I am pleased to advise that Na Píobairí Uilleann (NPU) have appointed Anne-Marie Bell as Administrator of the organisation effective from September 23rd 2019.

Anne-Marie who has worked with NPU since June 2018 will report directly to me in her new role.

Anne-Marie will manage a vibrant office dedicated to the delivery of world class services to uilleann pipers, pipe makers, piping enthusiasts and the world of Irish traditional arts. As part of the team at NPU Anne-Marie will play a key role in the day to day implementation of our annual arts plan and organisational strategy.

I congratulate Anne-Marie on her promotion and wish her the very best of success in her new role.

I am also pleased to advise that Iarfhlaith O’Domhnaill has joined the team at NPU on a temporary basis until June 2020. Iarfhlaith, who is a chartered accountant, will during that time, work on financial reporting, staff training and mentoring and specific one-off projects.

Gay McKeon

CEO

The closing date for receipt of scholarship applications for 2015 is Thursday 30th April. Na Píobairí Uilleann will award five piping scholarships for 2015. Subject to demand, a minimum of two scholarships will be specifically reserved for non Irish resident applications. Successful applicants can attend piping classes at any of the following :

• Willie Clancy Summer School – Miltown Malbay, Co. Clare,
• South Sligo Summer School – Tubbercurry, Co. Sligo,
• Joe Mooney Summer School – Drumshambo, Co. Leitrim.
• Catskills Irish Arts Week – East Durham , N.Y.

See application form for terms and conditions. We request that recordings to support applications are of solo piping. To download the NPU Scholarship Application form – Click Here

Na Píobairí Uilleann (NPU) is pleased to announce the appointment of Carolyne Lindsay as Administration Assistant of the organisation effective from March 18^th 2014. Carolyne who will report directly to Emmett Gill will provide support in the efficient and effective running of the organisation to ensure the delivery of outstanding services to uilleann pipers, pipe makers, piping enthusiasts and the Irish traditional arts community worldwide.

Carolyne studied at NUI Maynooth where she was awarded both a B.A in Irish and History and an M.A degree in Irish.

Carolyne has over seven years’ experience in the retail sector and is completing a postgraduate diploma in translating with Coláiste na hÉireann/Gaelchultúr. Carolyne was involved in the creation of Muintir na Gaeilge Ongar, a voluntary group created to promote the Irish language in the Dublin 15.

We wish Carolyne a long and successful career with the organisation.

Seo nóta gearr  le meabhrú duit go bhfuil roinnt ticéad fós  ar díol  (€20)  don ócáid thaitneamhach seo  Luimneach.

Tig leat dul díreach chuig an nasc thíos lena n-ordú ar-líne

A few tickets are still on sale ( €20)  for this year’s Gradam Ceoil Concert.   The link below brings you directly to the booking facility:

https://www.uch.ie/events/041214_gradam_ceoil.html

RDS National Craft Awards 2014 Call for Entries

The Royal Dublin Society (RDS) is now calling for entries, for its 2014 RDS National Craft Awards (formerly RDS Crafts Competition). The annual RDS National Craft Awards is open to craftspeople based in Ireland and Irish makers living abroad and has prize fund in excess of €24,000. The Awards set the standard for craft on the island of Ireland to the highest possible level of skill and design excellence and provide an open platform for Irish craftspeople working in a variety of disciplines to have their work assessed by a professional judging panel of Irish and international experts. There are 20 different categories in 2014: Basketry, Calligraphy and Lettering, Ceramics, Embroidery, Felting, Furniture, Glass, Silversmithing, Ironwork/Metalwork, Jewellery, Knitting and Crochet, Lace, Leatherwork, Mixed Materials, Musical Instruments, Patchwork and Quilting, Printed Textiles, Weaving, Wood and Stone carving and Woodturning.  Prize-winning and a select number of high quality entries will be exhibited at the Discover Ireland Dublin Horse Show, RDS, (6-10 August) and at the Hunt Museum, Limerick from (4 September – 10 October 2014).

Online applications forms will be accessible from Monday March 3 at www.rds.ie./arts until the closing date deadline of May 12, 2014

The 42nd Willie Clancy Summer School, Miltown Malbay, Co. Clare, Ireland.

Saturday 5th July to Sunday 13th July, 2014.

Information for 2014 is now available at:

https://www.scoilsamhraidhwillieclancy.com/information.html

Click on the link below to register for uilleann piping classes.

Regsiter for uilleann piping classes

Note: Registration for all other instruments takes place in the Community Hall Miltown Malbay from 2pm to 6pm on Saturday 5th July 2014.

