{"id":1155191,"date":"2026-08-18T07:40:35","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T07:40:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1155191\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T07:40:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T07:40:35","slug":"piping-live-draws-over-30000-attendees-to-glasgow-for-spectacular-23rd-edition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1155191\/","title":{"rendered":"Piping Live! draws over 30,000 attendees to Glasgow for spectacular 23rd edition"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>\u2022The Piping Live! festival site in the amphitheatre in front of the National Piping Centre building was a bustling ecosystem for pipers, drummers and music lovers visiting Glasgow for the week before the World Pipe Band Championships. Photo: John Slavin @ Designfolk.com<\/p>\n

The world\u2019s biggest piping festival wrapped up a triumphant nine-day celebration of traditional and contemporary bagpipe music across the city.<\/p>\n

Piping Live!, Scotland\u2019s premier international piping festival, has officially concluded its 23rd edition, drawing more than 30,000 music lovers, performers and spectators from around the globe to Glasgow from Sunday 9 to Friday<\/strong>, August 14.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Organised by the National Piping Centre, with support from culture and sport charity Glasgow Life, Piping Live! <\/strong>transformed the city across a vibrant nine-day run, which was buzzing with traditional and contemporary pipe music, featuring a packed schedule of high-energy concerts, international showcases, hands-on workshops, and world-class competitions. People of all ages gathered to experience the festival\u2019s main outdoor site at the National Piping Centre, while iconic local venues \u2013 including Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, Sauchiehall Street, and the Barrowland Ballroom \u2013 hosted events throughout the week.<\/p>\n

The festival officially kicked off on Monday, August 10, with the annual Big Band showcase. Over 200 pipers and drummers marched through Glasgow\u2019s West End to raise funds for this year\u2019s charity partner, My Name\u20195 Doddie Foundation, supporting research to find effective treatments for motor neuron disease (MND).<\/p>\n

\"\"\/<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"\u2022The Piping Live! Big Band 2026. Photo: John Slavin @ designfolk.com<\/p>\n

Throughout the week, festival-goers were treated to exceptional live music. Daily headliners at the Centre Stage included the Ailis Sutherland Band, the trio of Calum Stewart, Luc McNally and Sophie Stephenson, Gaelic supergroup D\u00e0imh, West Highland favourites FRAS and Gary Innes & Ewen Henderson. Meanwhile, the festival\u2019s experimental Ce\u00f2l Nua strand\u2013supported by the Scottish Government\u2019s Expanded Festivals Fund through Creative Scotland\u2013pushed the boundaries of traditional piping, culminating in an immersive soundscape experience with In C \/\/ 20 Pipers at the iconic Barrowland Ballroom.<\/p>\n

\"\"\u2022Ailis Sutherland played in the sunshine with her band on the Piping Live! 2026 Centre Stage. Photo: John Slavin @ designfolk.com<\/p>\n

\"\"\u2022Luc McNally, Sophie Stephenson and Calum Stewart played on the Centre Stage as part of Piping Live! 2026. Photo: John Slavin @ Designfolk.com<\/p>\n

\"\"\u2022One of Gaeldom\u2019s supergroups: Da\u00ecmh at Piping Live 2026. Photo: John Slavin @ Designfolk.com<\/p>\n

\"\"\u2022Gary Innes and Ewen Henderson entertained the crowds with box and fiddle, Gaelic songs and Highland piping in the late afternoon sunshine on the Piping Live! Centre Stage. Photo: John Slavin @ designfolk.com<\/p>\n

Leading up to the World Pipe Band Championships on August 14 and 15 \u2013 the pinnacle of the international competitive pipe band calendar, which is organised by The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association and delivered by Glasgow Life \u2013 performances featured artists from as far afield as the USA and Australia.<\/p>\n

\"\"\u2022Callum Beaumont and Connor Sinclair share the prize at the McCallum Bagpipes P\/M Alasdair Gillies Memorial Recital Challenge at Piping Live! 2026. Photo: John Slavin @ Designfolk.com<\/p>\n

Highlights included the Pipe Major Alasdair Gillies Memorial Recital Challenge, which, for the first time, saw the winner be a tie between Callum Beaumont and Connor Sinclair<\/strong>, and the G1 Reeds International Quartet Competition, where People\u2019s Ford Boghall and Bathgate Caledonia Pipe Band quartet <\/strong>took top honours. The Masters Solo Piping Competition title was awarded to Alasdair Henderson<\/strong>, while the hugely popular Pipe Idol competition for pipers aged 21 and under saw Andrew Zhao <\/strong>from the USA crowned champion in a thrilling grand finale.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\u2022Alasdair Henderson playing in the MSR at the R. G. Hardie & Co. Masters Solo Piping Competition at Piping Live! 2026. Photo: John Slavin<\/p>\n

