Year 11 No 3 - November 1987
This Club report is more in the way of an annual summary of what we are about and what we’ve been up to over the last season. Also to let you know that we’re alive and kicking and not just a name to which a bundle of ‘B&F’ magazines is dispatched to, and, since they don’t come back, there must be someone there at the other end.
Yes, indeed, the ‘B&F’ is well received by our members, but with one complaint, i.e., ‘There’s never anything about us in it!’
So, now this is about us.
Season 86/87 began on 18th September with our usual regular weekly get-together held in the Rogart Hall on a Thursday night and, for the most part, took the form of a practice session for all of us to play as a group. Not an easy task for such a varied bunch of individuals. However, nothing is accomplished without a bit of effort, so we get down to it, get some sets organized and then try them out. Not all the arrangements work out, some go straight into the bin, others are kept as ‘Well, maybe sometime, but not quite yet’, and others we think we can manage. Of these we must have a repertoire of up to 50-60 sets, which isn’t bad to get along with, and makes chaps like ‘yours truly’ very aware of the need to TRY and read music. Not an easy task for an aging ‘Heid Case’.
To assist with the tempo we are indebted to John Grant from Golspie on the drums and Roddy McLean and Cathy Ross for piano accompaniment. Roddy acts as reserve for us, as he is involved in various other musical activities and cannot always fit in time for a practice. So Cathy now has the job of thumping out the chords for us, which she does with enthusiasm and skill.
It’s also very good for the otherwise sadly neglected village hall piano, which was in danger of becoming, like so many other of its species, stuck in the corner of the stage and seldom used, slowly going out of tune and growing hairy mould or whatever, regarded by most visiting groups who use the stage, as a competitor for space, but handy to stick a loudspeaker on, or perhaps a few jackets. However, as I say, our piano in Rogart Hall now has a weekly outing and is manhandled off its perch on stage and trundled through to the wee room which we use for practice and is very much brought back to life. It stands in a corner and competes for space with the local whist drive enthusiasts, and again gets covered with jackets, as it is an awkward shape on which to deal a round of cards!
Enough about pianos, what of the rest of the instruments? Well, just the usual boxes and fiddles, quite a variety of boxes humphed out. Wee ones, big ones, push and pull, 3 row, 5 row, piano key, much used ones, little used ones, awfully new ones, old faithfulls, molly coddled wrapped in silk and blanket models, old battered ‘fling it under the bed’ models – we’ve got them all! And the fiddles? Well, one fiddle looks much like another to a non fiddle player, but one is very aware of the variety of sounds that come forth.
Apart from the aforementioned jamboree we had quite a few concert nights during the season, which went off well and drew very good support.
So I will summarise.
November 86
The first was on 8th November when the guest artistes were Billy Anderson’s Band ‘Albany’ and Margaret MacLeod. This is the second time they have played for the Club, and their lively concert act is well received. They were ideal for the short dance with which we usually wind up our evenings. This evening was held in Lairg Hall. Albany have a strong following in that area. Number one fan must surely be Committee member George MacKay, for whom the Club were grateful to for meeting and entertaining the Band when they arrived, and organising the finer points of the evening.
December 86
The next event was on the 12th December when the Club were slightly further west and visited Rosehall Village Hall. The guests on this occasion were the well known characters of the Scottish music scene, Jimmy Ritchie and Mickie Ainsworth. They gave a fine demonstration of the precise sound and tempo we used to hear when Shand and Powrie were in their heyday. Particularly enjoyed were Jimmy’s compositions named after local characters whom Jimmy knew well when he stayed in Bonar Bridge in the sixties. The fact that they featured on the latest Jimmy Shand new release, ‘Echoes of the Glen’ added to their popularity. For this occasion the accompaniment was provided by our own Cathy Ross, with John Grant on drums. The Club were indebted this time to Committee member Alistair McRae for setting up the finer points of the evening and for entertaining the guest artistes. It must be one of the Club’s outstanding debts to replenish Alistair’s whisky supply.
Activities came to a standstill over the Christmas and New Year period, then picking up again in time for the next open night on 7th February.
February 87
This was held in ARdgay Hall and drew the biggest crowd of the season. In fact, probably the biggest crowd seen here since many years. I know, because we searched every corner for spare chairs and had quite a job to dust most of them down, for I’m sure there wasn’t a bottom on any of them for over 20 years. It was a very successful night and the proceeds of about £400 were donated to the local Pipe Band. The guests on this occasion were the Inverness Fiddlers, who, after the Club did their opening piece, took over the remainder of the evening and did us proud with the standard of their performance. I believe they enjoyed it very much themselves, particularly playing for the wee dance to wind up.