Pipe Up! – A Spotlight on Music Generation’s Uilleann Pipe Programmes, in partnership with Na Píobairí Uilleann

Music Generation, Ireland’s National Music Education Programme, initiated by Music Network and funded by U2 and The Ireland Funds, together with Local Music Education Partnerships helps children and young people access high quality subsidised music education in their local area.  There are currently 11 Music Education Partnerships – Louth, Mayo, Sligo, Cork City, Laois, Wicklow, Carlow Limerick City, Offaly/Westmeath, Clare and South Dublin.  Each area of the country offers a range of different programmes but two Partnerships, Louth and Laois, have turned a focus on the traditional art of Uilleann Pipe playing.

The history of piping in Ireland extends over a span of 13 centuries with the distinctively Irish uilleann pipes (‘elbow’ pipes) in its present form emerging around the beginning of the 18^th century. Na Píobairí Uilleann (the Uilleann Pipers) was founded in 1968 to preserve the playing of the pipes and the production and maintenance of the instrument.  One of the ways it achieves this aim is through the teaching of the pipes to young people.  Music Generation Laois and Music Generation Louth are both working in association with Na Píobairí Uilleann to deliver an Uilleann Pipe Programme in their areas bringing this rich tradition of playing to a new generation of young pipers.

In Louth, piper Mark Redmond from Wexford travels to Louth every Wednesday to teach four young pipers at An Droichead, Barlow House, Drogheda before travelling to Dundalk to teach two young pipers and a recently formed group of four adults.  Building awareness of the instrument and the Programme in the area, last November Mark took part in a schools concert as part of Drogheda Traditional Music Festival and gave workshops in a number of primary schools.  For Love: Live Music 2013, Ireland’s National Music Day on 21^st June last year, Mark along with some local pipers held a ‘Try the Pipes’ workshop in Marshes Shopping Centre, Dundalk.  A new plan is currently being developed by Music Generation Louth, Na Píobairí Uilleann and the County Arts Office to increase participation in the Programme for the academic year 2014/2015.

Laois’s Uilleann Pipe Programme is intergenerational, with children and adults attending group lessons with tutor and CEO of Na Píobairí Uilleann, Gay McKeon.  Prior to this Programme being established, there were limited opportunities to learn the pipes in the midlands area and now eighteen students currently travel from Offaly, Kilkenny and Kildare, as well as from within Co. Laois to attend the weekly lessons.  Na Píobairí Uilleann and local pipes-maker Paddy Hyland provide huge support to the Laois Programme, offering expert advice and assisting with the maintenance of the instruments.  In 2012 Laois Music Education Partnership purchased three sets of practice pipes from Paddy Hyland, creating a seedling instrument bank for the Programme, with some students hiring pipes directly from Na Píobairí Uilleann through their ‘Pipes on Loan’ scheme.  As in Louth, a ‘Try the Pipes’ workshop to mark Love: Live Music 2013 was held in Laois Shopping Centre last June resulting in the enrolment of four new students and in September all of the Uilleann Pipe students enrolled on the programme participated in a workshop organised in conjunction with the Music Network tour Bellows, Bridge and Bow.  Many of the Laois students also attend additional workshops at Na Píobairí Uilleann Headquarters in Henrietta Street, Dublin.

Music Generation is delighted to be working in partnership with Na Píobairí Uilleann on the delivery of these programmes, engaging young people and nurturing an interest in pipe-playing and looks forward to an expansion of the programmes to other areas of the country.

For more information on the Programmes visit: Music Generation Louth (www.musicgenerationlouth.ie)  and Music Generation Laois (www.musicgenerationlaois.ie).

Press release on behalf of Na Píobairí Uilleann

Thursday February 27^th, 2014, 6:30pm

Na Píobairí Uilleann (NPU) is today delighted to announce the launch by Arts Council member John Fanning of Sharing the Sound of Ireland: a comprehensive new strategy to guide one of Ireland’s leading traditional music and arts organisations for the next five years. 

Sharing the Sound of Ireland features a new website and a complete rebranding. It is a highly ambitious yet practical blueprint for NPU to realise its visionary aim of bringing the traditions and music of the Irish uilleann pipes to the world.

The plan’s framework is constructed on NPU’s four objective pillars of Access, Education, Performance and Preservation, delivered through the organization’s commitment to excellence in values, governance and processes.

Visionary goals laid out in this strategy include the building of an International Uilleann Piping Centre and Theatre at 16 Henrietta Street, the deployment of full time uilleann pipe teachers over the next four years to help re-embed uilleann piping throughout Ireland and facilitate tuition worldwide.

NPU commence this new strategic period by launching two innovative new mobile apps MovingCloud and Pipecraft, the first of their kind within the Irish traditional arts world.

To increase global access to the Irish pipes and traditional music, MovingCloud will offer significant and growing musical content with over 3000 video clips featuring 300 leading traditional artists. Available to download free of charge on iTunes and Google Play, MovingCloud users can supplement the significant free content through the payment of a modest subscription which will open access to additional material and the NPU online library.