Proceedings wrapped up on Friday evening with a genre-bending finale at the Assembly at the Glasgow School of Art. Traditional-electronic fusion group MAL launched their debut album CBAD, alongside supporting act The Nexus Project, who showcased original Highland bagpipe compositions by Bede Patterson to close out the festival in spectacular style.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Finlay MacDonald, Artistic Director for Piping Live!, extended his thanks to everyone who made the event a success:<\/strong> \u201cIt has been incredible to celebrate over two decades of our festival, in the National Piping Centre\u2019s 30th anniversary year.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur packed programme featured pipe bands on Sauchiehall Street, an array of evening concerts including our big Friday night gig \u2013 CBAD \u2013 at Glasgow Art School Assembly featuring MAL and The Nexus Project. There was also a special strand of Ceol Nua programming across the week, supported by The Scottish Government\u2019s Expanded Festivals Fund through Creative Scotland. The avant-garde, minimalist programme pushes boundaries of the instrument and its repertoire, and came to a head at the Barrowlands Ballroom for In C \/\/ 20 Pipers, which saw audiences immerse themselves in the instrument in ways we\u2019ve never seen before.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe team here at the National Piping Centre has worked tirelessly to deliver the festival this year. A huge thanks to all our sponsors, funders and supporters without whom Piping Live! would not be possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Glasgow Life Chair and Glasgow City Council Convenor for Culture, Sport and International Relations, Bailie Annette Christie, said: <\/strong>\u201cOnce again, Piping Live! has delivered a fantastic celebration of the sounds of Scotland\u2019s national instrument, showcased in both traditional and contemporary music that demonstrated the incredible talent, creativity and skill of pipers from Glasgow and around the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe varied and inclusive programme of the popular festival\u2019s 23rd edition offered a diverse range of audiences the chance to experience all forms of piping, and the strong attendances are a testament to its enduring popularity and appeal.<\/p>\n

\u201cGlasgow is immensely proud to host both Piping Live! and the World Pipe Band Championships \u2013 two major cultural events that put our city firmly at the heart of the international piping community. Together, they highlight the passion for piping that extends far beyond Scotland\u2019s shores. Every summer, these events bring thousands of visitors to our UNESCO City of Music, contributing to the vibrant atmosphere that makes Glasgow such a special place to experience music and culture. They are also a wonderful way to celebrate Scotland\u2019s rich heritage while enhancing our city\u2019s reputation as a welcoming and world-class cultural destination.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rebecca Edser, Head of Events at VisitScotland, said: <\/strong>\u201cPiping Live! has once again showcased the talent, traditions and warm welcome that make Scotland such a distinctive destination. Bringing together performers, audiences and communities from around the world, it has filled Glasgow with energy and celebration.<\/p>\n

\u201cShaped by the city\u2019s unique character and spirit, the festival has provided a fitting showcase for our rich musical heritage and delivered an unforgettable experience for participants and visitors alike.<\/p>\n

\u201cSupported through our International Events Programme, Piping Live! continues to be an important part of Scotland\u2019s events landscape, generating benefits for local communities, businesses and the wider visitor economy. It is fantastic to see the festival continue to cement its place as a cornerstone of Scotland\u2019s events calendar.\u201d<\/p>\n

Piping Live! <\/strong>will return next year from the 8th \u2013 14th August. To learn more about the festival or to donate to support its ongoing programming, visit www.glasgowlife.org.uk\/arts-music-and-culture\/world-pipe-band-championships\/the-worlds-biggest-week-of-piping<\/a>, or donate directly at www.pipinglive.co.uk\/pages\/support-us<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The World Pipe Band Championships will also return on Friday 13 and Saturday 14 August 2027. For more details, see https:\/\/www.glasgowlife.org.uk\/arts-music-and-culture\/world-pipe-band-championships<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u2022The Piping Live! festival site in the amphitheatre in front of the National Piping Centre building was a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1155192,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7826],"tags":[45789,748,91700,918,4884,314176,712,16,15],"class_list":["post-1155191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-glasgow","tag-45789","tag-britain","tag-finlay-macdonald","tag-glasgow","tag-great-britain","tag-piping-live","tag-scotland","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/117115386032666245","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1155191","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1155191"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1155191\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1155192"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1155191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1155191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1155191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}