really well, the band. Really fired up.

Very keen to prove that we have not taken any step backwards,

same attitude, maybe slightly better this year.

Been a few years since we won, so I think it would be a big deal

back home for our local fans as well as for the University.

Will Alan Bevan guide Simon Fraser University back into the top three?

Or can he even inspire them to take the trophy back across the Atlantic?

And finally, Inverary and District Pipe Band were founded in 2005

and managed to attain Grade 1 status in just four years

after winning all five RSPBA Grade 2 Championships in 2009.

At the European Championships this year,

they secured their first Grade 1 title.

We did win the one, the third one, the European Championships,

which was a big milestone for us.

There is no doubt, it does boost the morale a lot.

It puts belief into the players.

A lot of them are first-time winners of a championship.

So it really does put belief into them

that all that hard work is actually for a reason.

Pipe Major Stuart Liddell has also been doing a bit of homework.

I think the standard of the bands today is now at its highest.

I went to the Strathclyde Police concert on Wednesday night

and they sounded really good, checking them out,

how they were getting the edge, can we get the edge as well?

We will have to wait and see if those scouting missions,

and, more importantly, their recent success will prove to be

the deciding factor for them this year.

Will this year's prize go to one of those contenders, or is there

a dark horse ready to knock Field Marshal Montgomery off the top spot?

Time for more music now.

Let's go back to the march, strathspey and reel.

Next up, the current champions, Field Marshal Montgomery,

led by Pipe Major Richard Parkes.

Well, to quote an overused expression,

when it comes to that attack, that is as good as it gets.

A tough part to express and they've managed it really well.

All we can control is our own performance,

and if we can do that and play to the best of our ability,

that's all we can control. Other than that, if we can play well,

I'm confident that it will be good enough to be in contention.

We've come from mid-winter in New Zealand,

so it's probably more what we've got in New Zealand right at the moment.

But we handled it pretty well.

We know we're just as likely

to get this sort of weather here in Scotland,

so we planned for it.

A very fluent musical transition into the reel.

Well, that's another good one...

from our Grade 1 bands.

We nailed it on the tempos, it was good and controlled.

We did everything we wanted to do, and judging from the reaction

of the drummers, they had a very good run too, so...

SHRIEK

Some great performances from the main arena there

and there are six more MSRs to come.

But now, there's been a break in the clouds, which is

quite fitting because we are turning our attention to the future

and we're going to enjoy some of the quality

and enthusiasm on display in the juvenile category.

Eight teams all under the age of 18 made it through to the final.

But it came down to a close battle for the title

between Boghall and Bathgate, George Watson's College and Dollar Academy.

APPLAUSE

Juvenile first place, winning the MacDiarmid Shield

and the Stirling McMurchy Memorial Cup...

Dollar Academy.

With George Watson's College taking second place

and in third, Boghall and Bathgate.

-Can you sum up your feelings?

-It's hard to put into words.

It's absolutely amazing. Amazing.

How much does this mean to you and the band?

After all that hard work we've put in, it just paid off.

-I think everyone's just ecstatic.

-I think I'll ask them. Are you happy?

Yes!

Worthy winners there,

and judging by the standard in the Juvenile category,

there's clearly a lot of great talent coming through.

If you'd like to see more of the Juveniles, you can see

the final performances from Grade 1 and Grade 2 on our website.

Go to...

Now back to what those young players aspire to - the Grade 1 competition

and the remaining march, strathspey and reel.

His first year leading the band at the Worlds,

Glenn Cupples and Cullybackey.

Good overall attack.

A little squareish in the first couple of phrases of the march.

At times, the pipe caller is just

squaring off the phrase endings just a touch.

That's our best MSR run of the year.

Certainly my best run as a pipe major of a band.

That really did knit... It was very, very good. Very good.

We'll have to remember there are bigger bands out there,

more numbers, maybe more quality, but I'm really pleased.

Good tempo to the strathspey.

Just a bit unsettled with the strathspey idiom

in the first couple of phrases.

Much more settled now.

It's my favourite day of the year.

Quite honestly, I guess it's a two-day now,

but this day really feels like the World Championships.

Favourite day of the year, everybody that loves doing this...

this kind of a hobby is here and lots of friends from

around the world we get to revisit and play some great music together.

Superb, superb snare support throughout this tune.

APPLAUSE

It was edgy, I thought.

Yesterday we were maybe admiring it a little bit

and today we pulled it out a little bit

and increased the tempos and it was a more exciting MSR, I think.

Don't really know from inside the circle how it comes across,

but I was very happy with how it went musically.

Time to have a closer look

at some of the contenders braving the elements here today.

Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia are a band with big ambitions

and they are hoping that the return of Mrs Brown's boys -

no, not them - might help inspire them to glory.

Formed in 1910, Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia

are one of the most successful and celebrated pipe bands in history.

15 time winners of the World Pipe Band Championships,

they've been an institution for over a century.

But their last major win was way back in 2005.

Since then, they've been going through a transitional period.

Leading the band today is Shotts legend,

drum sergeant Jim Kilpatrick.

And new and ambitious pipe major Ryan Canning.

I took over the band in September 2012,

having spent the vast part of my piping career

with Field Marshal Montgomery.

When I took the band on,

the pipe corps had been in quite a sorry state and low in numbers.

So when I took the job, I did bring in extra players

and there was a lot of work needed

to get it back in a competitive position.

In 2013, Ryan made his first major appointment,

making former band member Glenn Brown the pipe sergeant

and bringing his brothers Blair and Graham back to the drum corps.

If anybody in any band wants to progress

they have to bring in good players who've got a lot of experience.

Glenn fits that bill perfectly. It was a natural choice.

Canadian-born Glenn Brown is one of the world's top solo pipers,

and he and his brother share a long history with Shotts.

From a young age the three boys had the opportunity to visit

and watch the band rehearse.

To say they were three highly charged kids

would be an understatement.

I remember the first time I came into the band hall.

It's very vivid, being that young, remembering coming through the doors

and seeing, you know, a Grade 1 band. Wow.

You know, this is pretty cool.

It was a dream come true when they all joined the pipe

and drum corps of the band, winning the World Championships twice,

taking home the top prize in 2003 and 2005.

But in 2007 Glenn, Graham and Blair left the band.

We wanted to have a go at leadership positions.

It was tough to leave Shotts but...that was it.

Glenn had a successful period with Scottish Power,

while Graham and Blair drummed for Peel Police and SFU, respectively.

For the three seasons that we all played...all of us played apart,

that was always the hardest thing for me,

was playing against these two guys.

In 2013 the brothers jumped at the chance to rejoin Shotts.

It was the perfect opportunity to get back together.

When Ryan took on Shotts, I thought, "I got to go back to Shotts,

"because that's kind of where our hearts are, you know.

"I want to come back and kind of be a part of

"kind of a rebuilding process."

It was an absolute perfect storm because, you know,

loads of respect for Ryan, thought, "OK, they've got, as far as

"I'm concerned, like, THE guy that was unattached."

Jim Kilpatrick is here, who is the best in the business

and the man that I have the most respect for.

So you've got the leadership and all of a sudden my brothers and I

are going to be able to play somewhere together again.

Now reunited, they're ready to bring the glory days back to Shotts.

It's exciting.

It's exciting to be a part of something fresh like that.

Having the Brown brothers back in,

that is contagious for the other members in the band.

This stage is very simple, it's to keep improving every single year.

We're aiming for the top of the grade.

Everything we do is focused on getting right to the very top,

and to be winning majors

and hopefully the World Championships as soon as possible.

The good news for Shotts & Dykehead is that they made it through,

so let's take a look at them in action

during the final instalment of the march, strathspey and reel.

Very precise and confident introduction.

Tiny bit on the squarish side in that first part,

in terms of expression.

They've settled in nicely now.

Erm, there's a few little things I heard that, erm, could be

improved a little bit. Erm, mainly tonally.

Playing-wise, at least, again, where I was, I was happy with it.

So, yeah, just tidy up a little bit of the tuning in a couple of notes. Just a little small amount.

They nailed the strathspey idiom right off the bat in bar one.

Great lift.

We're confident as we can be.

We're here to try and win this competition today, but

we've got another performance to do, so we'll see how we go after that.

Very demanding bottom-hand work... in this tune.

Crystal clean.

Very precise transition to the reel.

Good poise on their offbeat accents. Lovely.

Nicely done by the percussion section in the upright.

APPLAUSE

That was a good one. A very good one.

It's always great to get the first run out the way. It sort of does...

It is slightly nervous the first time you go in there in the final,

but now that we've done that and we're happy with that one, er,

we can relax a bit on the more fun stuff, on the medley.

So I think it will be good for us.

All the bands have now completed the march, strathspey and reel section.

Still to come, the second half of the final

and the chance to express themselves in the medley.

But first let's see how the scores are standing at the halfway stage.

Can Inveraray & District do enough to stay there, or will

Field Marshal Montgomery be able to clinch that historic victory?

Before the start of the Grade 1 medley section,

the Grade 2 bands got the chance to play their final in the main arena.

Let's see how they got on.

Very demanding bottom-hand work in this tune.

Through to Donny Bradford's The Spice Of Life.

