Balmoral Classic Weekend features Beòlach and performances by Dr. Angus, Glendinning and MacIsaac

The annual Balmoral Classic piping and snare drumming competitions for players 21 and younger in Pittsburgh will be wrapped with recitals by judges Paula Glendinning, Dr. Angus MacDonald and Matt MacIsaac, a concert by the Cape Breton Celtic folk band Beòlach, and workshops with all of the judges.

The November 1-3 weekend is the 18th time the Balmoral Classic US Junior Solo Piping & Drumming Championships will be held, this year at held at CRC Understory, Cathedral of Learning, 4200 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh.

Friday, Nov. 1, 7:30 pm: 2024 Balmoral Classic opening reception, co-sponsored by the Pittsburgh Piping Society, with a piping recital by Glendinning, MacDonald, and MacIsaac. No cover charge; cash bar.

Saturday, Nov. 2, 8 pm: Beòlach in concert at the Carnegie Library Lecture Hall, 4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh. Beòlach’s most recent album, All Hands, won two 2021 Canadian Folk Music Awards and was nominated for four East Coast Music Awards and a JUNO Award. Tickets here. ($15-35)

Sunday, Nov. 3, 10 am to noon: Workshops open to current and past Balmoral Classic competitors.

The Balmoral Classic was started by the Balmoral School of Piping & Drumming, a registered nonprofit founded in the early 1980s by Geroge Balderose, who commented, “The Balmoral Classic attracts some of the best pipers in North America, ages 21 and younger. And the four musicians in his year’s concert band, Beòlach, are outstanding representatives of Nova Scotia and the music of Cape Breton.”

From Toronto, Philadelphia, Cleveland, and other major metropolitan areas, driving to Pittsburgh takes less than five hours.