March 87
For the March event, held in Rogart Hall on 6th March, we had contact with Bobby MacLeod who intimated that he would be pleased to come up and give an evening as part of a mini-tour, to include some of the other Highland Clubs. However, due to his wife’s health, he unfortunately couldn’t carry out the engagements so we had a last minute search and we are indebted to Jimmy Lindsay, along with Pam and Ally Wilkie. Any doubts which were harboured by some Club members that after the expectation of Bobby MacLeod, anything else would be an anti-climax, were soon dispelled with the sparkling performance from this very professional Trio. Jimmy wasn’t a name too well know in this area before. But ‘we ken him noo!’ I don’t think any of us will forget the number of tunes he played which were all new to us and the lift to their music. A most enjoyable evening was had. On this occasion the Club were indebted to Cathy Ross and Sandy McLennan for providing hospitality to the Band on their arrival.
Tune Competition
Prior to this event the Club launched a competition for a tune which they could adopt as a signature tune, by a Sutherland based composer. Advertisements were placed in the local paper and a prize of £100 was offered to the winner. A sub-committee, comprising of Club and non-Club members under the direction of Alistair McRae, was set up to judge the competition which drew an entry of approximately twenty tunes. The work of sorting them all out fell to the Secretary, Alistair, and the boys of the Tain SDB, who, when they had worked them all out, had a session with the full sub-committee and a decision was arrived at under a voting system, similar to that used to judge the piping contest.
March 87
The decision was kept secret until the next big night which was in Grannies at Embo, on 28th March, with the Tain SDB as the guests. The Band playing the three highest placed tunes was to be the highlight of the show. AS good crowd turned out for the occasionand the winner was declared to be 16-year-old James Corbett from Shinness, Lairg, one of the more promising young players in our area, and a very popular winner. Second place went to Mrs Barbara McConnachie from Rogart, the only Club player to win a prize, and next was Alan Ritchie from Helmsdale who plays fiddle for Hector McRae’s Dance Band.
April 87
Although the season was fast coming to a close and those ones involved in ‘early lambing’ had to retire from the playing scene a bit early, we did manage to hold one other interesting event, a Beginners Night.
The idea was to attract the young musicians in our area to come along and do a spot for us. The date was set for 2nd April and the night was a bigger success than the Committee had dared hope for. We had a good audience and a grand turnout of youngsters with boxes, fiddles, recorders, chanters and the whistle. All gave of their best and there was a grand and easy atmosphere about the whole evening. Perhaps we can repeat an event like this again this coming season with a bit more warning to all involved.
Mod
This was about all we could manage except for the out-of-season events. One was an invitation for the players to do a concert for the Sutherland/Caithness Mod in Golspie on 29th May. We took to the stage in the High School before a large audience and gave one of our better performances. Compere was Andy Ross of Moray First Radio.
Summer Trip
And finally, our summer trip on the 6th June to the far west of our county. Perhaps I should explain, although we call ourselves the Sutherland A&F Club, the bulk of the players come from the east of the county. The mere distance involved, approximately 60-70 miles, makes the trip to attend practices quite a marathon. Only one hardy chap manages it fairly regularly all the way from the Scourie area. And he usually turns up on a night when everyone else is frightened to move with ice and snow. “Oh, it wasn’t bad out west” he’ll say. So each year, so far, we have had a bus trip out west or north to take our music to the parts of the county at a time of year when it is convenient to do so. For this reason the crafting community and fishing port of Kinlochbervie was the chosen destination where they now have a new hall which we were keen to try out. We had a good turnout of players and quite a few ‘camp followers’ on the bus. But at 8pm when we were to start, our audience was TWO. However, we pressed on with the music and gradually the hall filled up until we had quite a reasonable turnout.
The tea arrangements for this event were a bit unusual in that we were dependent on the Hall Secretary there to organize tea, which she did, including a packet of biscuits. Which was okay, but wasn’t going to go far amongst 30 of us, not to mention the audience. However, we were not to be outdone, and a lady kindly offered to scour the parish for the local travelling grocer’s van, and, eventually, all had tea, audience included. In all, a nice informal night, and different!!
And for the coming season…
September 87
We started again in early September and had our first big night in Rogart Hall on 26th September when we looked forward to a visit, and an opportunity to welcome, The Ythan Players.
There have been a few Committee changes for next year, in that the new Chairman is Terry Keating, who takes over from John Macdonald, and Mrs Ivy Fraser, Rogart, takes over as Secretary from Valerie Mathieson. Two stalwarts, John Sorley and Alistair MaRae, step down and new members are Barbara McConnachie and Bob Mathieson.
One project in mind for the coming season is to be undertaken by the retiring Chairman and is in a way to follow on from our tune contest. That is the publication of new tunes from our area and hopefully we will have it tied up by this time next year.
