About the South Wales Uilleann Pipers
Piping can be a lonely business, and not just because most folk would not want to be within a mile of a learner
(or even a good player for that matter). Finding a fellow player can be a problem as they tend to be few and far between,
especially away from Ireland.
The South Wales Uilleann Pipers were formed in the middle of 2008 by Meirion Williams. One of them (Eddie) seems to know what he is doing, the rest of us are learning off him and each other. The first meetings were in Cardiff but now they have migrated to Ferndale in the Rhondda Fach. We meet every 6 weeks or so, and occasionally in between.
We play traditional Irish music and while the focus is obviously on the pipes other musicians are welcome to join in. Our first tionól, with piping and reed making workshops and an evening concert, was held in September of 2008 and was well attended. Our last one was on September 5th 2009, again there was a good turnout, excellent tuition and a top class concert. We hope to make the tionól a regular feature of the South Wales music scene.