Black Watch 2016 North American tour

**RD Evans** · 7th December 15, 06:31 PM

Great picture, thanks for sharing!

I hope that in the future The Black Watch will be able to make the tour again!

In an off topic moment, OC Richard, is there an online recording/youtube video of the concert you mentioned in another thread that you piped for? Thanks!

**OC Richard** · 10th December 15, 08:32 PM

Originally Posted by RD Evans

is there an online recording/youtube video of the concert you mentioned in another thread that you piped for? Thanks!

I haven't seen anything from this year, but somebody kindly posted on FaceBook a video from last year's concert, which I've just now put on my FaceBook page.

See if this link works for you:

https://www.facebook.com/richard.cook.92167

(If you do go to my page, you may wonder about the vintage photo at the top. That was taken around 1943 and shows l-r my father CC Cook in his Boy Scout uniform, my uncle McKinley H Cook Jr KIA Germany 1945, and my grandfather McKinley H Cook Sr WIA France 1918 silver star purple heart.)

**cck** · 11th December 15, 06:37 AM

Your post got me searching and I found that they will be performing in San Antonio, Texas on Feb.17 and in Austin on Feb.18. Thanks for bringing this to our attention.

**OC Richard** · 11th December 15, 06:31 PM

Originally Posted by plaid preacher

Here is a link that I had to go hunting for: https://www.songkick.com/artists/522...-band/calendar

Seems to be only a partial list. On such tours they're usually playing each night, with few free days for the musicians. So, each gap of a week or so represents several concerts which aren't listed.

I went back at looked at previous tours and they're around 70 dates, almost all consecutive, with only a few days off.

**OC Richard** · 21st February 16, 04:56 PM

Well the day finally came, I saw the tour last night. Very cool. Quite a few kilties in attendance. Sorry to see a number of people who I know wear kilts show up in trousers! (You know who you are...)

The stage was rather cramped. The conductor told a friend of mine that it was the smallest area they had to contend with on this tour. The musicians couldn't march on and off, but rather negotiate steep steps at the sides of the stage.

Here's a thread about the tour's performance in London, Ontario, which has some nice photos

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...65/index2.html

By the way, they announced, and wrote in the programme, that the band of the Royal Marines last toured North America in 1985, the pipes & drums of the Scots Guards last toured North America in 1977. I'd attended the local appearances of both those tours, but I'd forgot how long ago they'd been! How time flies.

The pipes & drums of the Scots Guards were just here in California last September, but not part of a North American tour, but to compete at the Pleasanton Highland Games.

The bands on tour keep getting smaller. This Royal Marines band had one rank of five snare drummers marching in front, in 1985 I count one rank of seven, in 1976 I count two ranks of seven snare drummers each.

The Scots Guards had ten pipers; in 1977 they fielded 16 (the old standard size for an army pipe band).