SYDNEY, N.S. — One of the world’s top bagpipers will be coming to Sydney this May as part of a Maritime tour that also includes Dartmouth, Moncton and Summerside.
Scotland’s Fred Morrison is considered to be the piping world’s closest thing to a rock star. Morrison has won the Highland Society of London gold medals and is known for his virtuoso performances on Highland, uilleann and Scottish small pipes. He has released several best-selling and well-reviewed recordings over his career, which spans more than three decades.
He will play shows at Cape Breton University in Sydney on May 5; the Celtic Performing Arts Centre in Summerside, P.E.I., on May 1; the Aberdeen Cultural Centre in Moncton, N.B., on May 3; and the Mic Mac Aquatic Club in Dartmouth on May 7.
In each community, the concert will feature a special guest artist band as the opening act. The Sydney show at the Boardmore Playhouse at 7 p.m. will feature the Cape Breton University Pipe Band. The Moncton show at the Aberdeen Cultural Centre at 2 p.m. will feature the Moncton District Pipe Band. The Summerside show at the Celtic Performing Arts Centre at 7 p.m. will feature the College of Piping Pipe Band. The Dartmouth show at the Mic Mac Amateur Aquatic Club at 7 p.m. will feature the Dartmouth & District Pipe Band. All concerts are $20 in advance and $25 the week of the show from the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo.
The shows are in support of the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo’s Youth Pipes and Drums Program, recently launched under the direction of the organization’s managing director and executive producer director, Scott Long, who was previous head of non-profit Music Nova Scotia. Proceeds from the concerts will be split with each of the local pipe bands and the other half going to the Youth Pipes & Drums Program, which supports the development of Highland bagpiping and pipe band drumming in Nova Scotia through cash grants, instrument loans and donations to youth-oriented non-profit organizations.
“We are thrilled to co-present Fred Morrison with our local pipe band partners from across the Maritimes,” Long said. “This is a great opportunity to hear some of the best piping in the world all the while supporting youth piping and drumming and pipe bands from our region.”
