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At the heart of Lorient Interceltic Festival, a solemn event distinguishes the virtuosos of the bagpipe: the Mac Crimmon Trophy. Established in 1980, this contest celebrates the mastery of Breton, Irish, and Scottish music, providing an arena for the most adept practitioners of these traditional forms. The 52nd Lorient Interceltic Festival edition takes place in Brittany from August 4 to 13, continuing its tradition of embracing and promoting the rich tapestry of Celtic heritage.
Participants of Lorient Interceltic Festival are invited to a five-minute performance, during which they are assessed on criteria such as intonation, timbre, technical prowess, and the richness of their repertoire. This evaluation is conducted under the discerning eyes of a jury composed of experts in the great bagpipe or Highland Bagpipe, a wind instrument of Scottish origin.
This year’s edition assembles twelve pipers from Scotland, Ireland, and Brittany, and from countries with less recognized Celtic heritage, such as the United States, New Zealand, and Australia. The challenge is to encourage the musicians to venture beyond their traditional repertoire, thereby “opening new horizons, so that Breton music is not confined to the Bretons alone,” in the words of Breton Patrick Molard, former winner and current jury member.
Candidates, selected after preliminary rounds, are scored on a scale from 0 to 20. The laureate – the individual receiving the highest score – is awarded the sum of €1,320. The accolade for the 2023 edition was claimed by the Scotsman Stuart Liddell, who had previously been honored in 2018.
Although the monetary reward is modest, victory confers a measure of renown within the world of the bagadoù, traditional Breton musical ensembles, as noted by Gwenaël Le Corronc, a contestant since 1996. The trophy is named after the Mac Crimmons, a lineage of Scottish pipers established between 1570 and 1825, famed for their compositions in Pibroch, a traditional music form of the Highlands.
In a separate category, the Mac Crimmon Trophy also pays tribute to the gaïta, a bagpipe indigenous to Galicia and Asturias in north-western Spain. Musicians in this division must perform a repertoire of Breton, Galician, and Asturian music. This year, the Asturian Jaíme Alvarez Fernández distinguished himself.
With AFP.
