Well the factory has officially come back after its summer block leave and the drums are back in production. The run up to the factory holidays was incredibly busy due to the the fact we had the World Pipe Band Championships right before it (more about that below).
Moving forward through September and October we have a busy time ahead as September see us sponsoring and attending the Society of International Rudimental Drummers Symposium.
We also have more "On The Sofa with..." videos penciled in the diary to record and the launch of the new finishes for 2022/23 sees us updating the website in the new few weeks.
The World Pipe Band Championships 2022
After a 2 year hiatus the World Pipe Band Championships eventually took place once again on the famous Glasgow Green. Over 40,000 people attended the event over the 2 days with 146 bands taking part. A lot has happened since the Axial Series launched at the last championships in 2019. This year the BDC marquee was bigger and a lot busier than last time - in fact it was the biggest structure on the field. It had to be - we had over 40 drums on display!
The event saw us launch the new finishes for 22/23 including the much talked about Exo-Skins. This allows the user to change the look of their drum by applying the Exo-Skins to the X-Frames on the snare drums. There are two design options with a total of 12 different colour finishes for each design.
As player of our Axial drums we were lucky enough to have Brisbane Boys' College Pipe Band & Police Scotland & Federation Pipe Band play in front of the marquee to entertain the masses and after many requests we even managed to get all the BDC artists together for a jam with the Drum Corps from Police Scotland and Federation.
We had many guests pop in throughtout the 2 days including Mark Reilly who managed a quick jam with Gareth & Steven (more about Mark later on in the blog) as well as The Big Rab Show team who popped in to see what we'd been up to since the last time we met. This year BDC bought its merchandise stand along so that combined with the Jim Kilpatrick shop meant we had a vey busy tent to say the least.
It also seemed popular with the Sons of Holyland Pipe Band as they were able to buy souvenirs to take back with them after their incredible journey to the their first World Championships.
This year we also had the BDC VIP Area. This was an area for friends and BDC artists to chill out and get away from it all. It also provided a great place to chat to people in a quieter environment. Being a BDC artists meant that all food and drinks were provided and ice cold water was definitely in high demand during the sweltering hot temperatures.
We also had the guys in from Duncan Taylor Whiskey who were providing drams of Black Bull for anybody in the VIP area who wanted one. The entire event was a huge success and believe it or not we've already planned out what we're doing for next years event.
Personally I'd like to thank everyone who came along to the BDC marquee and spent time chatting. It was great to see old friends but also great to make new connections.
We're all already looking forward to the 2023 World Pipe Band Championships!
On The Sofa With...
Prior to the RSPBA World Pipe Band Championships we were extremely lucky to grab a day with David Henderson from Police Scotland & Federation Pipe Band where he spoke about lockdown and how the band coped during the pandemic. He also spoke about his business D2 Percussion and what he has planned for the next 12 months.
Just like Tyler Fry, we will also have a week of David Henderson on our social media platforms so make sure you keep an eye out for that!
New Artist Alert!!
Mark Reilly Joins British Drum Co. Marching Division
It's with great pride that I can officially announce that top performer, clinician and educator Mark Reilly has joined the BDC Marching Division. Mark has performed in professional groups such as the Top Secret Drum Corps, and the Middlesex County Volunteers Fifes & Drums to name but a few. More recently he was the acting Commanding Officer in charge of The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps as well as a performer in the Snareline.
Mark is also the CEO of The Washington Tattoo which is an international cultural festival that provides visitors to Washington DC the unique opportunity to view the world through the sights, sounds, and soul of global music and food. The event's mission is to connect the world through cultural diplomacy and real time experiential learning.
To read the full Press Release click here!
That's it for this issue, the next edition will see us hit the 1 year mark since I first started the "Marching Orders" blog. We'll also have a feature on the Society of International Rudimental Drummers Symposium taking place in Portsmouth in September.
Until next time…
Stay safe
Stu