The work is the result of over thirty years of oral fieldwork among the last Gaels in Cape Breton, for whom piping fit unself-consciously into community life, as well as an exhaustive synthesis of Scottish archival and secondary sources. Reflecting the invaluable memories of now-deceased new world Gaelic lore-bearers, John Gibson shows that traditional community piping in both the old and new world Gàihealtachlan was, and for a long time remained, the same, exposing the distortions introduced by the tendency to interpret the written record from the perspective of modern, post-eighteenth-century bagpiping. Following up the argument in his previous book, Traditional Gaelic Bagpiping, 1745-1945, Gibson traces the shift from tradition to modernism in the old world through detailed genealogies, focusing on how the social function of the Scottish piper changed and step-dance piping progressively disappeared. Old and New World Highland Bagpiping will stir controversy and debate in the piping world while providing reminders of the value of oral history and the importance of describing cultural phenomena with great care and detail.

John G. Gibson is a scholar of Gaelic culture and musicologist who lives in Judique, Nova Scotia. He is the author of Traditional Gaelic Bagpiping, 1745–1945 and Old and New World Highland Bagpiping. Born in Edinburgh in 1941, he spent much of his childhood in Craigag near Glenfinnan but attended both school and university in Edinburgh before his emigration to Canada.

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"Gibson presents an overall view of piping patronage among the Scottish clans which has only been dealt with piecemeal in the past. Such a general survey has not been done before in such a comprehensive manner." Peter Cooke, School of Scottish Studies, University of Edinburgh "Gibson's is a voice which deserves to be heard on the history of the highland bagpipe. His passion for the subject shines through on every page and there can be no denying his knowledge of the sources for piping history, in Gaelic as well as in English and other languages. He has produced another book of great learning." David Waterhouse, University of Toronto, and long-time piping student of late P/M John Wilson (Edinburgh), was formerly in the Pipes and Drums of the 48th Highlanders of Canada.