Pipe dreams realised as instrument is celebrated

ENTHUSIASTS are to stage tribute to England’s only regional musical instrument - the Northumbrian Small Pipes.

- TONY HENDERSON

The free event tomorrow will celebrate the cultural significance of the pipes and will feature talks from experts and live performances.

Held in Northumbria University’s Great Hall, the event also builds on the growing cultural collaboration between the university and North East Museums.

Small Pipes - Big History will include a talk by local piper and historian Richard Heard on the tradition of small piping in North Shields, as well as live musical performances by acclaimed piper Andy May.

Dr Amélie Addison, lecturer in music at Northumbria University, will give a presentation about Gateshead-born composer and Master of the King’s Musick William Shield, and his connection to regional folk music.

Shield, who lived from 1748 to 1829, was born in Swalwell and was apprenticed to a shipbuilder in South Shields, but also studied music under Newcastle composer Charles Avison.

He became a violinist in Newcastle’s subscription concerts and later principal violinist at Covent Garden, now the Royal Opera House. In 1817 he was appointed Master of the King’s Musick, and is buried in Westminster Abbey.