The Piping Live! Big Band will return for its 9th showcase at this year’s festival. Pipers of all ages and abilities are invited to take part. In 2026, the Big Band will parade from Mansefield Park in Partick to the concourse at the iconic Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. It will step off on this 0.5mile route at 12noon, arriving at the museum around 12.20pm.

The Piping Live! Big Band is a mass participation event that opens our festival. 200 pipers will gather, ranging from young learners playing their chanters, to seasoned professionals playing the pipes in their retirement.

The Big Band will walk the streets of Glasgow performing a repertoire of tunes that everyone can play. The Piping Live! Big Band is open to anyone who plays a practice chanter, bagpipes, snare, bass or tenor drum, or is a drum major! All ages are welcome. Past events welcomed musicians aged 8-86.

Charity Partner: My Name'5 Doddie Foundation

We are delighted to be supporting My Name'5 Doddie Foundation as the charity partner for this year's Big Band. Founded by Doddie Weir, My Name’5 Doddie Foundation have a clear vision: a world free of MND. They fund the smartest, most efficient MND research. They back bold ideas and bring together the best minds from across the globe. Their goal is simple: faster routes to effective treatments. Because when you're living with MND, time matters. 

To officially kick off the event this year, Big Band Pipe Major Dr Bova was joined today by international rugby player – and learner piper – Rhona Lloyd to launch the Big Band in support of the Foundation, by playing a tune together. Watch the Video here!

Working with the Foundation, we are bringing music and the tartan that Doddie wore so well to Glasgow, highlighting the need to fund the smartest, most efficient MND research, that’s why this year’s charity partnership is so important to us.

Registrations are NOW OPEN. To Register to take part, please head to the Big Band page on the website where you will find the registration link. 

Registrations close on Friday 17th July at 5pm, so please register before this date. 

The Venue

This historic building which is a public museum throughout the day, makes for a stunning venue for a piping performance. All of our events at Kelvingrove Museum are free and don't require a ticket.

Accessibility
Kelvingrove Museum has a good access from front and back entrances, with ramps and lift throughout. The Centre Hall where the performance takes place is all on one level. You can see full access innformation at AccessAble here

Event Sponsor

My Name'5 Doddie Foundation