Na Píobairí Uilleann

Chairman, NPU

An Píobaire

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9 3 3 20130712 I WAS DELIGHTED AND HONOURED to be elected as Chairman of Na Píobairí Uil- leann at the June board meeting. I look for- ward to contributing in this role to the development of Na Píobairí Uilleann at a time when many exciting things are happening in the organisation. On behalf of the members and the board I would like to thank Dave Hegarty for his contribution as chairman over the past three years. Dave re- mains a member of the board so we will still have the benefit of his expeience as a long-standing member (and patron) of NPU. “With each week that passes it becomes clearer that 32 Essex Street will not stand up to an- other winter and the restoration of no. 15 Henrietta Street takes on a new urgency”. That is the opening of Breandán Breath- nach’s editorial in An Píobaire of September 1979. Incredible progress has been made since then in terms of Na Píobairí Uil- leann having a building of its own from which to administer a service to its worldwide mem- bership and we are now at the stage of planning the reinstatement of 16 Henrietta Street which will house the pipe making training centre, a theatre, museum and visitor centre. The recent appointment of Gerry Lyons as Head of Development is a major step in this re- gard and it means that NPU now has a person dedicated to lead a fund-raising drive to source funding from public and private sources to fi- nance the project. We acknowledge the assis- tance of the Arts Council RAISE initiative in the creation of this new post, wish Gerry well in his new role and also thank him, on behalf of the membership in particular, for the great work he did as Administrator. Emmett Gill will now step into Gerry’s role as Administrator and we congratulate him and wish him well in his new role. We also thank Emmett for his contribution as a member of the board. The world of pipe-playing and pipe-making have come a long way since Breandán Breath- nach’s editorial in 1979. The pipe making training courses at PIPECRAFT are helping to trans- mit pipe-making skills to poten- tial full time pipe-makers and hopefully will create sustainable jobs. The transmission of piping skills is also taking place around the world in an ever-growing list of countries where com- munities of pipers are establishing themselves. I appreciate how fortunate I was to have come across Tommy Kearney at a time when I was interested in learning the pipes and how gen- erous and thoughtful he was in teaching me. As a pupil at the early Willie Clancy Summer Schools, I also had the opportunity to learn from experienced pipers such as Brian Galla- har and Pat Mitchell. These classes set me on the road to search out recordings of other pipers they told me about. Nowadays that 3

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