To focus on the heritage craft of uilleann pipemaking, today NPU also launches Pipecraft, the first mobile app for uilleann pipemaking. This practical educational tool provides aspiring pipemakers access to 50 hours of video footage featuring the methods of leading pipemakers.

The new rebranded logo reflects the current status of Na Píobairí Uilleann as a vibrant, modern, global organisation firmly rooted in the vision of its founders. A treatment of the initials of Na Píobairí Uilleann evokes the physical detail of a set of Irish uilleann pipes, and also suggests sound waves, sharing, music staves, and a strong connection to online audiences.

Speaking about today’s announcement, NPU Chief Executive and uilleann piper Gay McKeon commented: ‘Na Píobairí Uilleann’s founders, who were pipers themselves, had a very clear vision for the organisation back in 1968 when the very future of the instrument was far from certain. That vision, based on the promotion of piping, pipes and traditional music through tuition and conservation, underpins this new strategy which tailors these fundamental aims for the 21^st century and the global reach of NPU.

We are very grateful for the ongoing financial support of both the Arts Council and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht  which has contributed to an exponential growth in the playing and making of uilleann pipes, a unique and iconic element of our rich musical heritage.’

To download the Sharing the Sound of Ireland Strategy – click here

Na Píobairí Uilleann

Na Píobairí Uilleann (NPU), the Society of Uilleann Pipers, was founded in 1968 by pipers with the aim of protecting a threatened art form. Now, forty-six years later, NPU is a thriving arts organisation with thousands of members, dedicated to servicing the aims and needs of uilleann pipers worldwide. It is the vision of NPU to enrich the lives of people worldwide through the music and culture of the Irish pipes and establish the music of the uilleann pipes as a major art form around the world in the 21st century. Since unveiling its restored Georgian premises at 15 Henrietta Street, Dublin, in January 2007, NPU has been busy catering for the expanding demand for regular tuition as well as releasing a number of significant publications and recordings. With demand for pipes considerably exceeding supply, a dedicated Training Centre – Pipecraft – has been established to deliver training in the very highly skilled craft of uilleann pipemaking. NPU’s commitment to tuition, both on a weekly basis at its premises, and internationally, continues to grow, along with its public performance programme.

NPU also maintains a significant online presence. Source, our web-based piping and traditional music resource, makes available our accumulated training, tutorial and archive materials to lovers of Irish music around the world. 

Na Píobairí Uilleann’s primary funding agencies include the Department of Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht, The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon and Dublin City Council.

Na Píobairí Uilleann, 15 Henrietta St., Dublin 1, Ireland

Tel: +353-1-8730093

Email: info@pipers.ie

Web:  www.pipers.ie

Facebook: www.facebook.com/napiobairiuilleann

Twitter: www.twitter.com/napiobairi

In 2013 we conducted an extensive member survey and received an enormous response with excellent feedback and a host of great suggestions which we have incorporated into your new look website.

Some of the key highlights are:

• We have made it easier for you to navigate around the site using easy to use menus.
• We have combined the main site, on-line archive, Source, and web shop into one with a single username and login for you to access the entire site.
• We have introduced a self-service a member portal so that you can easily update your contact details and for renewal of your membership. The portal also allows you to post classified ads, event details and pictures of your pipes.
• We have created a member directory with options for you to be included in public directories of players, teachers and makers if you wish.
• We have extensively reorganised Source galleries for easier navigation and introduced easier search to access over 20,000 digital files including over 3,000 videos featuring over 300 leading traditional musicians.
• The new site also includes a host of new video clips and some new tutor videos for you to enjoy.
• For users on the move we have created two iPhone/Android apps – MovingCloud and Pipecraft
• We have also launched a subscription model for non-members wishing to access the content.

If you are an existing member click here and enter your username. Don’t worry if you have forgotten your username as you can retrieve it using your email address. If you have any difficulty please contact us.

For new members and subscribers click here for a membership or subscription. You can register with a basic subscription for free.

Your new web site is a central to our mission to Share the Sound of Ireland – thank you for your feedback and suggestions and we hope you enjoy !

Scoil Samhraidh Willie Clancy will again award Oineach Mhuiris Uí Rócháin, a Family Scholarship in honour of Muiris Ó Rócháín.

Oineach Mhuiris Uí Rócháin is open to any family with two or more family members wishing to attend classes at the Summer School. Oineach Mhuiris Uí Rócháin will entitle the family to use of a three bedroom house during Scoil Samhraidh Willie Clancy and free access to classes for up to four family members either adults or children.

The committee of Scoil Samhraidh Willie Clancy have again asked Na Píobairí Uilleann to review the applications and award the scholarship.

To downloand the application form Click Here and email to emmett@pipers.ie or post to

Oineach Mhuiris Uí Rócháin
Na Píobairí Uilleann
15 Henrietta St.
Dublin 1

Closing date for applications is 30th April 2014 and the Oineach Mhuiris Uí Rócháin scholarship will be awarded in May 2014.