Tartan Day NYC 2025: Carnegie Hall Event

**jsrnephdoc** · 2nd April 25, 09:24 PM

Originally Posted by OC Richard

The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Pipes & Drums is indeed in the USA right now! Performing in Washington DC and presumably then up to New York.

https://www.facebook.com/TheRoyalEdi...MilitaryTattoo

I've received confirmation from the band's headquarters that they will indeed be marching. That's AMAZING news. I'll stand in the rain if necessary to listen to them. I did ask their rep to try to include Black Bear (with shouting drummers, of course), and the Skye Boat Song in their performances while marching (the latter not because of Outlander but because it was a favorite of QE2.

**RGM1** · 3rd April 25, 04:53 AM

Originally Posted by RGM1

For the parade, I plan to wear my Murray of Atholl kilt. It will be a pleasant surprise if my Fleming kilt being built by Barbara Tewksbury is in hand before the weekend, but from correspondence that is unlikely. Watching the weather my plans to travel light are misguided so a change of clothes is indicated. Best guess, my Grand Canyon kilt from USA kilts will get an outing at Carnegie Hall.

Well Barbara Tewkesbury surprised me by getting my kilt completed and expedited to arrive before I head to NYC. Now the big question is do I dress down or up for the Hoolie, having never been to one. Kilt is awesome and will look great whatever I do. Well it is back to USA kilts I go for advice. Great service and nice people.

**jsrnephdoc** · 3rd April 25, 06:10 AM

Originally Posted by RGM1

Well Barbara Tewkesbury surprised me by getting my kilt completed and expedited to arrive before I head to NYC. Now the big question is do I dress down or up for the Hoolie, having never been to one. Kilt is awesome and will look great whatever I do. Well it is back to USA kilts I go for advice. Great service and nice people.

So, will you be in your new kilt or in Murray of Atholl when you march?. Lots of images of previous parades online. I would say that "daywear dress" is pretty common. I'll be in my Tewksbury Lunar 2 kilt somewhere along the route and will try to spy you from your colors.

Although my weather app predicts rain as of now for parade time, it also says "light," with any accumulation coming during the evening. I suspect that daywear dress would also be appropriate for the Carnegie Hall concert, which I'l be sorry to miss (but celebrating my daughter-in-law's B-day somewhere in Brooklyn.

**RGM1** · 3rd April 25, 11:10 AM

Originally Posted by jsrnephdoc

So, will you be in your new kilt or in Murray of Atholl when you march?. Lots of images of previous parades online. I would say that "daywear dress" is pretty common. I'll be in my Tewksbury Lunar 2 kilt somewhere along the route and will try to spy you from your colors.

Although my weather app predicts rain as of now for parade time, it also says "light," with any accumulation coming during the evening. I suspect that daywear dress would also be appropriate for the Carnegie Hall concert, which I'l be sorry to miss (but celebrating my daughter-in-law's B-day somewhere in Brooklyn.

Murray of Atholl tartan, Black Glengarry cap , and burgundy hose with blue Tweed jacket. Based on weather forecast will probably have small green backpack with Philmont logo to stash my jacket. If at all practical, I am not wearing jacket during the parade. If I am going to march down 6th Avenue in my clan's colors, I would like them to be seen. Look for the guy in a kilt.

I plan to wear my Tewksbury Fleming tartan to Carnegie Hall and will be in Tier1. I will be surprised if there is another in the hall.

**OC Richard** · 4th April 25, 07:03 AM

The Black Bear is a possibility, Skye Boat Song not so much, it being a Slow March.

If it were a funeral procession perhaps! But in an ordinary parade it will be Quick Marches in 2/4, 4/4, and 6/8 and perhaps Retreats in 3/4 or 9/8.

Even with Quick Marches, Pipe Bands generally get a big space in front of them because their marching tempo is rather slower than the tempo of US High School bands, for example.

Going into Slow March step would make it even worse, you're going really slow https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_46k_OZTr9k

**OC Richard** · 4th April 25, 07:22 AM

This video of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Pipes and Drums lifts the curtain a bit on what it's like to play in a pipe band.

People with electronic tuners are going around "touching up" everyone's drones while the drummers wait...and wait...and wait...

The Public, watching the Tattoo or a Parade, generally only sees the end product, a well-tuned band.

After the tuning is done Pipe Major McLaren calls off the tunes, singing the first bars of the first tune to get everybody on the same page.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_Qk1vFzQFs

Unfortunately the camera is nearly always on the pipers standing around NOT getting tuned rather than the pipers getting tuned.

As best I can tell there's PM McLaren, a guy in mufti, and one or two other pipers doing the tuning. They have a big pipe corps which would take forever for just one person to tune. It takes long enough with three or four people doing it! (Just ask the drummers.)

**jsrnephdoc** · Today, 07:48 AM

Originally Posted by OC Richard

As best I can tell there's PM McLaren, a guy in mufti, and one or two other pipers doing the tuning. They have a big pipe corps which would take forever for just one person to tune. It takes long enough with three or four people doing it! (Just ask the drummers.)

I mentioned in my other reply this morning that the "tuners" were working feverishly to get a Glasgow area high school band in sync, but THEY had properly kilted students in sufficient number scurrying around to get it right. The notion of using 21st Century iOS to make a 19th century instrument sound good is just SO bizarre, but it actually works wonders.