John Macdonald
This Club report is more in the way of an annual summary of what we are about and what we’ve been up to over the last season. Also to let you know that we’re alive and kicking and not just a name to which a bundle of ‘B&F’ magazines is dispatched to, and, since they don’t come back, there must be someone there at the other end.
Yes, indeed, the ‘B&F’ is well received by our members, but with one complaint, i.e., ‘There’s never anything about us in it!’
So, now this is about us.
Season 86/87 began on 18th September with our usual regular weekly get-together held in the Rogart Hall on a Thursday night and, for the most part, took the form of a practice session for all of us to play as a group. Not an easy task for such a varied bunch of individuals. However, nothing is accomplished without a bit of effort, so we get down to it, get some sets organized and then try them out. Not all the arrangements work out, some go straight into the bin, others are kept as ‘Well, maybe sometime, but not quite yet’, and others we think we can manage. Of these we must have a repertoire of up to 50-60 sets, which isn’t bad to get along with, and makes chaps like ‘yours truly’ very aware of the need to TRY and read music. Not an easy task for an aging ‘Heid Case’.
To assist with the tempo we are indebted to John Grant from Golspie on the drums and Roddy McLean and Cathy Ross for piano accompaniment. Roddy acts as reserve for us, as he is involved in various other musical activities and cannot always fit in time for a practice. So Cathy now has the job of thumping out the chords for us, which she does with enthusiasm and skill.
It’s also very good for the otherwise sadly neglected village hall piano, which was in danger of becoming, like so many other of its species, stuck in the corner of the stage and seldom used, slowly going out of tune and growing hairy mould or whatever, regarded by most visiting groups who use the stage, as a competitor for space, but handy to stick a loudspeaker on, or perhaps a few jackets. However, as I say, our piano in Rogart Hall now has a weekly outing and is manhandled off its perch on stage and trundled through to the wee room which we use for practice and is very much brought back to life. It stands in a corner and competes for space with the local whist drive enthusiasts, and again gets covered with jackets, as it is an awkward shape on which to deal a round of cards!
Enough about pianos, what of the rest of the instruments? Well, just the usual boxes and fiddles, quite a variety of boxes humphed out. Wee ones, big ones, push and pull, 3 row, 5 row, piano key, much used ones, little used ones, awfully new ones, old faithfulls, molly coddled wrapped in silk and blanket models, old battered ‘fling it under the bed’ models – we’ve got them all! And the fiddles? Well, one fiddle looks much like another to a non fiddle player, but one is very aware of the variety of sounds that come forth.
Apart from the aforementioned jamboree we had quite a few concert nights during the season, which went off well and drew very good support.
So I will summarise.
November 86
The first was on 8th November when the guest artistes were Billy Anderson’s Band ‘Albany’ and Margaret MacLeod. This is the second time they have played for the Club, and their lively concert act is well received. They were ideal for the short dance with which we usually wind up our evenings. This evening was held in Lairg Hall. Albany have a strong following in that area. Number one fan must surely be Committee member George MacKay, for whom the Club were grateful to for meeting and entertaining the Band when they arrived, and organising the finer points of the evening.
December 86
The next event was on the 12th December when the Club were slightly further west and visited Rosehall Village Hall. The guests on this occasion were the well known characters of the Scottish music scene, Jimmy Ritchie and Mickie Ainsworth. They gave a fine demonstration of the precise sound and tempo we used to hear when Shand and Powrie were in their heyday. Particularly enjoyed were Jimmy’s compositions named after local characters whom Jimmy knew well when he stayed in Bonar Bridge in the sixties. The fact that they featured on the latest Jimmy Shand new release, ‘Echoes of the Glen’ added to their popularity. For this occasion the accompaniment was provided by our own Cathy Ross, with John Grant on drums. The Club were indebted this time to Committee member Alistair McRae for setting up the finer points of the evening and for entertaining the guest artistes. It must be one of the Club’s outstanding debts to replenish Alistair’s whisky supply.
Activities came to a standstill over the Christmas and New Year period, then picking up again in time for the next open night on 7th February.
February 87
This was held in ARdgay Hall and drew the biggest crowd of the season. In fact, probably the biggest crowd seen here since many years. I know, because we searched every corner for spare chairs and had quite a job to dust most of them down, for I’m sure there wasn’t a bottom on any of them for over 20 years. It was a very successful night and the proceeds of about £400 were donated to the local Pipe Band. The guests on this occasion were the Inverness Fiddlers, who, after the Club did their opening piece, took over the remainder of the evening and did us proud with the standard of their performance. I believe they enjoyed it very much themselves, particularly playing for the wee dance to wind up.
