Scots Fest 2010 - Bagpipers #1 by goodoleboy
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No AI - This artwork was created entirely by hand or with traditional digital tools.
Description
Captured 5/29/10, at the beautiful Orange County Fair & Event Center in beautiful, but financially troubled, Costa Mesa, California.
To be more precise, it was the United Scottish Society's Highland Games & Gathering's Scottish Festival of Celtic Entertainment & Food.
Don't bother zooming in.
In the top four photos, young men and boys, shown a few hours before the big parade, being judged on whatever they are judged on in this particular competition, be it music, tone, presence, demeanor, self confidence, aplomb, whatever...I can only speculate. Hence, the numbered tags. The fellow in the bottom picture was just practicing and not being judged.
It's been eleven months since I attended the event, but it seems like almost yesterday.
Toodles, thankx for popping in, and for any and all favs and complimentary comments.
Comments (15)
Excellent collection of pipers, Harry; makes me wonder what causes someone so young to attempt to play those pipes, it doesn't seem the usual thing for young men these days! Interesting array of costuming, too. Well done!
Wonderful work on this really cool collage Harry, always enjoy your work
Superb collage i like the different tartans !!
Great outfits on these young men, and another very nice collage.
Wonderful. I attended (and graduated:) from a college that had an entire bagpipe band. I love the sights and sounds. Must be my heritage.
Super captures of these guys, they look so earnest.
Wonderful captures! I had a lot of fun looking at the faces of the young men and their expressions. The second one looks like there is a spider walking up his bagpipe near the mouthpiece. The forth one looks very enthusiastic, and the last one looks relaxed. Maybe that is because he is just practicing. They all look very nice, and it's wonderful that they have learned the bagpipe. Like MrsRatbag, I wonder what made them chose it. Excellent images!
WOW! I was expecting a bunch of old guys. Great shots & collage and very happy to see the youth keeping traditions alive. Dana
wow wish i could go to these. i keep missing them.
Wonderful to see.
Fantastic collage of great shots. Interesting to see the different outfits.
Most interesting that these youngsters choose to do this.
Always love the sound of bagpipes! A stirring sound indeed! Massed bands are even better, but these are a great selection of shots and nice to see young folk taking an interest in it Rob
Great shots of these folks gearing up for the game my friend!
Like Denise, I too am surprised to see young men playing with these beasts today; and like Rob I too love to hear them massed into ensembles. I didn't think they were used much more, outside of Scotland, but apparently they are! The Highland bagpipe---which is what I'm pretty sure these are---are the common bagpipe of Scotland; and they're far more strident and piercing than most bagpipes in the world. Most others are more subdued and gentle in tone. But because of the pierce of the Scottish pipes, it ain't easy to play them: In part because the sound really takes you aback. I mean, if you're struck by these as a listener, imagine playing them for 40 minutes: Those "drone" pipes---the ones next to the players' ears, which hold steady notes throughout (ie, like the drone bee)---can leave you shaking afterwards, believe me. Also, it takes a lot of concentration to play these well; and to then have to play in a traditional outfit & be 'on display' while you really want to concentrate on the music, isn't easy. In other words, the theatrics are part of the performance, and with a beast like this, you sometimes wanna just play and not care how you 'look'. But in a competition? Uhn-uhn. How you look is a big deal... You captured the real off-kilter feeling of these people trying to look ceremonious while they really just want to play. It's a fine capture of music vs. presentation, as they look, to me, both dedicated & a little awkward. Fine captures, typical of your procession montages (of many kinds) where you capture all kinds of human expression in a single event. The 4th guy is really pumping; and the fifth---I can see he's relaxing a bit, by his slight tilt. (In a finished ensemble, you don't tilt. I mean, you don't tilt, lol. You walk like a soldier.) Wonderful montage; and as a musician who's written for bagpipes & actually suffered trying to play the monsters, I really appreciate the off-the-cuff candid shots you got. Bagpipies are among the oldest types of instruments on earth---and these guys are doing their best to look good while grappling with their ornery & unbending natures. Fine job all around.