FIFTH PLACE AT THE DOUBLE FOR TWEEDVALE PIPE BAND AT MELROSE.

Last weekend saw Tweedvale Pipe Band travel to Melrose to participate in the 13th Melrose Pipe Band Championships held in the grounds of St Mary’s School. Unlike last year’s event when the weather was bad and half the entered bands withdrew before competing, this year’s Melrose contest went off without a hitch for the band, with sunny spells breaking out during a warm and dry afternoon. Another luxuriously late departure time saw the band travel down to Melrose well rested and in good spirit, arriving just after Noon. Tweedvale Pipe Band took to the field playing seventh out of the thirteen bands in Grade 3, and put in a decent performance of their Medley set. Tweedvale was given the opportunity to play all of its competition music at Melrose because of the way the contest had been set up. Grade 3 bands had been asked to play their medley, whilst in Grade 2 bands were asked to play their March Strathspey and Reel set. The band “played up” in Grade 2 and put in a reasonably good performance of their MSR selection. When the prizes were awarded at the end of the day’s competition, Tweedvale Pipe Band was awarded fifth place overall. First place in the Grade 3 contest was taken by the George Watson’s College Juvenile Pipe Band. The band also took fifth place in the Grade 2 event, behind the winners Torphicen and Bathgate Pipe Band. After the prize-giving ceremonies were complete the band joined in with several other bands in participating in a march around the streets of Melrose which was well received by large and appreciative crowds. Tweedvale‘s attendance at the Melrose Pipe Band Championships was made possible by generous coach sponsorship from the Innerleithen Union Club and Lodge 856 social Club to whom the band extends its thanks. The Grade 3 result meant that the band has maintained its lead in the race for the RSPBA Lothian & Borders Grade 3 Champion of Champions title, with only one contest to go.

Speaking about the Melrose results, Tweedvale’s Pipe Major Bruce Gillie said, “The band played reasonably well today, though there is room for improvement especially in the March Strathspey and Reel set. I’d like to thank Innerleithen Union Club and Lodge 856 Social Club for sponsoring our coach to Melrose. The band has the Cowal Championships to look forward to this weekend and another chance to play the Medley set which is going quite well for us at the moment.”

Tweedvale Pipe Band now faces the last of the five “Major” Championships of the year, the Cowal Pipe Band Championships which takes places this weekend in Dunoon. The band is scheduled to play at 9.46am in the Grade 3B contest, third out of seventeen competing bands. The band members and supporters face an extremely early start to the day with the bus departing at 4.15am in order to be at Gourock in time for the 7.20am ferry to get the band to Dunoon in good time. Following Cowal, Tweedvale Pipe Band has a free weekend before participating in their final contest of the year at Peebles on September 14.