Piping hot - dinner for Burns
Jack Lee, 604.574.3299; jack.lee@shaw.ca
Marianne Meadahl, PAMR, 778.782.3210; marianne_meadahl@sfu.ca
Members of the six-time world champion Simon Fraser University Pipe Band and its four-time world-title juvenile band are warming up their pipes and preparing for a feast at Coquitlam’s Executive Plaza Hotel on Jan. 21 - all in honour of Scottish bard Robbie Burns.
The SFU and Robert Malcolm Memorial Pipe Band (RMM) annual Robbie Burns dinner features an evening of Scottish hospitality and celebration that includes world-class piping, highland dancing, a silent auction and a full roast beef dinner, complete with a side of haggis.
The event marks the start of a new year of concerts and competition, including preparation for the world championships in August, says Jack Lee, Pipe Sergeant, co-founder of the SFU Pipe Band and manager of the RMM Pipe Band.
Lee is a world champion solo piper (winner of the Gold Medal (Oban), the Silver Star and the coveted Glen Fiddich Championship, among the world’s highest honors). He led the senior band to a third place finish in world competition in Glasgow last summer.
“The Burns dinner has become a tradition, a great chance to share and enjoy Scottish culture and a great start to the months of practice and performances ahead,” he says.
Tickets are $75 plus HST (tables of 10-12 can be reserved) and are available online at www.sfupipeband.com, by phone, 604.669.2004, or email bayheron@telus.net. Doors open at 6 p.m. and dinner seating is at 7 p.m.
Band notes
The SFU Pipe Band was formed in 1966, the university’s inaugural year. Over its 44-year history, the band has become a respected member of the local artistic community winning numerous national and international prizes.
The Robert Malcolm Memorial Pipe Band (RMM) was formed in 1994 as a juvenile division of the SFU pipe band organization. The band carries the names of two SFU players, Robert Barbulak and Malcolm Bokenfohr, two dedicated band members who were killed in an auto accident in November 1993. What started out the first night with 35 members has grown into one of the largest pipe band organizations in the world, with participants from throughout the Lower Mainland and Washington State.