March 87
For the March event, held in Rogart Hall on 6th March, we had contact with Bobby MacLeod who intimated that he would be pleased to come up and give an evening as part of a mini-tour, to include some of the other Highland Clubs. However, due to his wife’s health, he unfortunately couldn’t carry out the engagements so we had a last minute search and we are indebted to Jimmy Lindsay, along with Pam and Ally Wilkie. Any doubts which were harboured by some Club members that after the expectation of Bobby MacLeod, anything else would be an anti-climax, were soon dispelled with the sparkling performance from this very professional Trio. Jimmy wasn’t a name too well know in this area before. But ‘we ken him noo!’ I don’t think any of us will forget the number of tunes he played which were all new to us and the lift to their music. A most enjoyable evening was had. On this occasion the Club were indebted to Cathy Ross and Sandy McLennan for providing hospitality to the Band on their arrival.
Tune Competition
Prior to this event the Club launched a competition for a tune which they could adopt as a signature tune, by a Sutherland based composer. Advertisements were placed in the local paper and a prize of £100 was offered to the winner. A sub-committee, comprising of Club and non-Club members under the direction of Alistair McRae, was set up to judge the competition which drew an entry of approximately twenty tunes. The work of sorting them all out fell to the Secretary, Alistair, and the boys of the Tain SDB, who, when they had worked them all out, had a session with the full sub-committee and a decision was arrived at under a voting system, similar to that used to judge the piping contest.
March 87
The decision was kept secret until the next big night which was in Grannies at Embo, on 28th March, with the Tain SDB as the guests. The Band playing the three highest placed tunes was to be the highlight of the show. AS good crowd turned out for the occasionand the winner was declared to be 16-year-old James Corbett from Shinness, Lairg, one of the more promising young players in our area, and a very popular winner. Second place went to Mrs Barbara McConnachie from Rogart, the only Club player to win a prize, and next was Alan Ritchie from Helmsdale who plays fiddle for Hector McRae’s Dance Band.
April 87
Although the season was fast coming to a close and those ones involved in ‘early lambing’ had to retire from the playing scene a bit early, we did manage to hold one other interesting event, a Beginners Night.
The idea was to attract the young musicians in our area to come along and do a spot for us. The date was set for 2nd April and the night was a bigger success than the Committee had dared hope for. We had a good audience and a grand turnout of youngsters with boxes, fiddles, recorders, chanters and the whistle. All gave of their best and there was a grand and easy atmosphere about the whole evening. Perhaps we can repeat an event like this again this coming season with a bit more warning to all involved.
Mod
This was about all we could manage except for the out-of-season events. One was an invitation for the players to do a concert for the Sutherland/Caithness Mod in Golspie on 29th May. We took to the stage in the High School before a large audience and gave one of our better performances. Compere was Andy Ross of Moray First Radio.
Summer Trip
And finally, our summer trip on the 6th June to the far west of our county. Perhaps I should explain, although we call ourselves the Sutherland A&F Club, the bulk of the players come from the east of the county. The mere distance involved, approximately 60-70 miles, makes the trip to attend practices quite a marathon. Only one hardy chap manages it fairly regularly all the way from the Scourie area. And he usually turns up on a night when everyone else is frightened to move with ice and snow. “Oh, it wasn’t bad out west” he’ll say. So each year, so far, we have had a bus trip out west or north to take our music to the parts of the county at a time of year when it is convenient to do so. For this reason the crafting community and fishing port of Kinlochbervie was the chosen destination where they now have a new hall which we were keen to try out. We had a good turnout of players and quite a few ‘camp followers’ on the bus. But at 8pm when we were to start, our audience was TWO. However, we pressed on with the music and gradually the hall filled up until we had quite a reasonable turnout.
The tea arrangements for this event were a bit unusual in that we were dependent on the Hall Secretary there to organize tea, which she did, including a packet of biscuits. Which was okay, but wasn’t going to go far amongst 30 of us, not to mention the audience. However, we were not to be outdone, and a lady kindly offered to scour the parish for the local travelling grocer’s van, and, eventually, all had tea, audience included. In all, a nice informal night, and different!!
And for the coming season…
September 87
We started again in early September and had our first big night in Rogart Hall on 26th September when we looked forward to a visit, and an opportunity to welcome, The Ythan Players.
There have been a few Committee changes for next year, in that the new Chairman is Terry Keating, who takes over from John Macdonald, and Mrs Ivy Fraser, Rogart, takes over as Secretary from Valerie Mathieson. Two stalwarts, John Sorley and Alistair MaRae, step down and new members are Barbara McConnachie and Bob Mathieson.
One project in mind for the coming season is to be undertaken by the retiring Chairman and is in a way to follow on from our tune contest. That is the publication of new tunes from our area and hopefully we will have it tied up by this time next year.
John Macdonald