Jakez Pincet releases album of original piobaireachd and light music at age 74

A testament to the trend of pipers and drummers playing at a high level into their seventies and beyond, the music of Breton-based Highland piper Jakez Pincet is showcased on Volume 5 in the Art du Solo de Cornemuse (Solo Piping Art) series that becomes available the weekend of September 7th on streaming and download platforms and as a double CD at the “Pibroc’h en Bord de Mer” (“Pibroch by the Sea”) festival in September in Cancale, Brittany.

The album’s tracks were recorded over the last 20 years and feature eight of Pincet’s original piobaireachd compositions, often dedicated to his friends. These include “Yvon’s Piobaireachd to the Reefs,” “Bloody Ink on our Beautiful Celtic Coasts,” and “Yann, When Will You Hear Singing the Red Breast?”

Also included is Pincet’s “Ode to the Two Bob’s,” named for Bob Brown and Bob Nicol, from whom he received instruction in the late 1970s.

Art du Solo de Cornemuse is Pincet’s first commercially available project since his 2016 collection and CD, Pobaireachd a Vreizh (Breton Ceol Mor).

Pincet is one of the greatest Highland pipers to emerge from Brittany. He competed in Scotland for many years, winning prizes in the Highland Society of London’s Gold Medals and other top-tier contests. He’s often credited with laying a path for the many successful Breton solo pipers who followed, including Hervé le Floc’h, Sylvain Hamon, Xavier Boderiou, and Alexis Meunier.