Amy will play for grandpa
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EVERY breath by Moray schoolgirl Amy MacDonald at the European Pipe Band Championships will be in tribute to her grandfather.
Amy (16) was encouraged to take up the pipes by Forres Games stalwart and skilled musician Kenny MacDonald, who played with the Forres and District Pipe Band for more than half-a-century.
Clutched in her arms as she represents the same band on home turf and in front of thousands of spectators will be his beloved pipes, made in 1938 and inherited when Mr MacDonald passed away in 2010, aged 79.
“It is nice to be taking them somewhere; he has taken them to King George VI’s funeral, to the Edinburgh Tattoo, and played them up the ramparts of Brodie Castle and I’ve now got them to take elsewhere.
“He would have liked to have seen the championships come to Forres, so at least, in a way, I’m there to play them for him. It will be pretty special.”
Forres’ Grant Park is primed and at its best to welcome an influx of spectators and enthusiasts for the mass celebration of the pipes and drums of more than 120 bands.
“Come and cheer on your local band or see the pipers and drummers of the future in the juvenile and novice bands. It’s going to be such a fantastic day,” said David Urquhart, of the voluntary organising group Forres Events Ltd. The scene is set, he added, for a memorable and wonderful event.
Amy, a Forres Academy pupil, admitted some pre-championship nerves, with Piping Hot Forres her first major gathering since joining the band in 2011.
John Channon, secretary of Forres and District Pipe Band, said: “Kenny was a great character and very well known in the town."
Gates to Grant Park open at 8.30am on Saturday, with the Championship Flag scheduled to be lowered, bringing the event to an end, at 6.15pm.
Read the full and exclusive story in 'The Northern Scot' print version.
