Applicants for Argyllshire Gathering informed

The annual uncertain process for places in the Highland Society of London’s Gold Medal and Silver Medal competitions gained some clarity, with the Argyllshire Gathering at Oban, Scotland, making its decisions. The appointments are made in conjunction with various planning committees and Scotland’s Competing Pipers Association. Of the 28 accepted for the Gold Medal, 12 are not permanent residents in Scotland, and more than half (16 out of the 28) in the Silver Medal are non-Scottish. There are a total of six females accepted for the 56 spots.

Out of respect for the organizers and contestants, pipes|drums waited until competitors were notified before publishing the information. The lists are in alphabetical order by last name.

The Argyllshire Gathering and the Northern Meeting at Inverness, Scotland, are considered the two major “gatherings” for elite solo pipers. Entry to the Silver and Gold Medal competitions is fairly subjective, with no official bye given to any applicant, even those who have won one of the awards previously. The Clasp at Inverness and Senior Piobaireachd at Oban are reserved for those who have won a Gold Medal.

This year’s Argyllshire Gathering is on Wednesday, August 24th, and Thursday, August 25th. The Northern Meeting is on Thursday, Septemebr 1st, and Friday, September 2nd.

Gold Medal (‡ winner of the Gold Medal at the Northern Meeting; ⊗ Silver Medallist)
Chris Armstrong, Airth, Scotland ‡
Andrea Boyd, Ottawa ⊗
Gordon Bruce, Kilwinning, Scotland ⊗
Glenn Brown, Glasgow ‡
Sandy Cameron, Roy Bridge, Scotland ⊗
Andrew Carlisle, Pittsburgh
Jori Chisholm, Seattle
Cameron Drummond, Edinburgh ⊗
Decker Forrest, Isle of Skye, Scotland ⊗
Jamie Forrester, London
Bill Geddes, Dumfries, Scotland ⊗
Jonathan Greenlees, Glasgow
Andrew Hayes, Ottawa ‡
Jenny Hazzard, Edinburgh ⊗
Alasdair Henderson, Dunoon, Scotland ⊗
Alastair Lee, Surrey, British Columbia
Angus J. MacColl, Oban, Scotland ⊗
Ian K. MacDonald, Whitby, Ontario
James MacHattie, Summerside, Prince Edward Island
Donald MacPhee, Alexandria, Scotland ‡
Fiona Manson, Wellington ⊗
Peter McCalister, Dunblane, Scotland ⊗
Gordon McCready, Renfrew, Scotland ⊗
Sean McKeown, Toronto ⊗
Derek Midgley, Mill Town, New Jersey ⊗
Allan Russell, Kelty, Scotland
Innes Smith, Bridge of Allan, Scotland ⊗
James P. Troy, Victoria, British Columbia ⊗

Silver Medal (*# on standby for Gold Medal no-shows, in order)
Ursa Beckford, Maine
Xavier Bouderiou, Brittany
Ed Bush, Prescott, Ontario
Greig Canning, Edinburgh
Kris Coyle, Northern Ireland
Jacob Dicker, Ottawa
Andrew Donlon, Pittsburgh
Ben Duncan, Edinburgh
Stuart Easton, Auckland
Michael Elder, Scotland
Michael Fitzhenry, London
Nick Hudson, Pittsburgh
Martin Keßler, Germany
Ana Kummerlow, Germany
Andrew Lee, Surrey, British Columbia (*1)
John Lee, Vancouver
Andrew Lewis, Scotland
Charles MacDonald, Inverness, Scotland
Cameron MacDougall, Inverness, Scotland
Ben McClamrock, Baltimore
Edward McIllwaine, Vancouver
Sarah Muir, Campbeltown, Scotland
Eric Ouellette, Syracuse, New York
Male Sicard-Cras, Glasgow
Connor Sinclair, Crieff, Scotland
Craig Sutherland, Perth, Scotland (*2)
Darach Urquhart, Glasgow
Andrew Wright, Dundee, Scotland

Seven pipers have been asked to be on standby in case of Silver Medal withdrawals or no-shows, in the following order:

1. Steven Leask, Glasgow
2. Andrew Hall, Belfast
3. Matt Pantaleoni, St. Louis, Missouri
4. Ashley McMichael, Belfast
5. Duncan Beattie, Glasgow
6. Steven Gray, Dumfries, Scotland
7. David Shedden, Glasgow.