Shinty music contest final shoot-out
Lochaber’s Ewen Henderson, one of Scotland’s finest musicians and composers, has won a unique competition held to mark the 200th anniversary of the Royal Celtic Society and the fact shinty has not been played this season.
Results of the final of the musical shoot-out were revealed at 2.15pm on Saturday afternoon – September 19 – at the precise moment shinty’s Big Day Out, the Tulloch Homes Camanachd Cup Final, would have been throwing up in Kingussie had it not been for the Coronavirus pandemic.
Three of Scotland’s oldest and most significant sporting and cultural bodies – the Royal Celtic Society, Glasgow Celtic Society and Camanachd Association – came together to offer a major set of prizes for an original musical competition marking the absence of shinty from this summer’s sporting calendar and looking forward to the return of play.
Led by the Royal Celtic Society (RCS), which is this year celebrating its 200th anniversary, and in partnership with the Glasgow Celtic Society and shinty’s governing body the Camanachd Association, supported by Tulloch Homes, the competition offered three prizes totalling £1,500 for an individual to compose an original competition.
Three finalists were chosen by a panel of judges after considerable and challenging assessment from an original entry list of more than 20.
Chairman of the judges Gary Innes revealed the results with Ewen Henderson in first place, Mary Ann Kennedy second and Chris Gray third.
Gary said: ‘We are delighted with the response we got from a wide range of musicians who made the most of the opportunities we offered them to be creative and imaginative about the situation we find ourselves in.
‘It was very difficult for the judges to narrow it down, but we reduced the original 20-odd to five, then three and finally came to our decision.
‘Ewen’s melody was key to his success but we cannot speak highly enough of the effort everyone put into the competition.’
Ewen said: ‘I’ve composed a pipe-style three-four march in three parts.
‘The first reflects shinty’s proud history; the darker and repetitive second part symbolises lockdown and shinty’s hiatus; the optimistic third part looks to the future and shinty’s revival.
‘Unique to Scotland, threefour marches are a much underrated and neglected part of our musical heritage in the same way shinty is sometimes overlooked in the wider sphere of Scottish sport.
‘Also, many of the best of these marches were composed by army pipers in the war years – an appropriate nod to the only other times shinty seasons have been cancelled.’
Prizes for the competition were supported by The Royal Celtic Society, Glasgow Celtic Society and the Camanachd Association supported by Tulloch Homes.
The winner received £750, second place £500 and third place £250.
The selection panel was led by award-winning musician Gary Innes of Mànran, the BBC Scotland Take the Floor presenter and former shinty captain of Scotland.
Gary was joined on the panel by RCS chairman Alan Hay, Angus MacInnes of the Glasgow Celtic Society and Claire Delaney of Lochaber Camanachd, representing the Camanachd Association.
The three prizewinners and the competition video can be accessed on YouTube at https://youtu.be/ Qh3m1EaMyF4