Allegany Artisan Creates Prize for Nicol Brown Bagpipe Competition
Walker Metalsmiths finishes trophy began 25 years ago
Metalsmiths Stephen Walker (left) of Andover and Brian Yates (right) of Inverness-shire, Scotland present the Nicol-Brown Chalice to Alastair Lee of Coquitlam, British Columbia. The trophy is awarded annually in Albany, NY at an invitational contest for the top amateur bagpipers in North America.
30 years ago, two American bagpipers met by chance on a train in Scotland. This past Saturday, (October 6, 2007) Stephen Walker and Brian Yates were reunited at a bagpipe competition in Albany. Neither Walker nor Yates blew a single note on the pipes at this event, but instead they were honored for their craftsmanship.
In 1977 both were traveling to Glasgow from London. Walker spotted the bagpipe case of his fellow passenger and struck up a conversation. As it turned out, Yates had recently seen a set of silver bagpipe mounts in Boston that Walker had made and had actually tried to contact him barely a week before the chance meeting. Walker remembers, “I gave Brian a price for remounting his bagpipe in silver and talked a bit about how I worked. Apparently, rather than making a sale, I inspired a competitor. Within several years I heard that he had learned silversmithing and was making his own.”
Walker and Yates paths only crossed again once in the decades since, when they met briefly at a competition in Syracuse.
In 1982 Brian was commissioned to craft the Nicol-Brown Chalice, which is now the top amateur trophy for classical bag piping in North America. The winner’s name is engraved each year on the base. Brian originally described the chalice project as a “cathedral” which would take many years to complete. Last year Brian moved to Scotland and the committee of the Nicol-Brown competition asked Stephen Walker of Walker Metalsmiths Celtic Jewelry in Andover to take over the project. Walker brought some of his own ideas and designs to the chalice, which is based on the famous medieval Irish treasure, the Ardagh Chalice. Walker was determined that since this was the 25th competition and thus the silver anniversary, that the chalice should be finished.
“It is finished to a point that could be considered final, but the thing has a life of its own. The original drawings showed ornament and stones on the base, which is currently unadorned. I used some polished pebbles from Scotland and Ireland to finish the design Brian had started and got the idea that we should collect some pebbles from various places in Scotland and America that are part of the story of the competition.” explained Walker. Both Nicol and Brown, the pipers in whose memory the trophy is named were from Aberdeenshire, a part of Scotland noted for its beautiful granite. The committee loved this idea and was full of suggestions of where other stones should come from and who could be asked to bring them. The possibility of involving other craftsmen was also discussed.
Yates was able to attend the event in Albany since it coincided with some family business that had brought him back from Scotland for a week. This was the first face-to-face meeting of the collaborating craftsmen since Walker became involved in the project. “I am relieved that Brian is happy about what I have done with his creation.” Walker said, “The project offers some exciting possibilities for those of us who are into both bagpipes and Celtic art.”
The Nicol-brown Chalice will be on display at Walker Metalsmiths in Andover, during the Allegany Artisans Studio Tour October 13 and 14, 2007. The Studio Tour is held annually on the weekend following Columbus Day.