Lots of confidence and poise in the delivery of these jigs.

The drones and the chanters

are just losing a touch of their earlier stability.

Precise, confident intro.

Grade 2 first place,

winning the RSPBA Stewards' Quaich,

Brieg, from France.

In second place were Bleary and District

and, in third, Buchan Peterson.

But worthy winners, in their traditional Breton dress,

Brieg from France.

And you can see all the Grade 2 performances, in full, at...

Now it's time to go back to the main event,

as the Grade 1 bands perform their medley.

They're not holding anything back.

Aggressive, powerful, precise jig playing.

Fair Jean. Great old Gaelic air.

Lovely subtle forward motion to the phrasing.

You have dominated the Worlds for the last few years.

I wonder if the... the fear of losing

ever becomes greater than the joy of winning?

That's a very good question. I mean, um...

This band is in a position that everybody wants to be in,

but when you're in it, you almost have to win all the time,

and that makes it very difficult,

but I mean, to produce a performance like that in there

gives you such a thrill and such a high when you finish,

and you hear the crowd's reaction there - that's what we do it for,

you know, and, er, the fear of losing will never take that away.

PLAYING STOPS, APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

How about that for a dramatic finish? Loved it.

Good start to finish. No mistakes.

So, er, the sound held well. MEN CHATTER

-Quite happy, as you can hear.

-Sounds like they're happy.

-Yeah.

What needs to come together

-for that winning performance?

-Concentration, really.

That's the big thing, you know.

Making sure everybody's head's in the right place at the right time,

making sure I get my job right, do the sound,

get that as good as it possibly can be.

The overall tonal impression I'm having is that the sound is

much more refined than it was in the march, strathspey and reel.

Lovely Gaelic feel coming across in these tunes.

How much do you have to steady your nerves

before you make that final march in?

We've had this conversation with a couple of people.

See, when you're in this position, you've got too much to worry about.

You're actually more nervous just being a piper in the band sometimes,

but, er, no, just, you have to stay focused, focus is the main thing,

just believing in what you're doing, go on and try and nail it.

That's very, very sweet, what the percussion did there.

Some fairly significant intonation concerns on their Ds.

Pipes were very good in the march, strathspey and reel.

Not quite as solid here.

-How much pressure is there on you to do your dad proud?

-Um...

-I don't know. He's not, er, he's not too on putting pressure on...

-On you!

-How much are you putting on yourself?

-Yeah.

I put a lot of pressure on myself, because I want the band to do well.

We work hard all the way through the winter time and summertime,

so yeah, er, yeah, I feel pressure from everybody to make sure

we've the best band we can have going forward, but at the end of the day,

the guys are really good today, we've had four very strong runs

over the last two days, so we've done as much as we can do.

The Worlds are a date not to be missed by fans of all ages

that come from far and wide to enjoy these championships.

I think the atmosphere's quite energetic, because you're

in amongst people that are actually very passionate about piping

and it's something that they do 52 weeks of the year

and this is ultimately the pinnacle of the pipe band world today.

The support for the bagpipes is getting better every year

and it's a phenomenal day out, it's great.

-Brilliant.

-Brilliant.

-Perfect.

-As we always do.

The rain doesn't make one blind bit of difference.

We're enjoying it just the same.

It's been fantastic.

Everyone has been so friendly and everybody's having such a good time.

The weather's brightened up.

This morning, everyone was still really getting in the spirit.

Absolutely brilliant.

The weather isn't wonderful, but the music is so good,

you forget about the bad weather and the showers.

High energy, just great energy, um,

I don't think that many people pay much attention to the weather,

because there's such an excitement about the music.

Just everywhere, you can feel the vibe.

Hilal, where are you from and what have you been doing today?

We are representing the Royal Air Force of Oman Band.

We are from Sultanate of Oman.

And we are so glad to be in the World Championship of Pipes.

-I'm going for Field Marshal again this year.

-I'm going for Inveraray.

Gotta be Field Marshal Montgomery, definitely. Cannae see by them!

We were listening to Inveraray earlier and they were in

with a very good chance, if they play like that in the final.

I would be a keen Field Marshal Montgomery fan

and I'd really like to see them clinch the 10th world title.

So, opinion is split over who will take this year's title.

It'll all come down to their medley performances,

so let's get back to the music.

The ease in the introduction, just a lack of clarity.

It's a brassy sound, but just not precise enough.

It felt confident out there. The band felt good.

The sound really held well -

nice hum off the drones and everybody's always happier

when the sound's good,

so we tend to play better and just

felt really, really tight and together.

Are you particularly happy cos you've got your first Worlds

under your belt as pipe major?

Yes. Happy and relieved, I guess.

All four circles went well.

