AN IRVINE bagpiper has placed in the top five in a recent world piping championship.

Scott Garden, 27, is a traditional musician who studied at the prestigious Royal Conservatoire of Scotland where he gained a first class honours degree in traditional music.

Traditional music performance was badly affected by the coronavirus pandemic, with many performers unable to earn an income due to restrictions and closures.

Scott, who began his musical journey at the age of 11, placed fifth in the “Piping - Hornpipe & Jig” category at the World Online Piping and Drumming Championships (WOPDOC), which took place last week.

Though the championships pre-date Covid, the pandemic understandably sparked a surge in interest, with previous competitions attracting more than 8,000 entries from around the world.

Scott, who submitted his entry after he recorded it in his kitchen, told the Times: “The online competition had a resurgence in 2020 because Covid cancelled all the solo and band competitions – and also gigs, which are quite important to the pipes. They are the source of motivation for some to keep playing and practising, and the online competitions filled that void.

“I decided to enter the competition on a whim because my pipes were going well and I had won fourth a few days prior in Glasgow at the Duncan Johnstone Memorial jig competition.

“The beauty of the online competitions is you just record a video from your house, upload it to YouTube, submit it then a judge marks it.

“I was delighted to get fifth. Well done to all the other competitors.

“And I’m delighted getting a mention on the prize list, but I can keep working on getting higher on the list.”

A WOPDOC statement reads: “In 2011, we launched the world’s first-ever online piping competition.

“The World Online Piping and Drumming Championships is the world’s biggest and best online piping and drumming competition. Our competitions have received more than 8,000 entries from 23 countries on six continents.

“Starting in 2013, the World Online Piping and Drumming Championships became the first piping or drumming competition to publish a complete record of the entire competition for the entire world to see: a video of every performance, the complete list of tunes, and the judges’ comments.

“We hope the videos and judges’ comments will provide inspiration, motivation, and enjoyable listening for years to come.”

For more on Scott, visit scottgardenmusic.com, and to check out his competition entry visit youtube.com/watch?v=VKu9cdSzblI.