Results

Nine bands and exactly 100 soloists competed at the South-East Asia Championships at St. Xavier’s Institution, Georgetown, attracting entries from Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, and Australia. Rockingham City from Western Australia was the top winner in Grade 4B, capturing both the Medley and Marches events against three other bands. Lion City was the only entry in Grade 4A.

Liam Kernaghan, Wellington, won the overall Open/A-Grade award, and Maggie McConnochie, Christchurch, did the same in both the B-Grade and Under-21 categories at the 114th annual King’s Birthday Solo Piping Competition, held in unusually mild winter conditions.

More than 70 pipers competed in the Victorian Pipers’ Association’s solo competition at Scotch College, and the top winner was Jono Quay winning three of the four A-Grade events and the aggregate trophy.

With four firsts from the four judges, Shotts & Dykehead Caledonia easily won the 2026 British Championship held at the Royal Highland Centre at Ingliston, on the west side of Scotland’s capital city, against a field of eight other Grade 1 bands. The band also won the drumming in the first championships victory for Pipe-Major Emmett Conway and Lead-Drummer David Henderson.

Brady Webb of Nova Scotia, Canada, was the Grade 1 aggregate winner in the May 2026 CLASP Live Online competition, in which contestants performed live via video on May 1st and 2nd, with their performances recorded by proctors administering the event; their performances were then assessed over the next month.

Winning the MSR and runner-up in the Medley, Prince Charles from San Francisco was the overall Grade 3 winner at the annual pipe band competitions at Scottish Fest USA. City of Angels of Los Angeles won the Medley competition.

Ben Duncan, Edinburgh, won the overall trophy at the annual Blair Atholl Highland Games, which was held in splendid weather. There was the usual gigantic entry (with a good few scratches) in the open light music, which was split over four heats, followed by a 12-piper final for both the MSR and the Hornpipe & Jig.

The first Scottish Grade 1 contest of 2026 to see more than one actual Grade 1 band compete turned out to be the Dollar Pipe Band Competition held on the grounds of Dollar Academy, the private school with one of the most successful piping and drumming teaching programs in the world.

Greighlan Crossing was the overall Grade 3 winner in the top contested band event at the Victoria Highland Games, held in pristine weather on Canada’s Victoria Day Weekend in British Columbia’s capital city. Alastair Lee, Tommi McAndrew, and Harry Justice won the top overall awards in the Open solo piping, snare drumming, and tenor drumming categories.

The Saskatchewan Highland Gathering & Celtic Festival took place Friday and Saturday, with worrisome bouts of snow, rain and wind threatening in the days leading up to the event, and even Saturday early morning had snow on the ground in Regina. And yet, the day started cool and clear, and gradually turned to sunshine and moderate warmth, making for a great day of competition.

Winning both events, Sean McKeown of Toronto was the clear winner of the 2026 Livingstone Invitational Solo Piping Competition held at the Officers’ Mess of the John Weir Foote Armoury.

Winning the Piobaireachd and placing in the MSR and Jig events, Colin MacNeill of Edinburgh was the overall winner of the 2026 Royal Scottish Pipers’ Society Annual Solo Piping Competition at the RSPS Rooms at 127 Rose Street North Lane in Scotland’s capital city centre.

Sarah Muir of East Kilbride, Scotland, was the overall Premier and A-Grade winner at the annual Highlands & Islands Solo Piping Competition, organized by the Netherlorn Piping Society and held indoors at Oban High School. Muir won the MSR and was third in the Piobaireachd, and was the only competitor to feature in both prize lists. Brodie Watson-Massey of Edinburgh won the Piobaireachd.

Nick Hudson of Houston was the overall winner of the 2026 Ian Swinton Open Solo Piping Competition, with a first in the Piobaireachd and a third in the MSR, the only player to feature in both prize lists. Jack Williamson of Topeka, Kansas, won the MSR event.

Steven Shedden of Melbourne, Australia, won the 2026 RSPBA Oceania Pipe Band Snare Drumming Championship held at St. Andrew’s College, the fifth event in the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association’s eight-contest league to determine a Champion of Champions title.