Boland, Nevans, Aitchison, Langford are overall winners of 2024 CLASP League

The series of in-person and online competitions run throughout the year by CLASP (the Competition League for Amateur Solo Pipers) ended after the Inveraray Highland Games in Inveraray, Scotland, on July 17th. Thus, the overall champions for each grade were determined:

• Grade 1: Edmund Boland, Ireland (piobaireachd preference)
• Grade 2: John Nevans, Scotland
• Grade 3: Adam Aitchison, Scotland
• Grade 4: Steve Langford, USA

Over the last 12 months, adult/senior non-Professional/Open pipers from around the world participated in numerous events, accruing points from prizes won, which are used to calculate the ultimate champions.

During the COVID pandemic, when in-person events were banned or curtailed, CLASP started “live online” contests in which pipers played live for CLASP administrators who recorded each performance, which were then judged over the following few weeks.

Post-pandemic, CLASP resumed in-person events but continued with online events.

Since in-person contests are primarily in the UK, there is also a separate aggregate award based only on online performances.

CLASP was started by the National Piping Centre in 2003 as a means for pipers in the UK who are 18 and older to compete against others who don’t yet have the chops to go up against “senior” pipers.

In the UK, no single solo competition system or association governs events, playing requirements and judges. Before CLASP, there were no amateur competitions for adults in the UK, apart from one-off events run by member-based organizations like the Royal Scottish Pipers Society. In non-CLASP solo competitions in the UK, there are only “senior” events for anyone 18 and older or “junior” events for those younger than 18.

CLASP is modelled like the rest of the piping and drumming world, with amateur grades 1 through 4.