Welcome to the EUSPBA Southwest Region

Red Stick Regional 2012 registration open

The Red Stick Regional Indoor Solo Piping competition registration forms are now available.  More information and the forms can be found at:

http://www.csbr.org/redstickregional2012.htm

As noted earlier, this years event will be held on Saturday July 28, 8am-5pm at the First Presbyterian Church in Baton Rouge, LA.  We hope to see many of you there!

Save the date! Red Stick Regional 2012

   This year's Red Stick Regional Sanctioned Indoor Solo Piping Competition will be held on Saturday, July 28, 2012, from 8am-5pm at the First Presbyterian Church in downtown Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  Judges will be Iain Macey and John Recknagel, and the sanctioning papers have been sent in and the official approval will be given shortly. Sanctioned events offered will include AM Piping Grades 4 through 1. 

   New this year, we plan to offer both a Grade 5 practice chanter event, and a Grade 5 bagpipe event, for those who have never competed on pipes before.  These two events are fun events that are unsanctioned, so you do not have to be a member of EUSPBA to participate, and our judges can give you plenty of pointers on your playing.

   Once the final approval has been given, we will post the regisitration forms on the Caledonian Society of Baton Rouge's website (www.csbr.org)  For any questions in the meanwhile, please contact Rosemary John, Chair, at rhsjohn@cox.net.    Hope to see you there!

33rd Arkansas Scottish Festival

33^rd Arkansas Scottish Festival
 April 13-15, 2012

www.lyon.edu/scotfest
Lyon College  2300 Highland Rd
Batesville  AR  

Contact: Ken Adler  kenton.adler@lyon.edu  870-307-7548

Judges: Jimmy Bell, John Recknegal, Chris Apps, Mike Brisch, Iain Macey, Tom Ogilvy, John Recknagel.

Arkansas Scottish Festival Kick-Off Concert

Arkansas Scottish Festival Kick-Off Concert
Concert   April 12, 2012
7:00pm. Come see the first ASF Kick-Off concert, produced by Lyon College's Bagpipe-Music majors. Music includes traditional pipe band selections, contemporary tag-team highlights, Civil War poetry and traditional ceilidh music.

First Presbyterian Church  775 East Boswell Street
Batesville  AK  72501

Contact: Elliot Smith  elliot.smith@lyon.edu  603-219-5317

EUSPBA’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY DRUM SALUTE CONTEST !!!

The EUSPBA/Northeast Branch is hosting a "COMPOSITION COMPETITION" to establish a EUSPBA Massed Band Drum Salute.  The intention is to play it at highland games, concerts, or performances and the deadline for submission is the AGM in November 2012.

The prizes are:

·         1^st prize: $500

·         2^nd prize: $250

·         3rd prize: $125

The first prize entry will be declared the “EUSPBA 50th Anniversary Salute”. It will have the composer’s name and will be used by the EUSPBA. The top three entries will appear on the branch website for free distribution to the public.

Each entry should meet these qualifications:

·         Comprising a minimum of four parts, or three minutes of playing time, with a maximum length of five minutes

·         Represent a level of difficulty, such that a grade 4 corps could play it well

·         Based on styles, typical to the pipe band drum corps tradition

·         Forming a comprehensive piece for a minimal corps of one bass, one tenor and two snare drummers

·         Incorporating flourishes in bass and tenor scores

Additional options:

·         Providing “stick tricks” for some snare sections

·         Including additional parts for more accomplished drummers

For more information, please contact Brendan O’Reilly at bpo15@earthlink.net and Sarah Hsieh at asjhsieh@hotmail.com, with "EUSPBA’s 50^th Anniversary SALUTE" in the subject line.

13th Annual San Antonio Presidents' Day Piping and Drumming Workshop

The 13th Annual President's Day Piping Workshop in San Antonio, TX, sponsored by the Black Bexar Pipe Band will be held Saturday and Sunday, February 18-19, 2012 at the Texas Military Institute. Pipe instructors include Ed Neigh, Reay MacKay and Scott MacLeod; Stephen Cameron will be the drum instructor.  There will also be a piobaireachd session held on Monday, February 20 at Covenant Presbyterian Church and lead by Ed Neigh and Reay MacKay.  This workshop has received great reviews in the past, and we're sure that this year will be another exceptional event. For more information, visit their website at www.blackbexar.com, or contact Rose Adams at rosepipes@aol.com.  Registration form attached. Download 13thworkshop2012registration.2

Southwest Branch hosts EUSPBA AGM November 4-6

Remember that this coming weekend our Southwest Branch is hosting the National AGM for the Eastern US Pipe Band Association.  It is being held in San Antonio at the Holiday Inn Riverwalk, with the main meeting taking place 9am- 5pm.  Can't make it over to San Antonio for it?  Not to worry; Kenton Adler is setting up a livestream of the meeting, and you can watch the action on your computer!  Here is the URL:

www.livestream.com\thebagpipechannel

Hope to see many of you (virtually) there!

Solo Competition in Tulsa, 9/17/11. Deadline 9/2/11

The Oklahoma Scottish Festival in Tulsa, Oklahoma is hosting an EUSPBA sanctioned solo Pipe competition on Saturday, September 17, 2011.  Judges are Chris Apps and Bob Worrall.  The competition is open to Grade 1 through 4.  The grade 4 category has five competition events. Information and an entry form can be found at the Oklahoma Scottish Festival website:
http://osf.oklahomascottishfestival.com/2011/events/pipes-drums/ 
Email bndmitchell@sbcglobal.net with any questions.

Come up for the competition and enjoy all the other festival activities!

It's that time of year: The EUSPBA has opened nominations for the following positions . . .

• Treasurer (Incumbent Jim Roberts)
• Executive Secretary (Incumbent Sheldon Hamblin)
• Officer at Large (Incumbent Helen Harlow)

My understanding is that Jim Roberts and Sheldon Hamblin do not plan to run, while Helen will run for the OAL position she currently holds. If you would like to nominate yourself or anyone else, please email "southwest@euspba.org". Hard deadline for nominations and bio is Sept. 3rd !

Red Stick Regional Solo Piping Competition

On Saturday, July 23, 2011 the Redstick Regional Solo Piping Competition was held in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  Seventeen pipers from our S.W. Region traveled in from Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana to play solos for Judge Ed Krintz.  All levels from Grade 5 to Grade 2 were represented.  The PCP exam was administered after the solo event.

Congratulations to Robert Chalk of San Antonio, Texas who won Piper of the Day!

Special thanks to Rosemary John for all the work she did to organize this event.  And, thank you to all participants and sponsers.  We hope to see you all back in Baton Rouge next year for the Red Stick Regional competition.