Piping, Drumming & Piobaireachd Weekend

Next Course

4th-6th May 2007

Instructors

               Andrew Wright        Piobaireachd

                  Roger Huth              Light Music  

                                                   Competition Tunes

                  Andrew Frater         Band Music, Set Up &   

                                                   Tuning, Maintenance

                  Cecil McCready      Drumming & Ensemble

Urchfont Manor is situated approximately 9 miles from Devizes in Wiltshire, England. The manor is run as an adult education facility under the control of Wiltshire County Council.

All food, accommodation and tuition is included in the cost of the course. Students can choose from standard single rooms to en suite twin or double rooms. There is also an option for non residents.

So, if you would like to participate in this weekend of excellent piping and drumming, keep an eye on this web page, or contact Urchfont Manor direct using the details below.

For further information contact: cecil.mccready@totalise.co.uk 

        Fee Band:

                        A   Standard Twin Shared            £TBC   

        B   Standard Single                       £TBC

        C   En-suite Twin Shared             £TBC  

        D   En-suite Single                        £TBC

        E    Non resident                            £TBC 

Urchfont Manor College, Urchfont, Nr Devizes, Wilts, SN10 4RG

Tel: 01380-840495       Fax 01380- 840005       

  Email: urchfont@wccyouth.org.uk

Urchfont Manor Course 2004

Add water/whiskey... have Band!

Urchfont Manor Piping and Drumming Course

Urchfont Weekend Re-Vamped

The decision to finish the course on the Sunday evening as opposed to the Monday afternoon as per previous years seemed to work very well. This helped with the logistics in running the course and enabled both students and instructors to have the opportunity to enjoy the remainder of the bank holiday.

The course formed up on the Friday evening, meeting for dinner. Everyone started to roll in at the usual time, it must be the  intoxicating aroma of fine home cooking, wafting through every nook and cranny of this historical manor house that seems to signal the start of a great weekend...afterwards a short recital was held in the Manor. This was a great success and set the 'tone' for the remainder of the weekend. A further recital/concert involving the course instructors, took place on the Saturday evening also in the manor. After the 'names' did their thing, the course students thankfully hi-jacked the remainder of the evening and provided some excellent entertainment, the Hawaiian drum section was certainly a highlight, if not an eye opener...it was amazing to see the hidden talents lurking within the inner person! A full and varied program for both Saturday and Sundays tuition culminated in a band practise on Sunday afternoon when the entire course marched around Urchfont village bringing most of Wiltshire to a standstill with the impromptu concert at the duck pond! It drove some of the locals totally quackers...sorry, couldn't resist it...

The staff at the manor looked after our internal well being with great gusto. It seems that we have lesson breaks in between meals! To their credit, the chef's nearly managed to disguise the cheese in every meal, Ha...better luck next year...

Cutting the Monday from the course not only enabled all to get home for the bank holiday, it will also reduced the cost of the course. Expense can be a problem for most of us and taking this into account I have managed to secure a deal with the college director that will bring the course fee down considerably. When you allow for the excellent accommodation and first class meals in comparison with average hotel costs, it basically means you get the tuition for free!

Full details and timings will be displayed at a later date.