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Fiddlers are being encouraged to sharpen their bows for the annual Scottish Fiddle Competition, which will be held as part of the 148th Waipu Highland Games on January 1.
This year will mark a decade since the competition was re-introduced after a 90-year gap.
Organiser Anne-Marie Forsyth says that as far as she knows, this is the only Scottish fiddle competition in the southern hemisphere.
She says if anyone has any information about the original competition held up until 1908, it would be appreciated if they could pass it on to the Waipu Caledonian Society, which is collecting archives for the 150th Games.
The fiddle judge this year will be Australian Matthew Robertson, who is a Scottish fiddler, composer/arranger, dancer, Scottish country dance teacher and ceilidh caller. “Matthew is at the centre of a renaissance of tradition-informed dance music performance in Melbourne and further afield,” Anne-Marie says. This will be his first Waipu Games.
Fiddlers will compete in beginner, intermediate and advanced categories, and will be judged on musicality, as well as style and technique.
“We’ve had as few as 10 competitors and as many as 24 – it’s pretty hard to predict how many will enter. They have come from as far away as Blenheim.
“While the advanced fiddlers will play a selection of songs, beginners only have to play one Scottish tune so I would really encourage people to give it a try. The best entry will receive a free pass to a Scottish fiddle camp.”
The Highland Games start at 9am with the grand entry and street march of band and clans. Events during the day include piping and drumming competitions, field events such as the stone throw, highland hammer and caber toss, highland dancing, Tartan in the Park fashion parade, tug o war and the official Ceilidh.
Info: waipugames.co.nz
Matthew Robertson will be this year’s judge at the fiddling competition.