Lovely orchestration to these harmonies.

Slight integration issue there between pipes

and drums at the start of this strathspey.

Locked in nicely now.

How did that feel?

Not quite as good as MSR I don't think.

Just a little bit shaky in a few places.

But then again, the guys round the other side are really happy,

so you can't really tell -

there could be a little pocket that's not as good as the rest.

I'm still generally very happy,

but there are still a couple of things we could have improved on.

What played a part in that, do you think? Nerves? The conditions?

-Or a combination of both?

-Probably a bit of both, yeah.

Conditions obviously make it very difficult for everybody.

We've a lot of very young players - we're a very young band, a new band.

First time for a lot of people

playing in that arena with that crowd,

so that can all contribute towards it.

But, yeah, it can be a number of things.

We're well into the final stages of the competition now,

which means in a very short time we'll find out who is going

to be crowned World Champion.

But first, let's have a few words with John Hughes,

who's the vice chairman of the RSPBA.

John, you made some changes this year.

We did. We brought the Juvenile bands and the Grade 2 bands into the

big arena and also we have most of our bands now on the Saturday,

with only the Grade 1 qualifying on the Friday.

It seems to have gone down very well - you're always evolving.

What about next year?

I think again we'll go for feedback from our bands and our members

and see what they thought of this format,

and see where we go from there.

Let's not hear about what they think about the weather.

-Let's not ask that!

-To be continued...

We're going now for our final visit to the Grade 1 arena,

and after that, the results.

Good release into the jig.

This is very musical jig playing.

Subtle dynamics range from the snares.

First the ensemble and the jigs.

The pressure must be on, runner-up last year.

No pressure - no pressure at all.

You come here and you do your best.

We're playing well and we're performing really good,

so the pressure isn't really about what we do,

just making sure we deliver and execute on the day,

and I think we did that.

I hope. The dream then, if it's not pressure -

getting to number one from number two last year.

-The trajectory has been going one way.

-Yeah. It's been good.

I've been saying that for the last 30 years,

-but maybe one day it'll happen.

-Not to me you haven't!

Phenomenally subtle transition.

And the subtlety continues - just gently nudging the tempo up.

Fully intentional.

Just released into the final tune - Michael Grey's Dunrovin Farm.

CROWD CHEERS

Stunning performance.

Can you describe the feeling you get when it's all piecing together?

I think emotional, probably.

It's just when the bagpipe holds together

and everything is as it should be,

it communicates some kind of emotion -

well, I feel it is anyway.

It just...

It's such a hard instrument to get right, it's very...

Exposed to the elements, it can be very variable with

the temperatures and moisture, and it's just a nightmare,

so when everything goes well it's just an excellent feeling.

-ON PA:

-Welcome to the last bands of

the 2014 World Pipe Band Championship.

The countless hours of rehearsing

and competing have led the bands to this moment.

There's nothing more they can do.

It's time to find out who is the best pipe band in the world.

Grade 1, 1st place...

winning the RSPBA Jubilee Trophy and banner...

..and World Champions for 2014...

-..Field Marshal Montgomery.

-CHEERING

In 2nd place...

Inverary & District.

In 3rd place...

St Laurence O'Toole.

In 4th place...

Peoples Ford - Boghall and Bathgate Caledonia.

Richard Parkes, congratulations, you must be very proud.

Very proud indeed.

To win it four years in a row is just unbelievable for the band.

Just a great feeling.

You were up against some particularly tough

competition this year, weren't you?

I think the competition's getting closer and closer every year

and I listened to some of the bands after we played today

and they were absolutely tremendous.

And you know, the standard of bands at the moment is very high and to

win it four years in a row with that standard of bands is a great feat.

This is the tenth time you have won it as pipe major,

does the thrill of winning, for you, still feel as good?

Absolutely, it never changes.

The thrill when we were called out first - that never changes.

A great feeling to hear your name called out first in the Worlds.

Let's hear it one more time, ladies and gentlemen,

for the World Pipe Band Champions 2014, Field Marshal Montgomery.

APPLAUSE

An historic victory from Field Marshal Montgomery,

making it four in a row,

also taking this year's Champion Of Champions title.

And the final positions of the top six...

Runners up - Inverary & District with St Laurence O'Toole in 3rd,

Boghall and Bathgate in 4th place,

Shotts and Dykehead in 5th,

and completing the top six,

Scottish Power.

So an emotional end to a fantastic day.

Bob, worthy winners?

Absolutely.

Terrific competition.

That's it from Glasgow Green. Don't forget, you can

catch up with lots more music on our website bbc.co.uk/worlds.

From Bob and from me and a jubilant Field Marshal Montgomery, goodbye.