Simon McKerrell
Simon McKerrell is one of the leading players of Scottish Highland, Border and Irish Uilleann bagpipes in the world today. He has trained with various teachers and in particular with Murray Henderson, and for the last ten years has been combining successful competition piping and performing in bands.
He was a founding member of ‘Back of the Moon’ (2000-2004) and more recently has formed a brand new 3-piece band, Rough Tides (www.myspace.com/roughtides). He has won the A-grade MSR at the Northern Meeting (2006) and the Skye Clasp three times (2005, 2006, 2007) as well as numerous other prizes at major gatherings. He worked at The National Piping Centre in Glasgow for several years where he was the ‘Head of Piping Studies’ and is currently a lecturer in ethnomusicology at Sheffield University.
Ryan Canning
Ryan hails from Londonderry, Northern Ireland, where he began his piping career in 1992 at the age of fourteen. Remarkably, it was just four years later that he joined the world renowned Field Marshal Montgomery, one of the most celebrated pipe bands of all time. In his tenured eleven seasons with the band, Ryan has won six Scottish Championships, three British Championship, six European Championships, ten Ulster Championships, nine All-Ireland Championships, five Cowal Championships, four RSPBA Champion of Champions awards, and four coveted World Championship titles.
Ryan’s piping success extends beyond his achievements with the illustrious Field Marshal. Ryan, a budding solo competitor, has taken numerous prizes on the Irish scene at the Ulster and All-Ireland Solos, as well as first place finishes at the Piper of the Year on more than one occasion. In his first year on the Scottish solo circuit, Ryan walked away with several top prizes in the B grades, most recently finishing off the 2005 season as winner of the MSR and runner up of the Hornpipe and Jig at London.
Ryan’s compositions have made him a household name amongst music fans. Ryan’s music is played by bands and soloists the world over and is recorded on numerous CDs, including the World Championship series in 1997, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, the double Millennium Concert Album in 2000, Manawatu’s The Calling in 2004, and Field Marshal Montgomery’s Unplugged Album in 2002. The 2004 release of his first music book, The Full Monty, gained great reviews world wide and an honourable mention as one of the best books of the year from Piper and Drummer Online.
Ryan is highly sought after as both instructor and performer, and has travelled as far as France, Australia, and the United States to teach classes and workshops, and has been a featured recitalist for numerous bands and piping societies. Despite his competitive background, Ryan is most at home performing his own compositions in an informal “kitchen piping” setting, where speed, excitement, and the entertainment of the audience remain his chief enjoyment. Ryan moved to Scotland in 2003 where he began a career in the piping industry, working with McCallum Bagpipes as their Production and Despatch Manager. After just three years he was ready to pioneer his own company, founding Canning Reedmakers in March 2006, and establishing a new line of his own top quality bagpipe reeds.
Ryan recently joined the Piping Centre as “Post School Learning Co-ordinator” and is mainly responsible for the Evening Classes.
Jimmy Banks
Jimmy Banks reached the highest level by winning the top light music events at the Argyllshire Gathering, and the Braemar Gathering. In 1979 he was invited to play at the Glenfiddich Piping Championships, the world solo piping championships. These were incredible achievements given the limited time he had to compete as a soloist due to his military commitments at that time.
Jimmy joined the Scots Guards in 1964 and served with them until 1987. During this time he rose through the ranks. In 1970 he gained his Pipe Majors certificate at the Army School of Piping at Edinburgh Castle and was awarded the grade – “Outstanding” by the civilian board of examining judges.
From 1980-1986 Jimmy served as Pipe Major of the 1st Battalion Scots Guards and from 1986-1987 became Pipe Major in charge of the Guards Piping School being responsible for the musical training of all Guards Division pipers.
Also, in 1980 he was appointed Household piper to HM Queen Elizabeth and was required to be in charge of pipers playing at banquets in Buckingham Palace for visiting Heads of State and other formal occasions.
In 1987 he left the Army and worked for Flemings bank for four years as a piper and reception organiser where he stayed until 2001. During this period he was also piper to the Highland Society of London.
It was in 2002 that Jimmy came to work at the National Piping Centre where he was appointed the position of Head of Studies for the BA ( Scottish Music- Piping) degree course run in collaboration with the Royal Scottish academy of Music and Drama.
This course was a new course with its first intake of students that year. Jimmy was responsible for organising the delivery of all practical lessons and to ensure the smooth running of lectures for repertoire and history. In addition he maintained a liaison with the RSAMD to ensure all aspects of the course met with the quality assurance requirements for the delivery of a higher education degree programme.
Jimmy stayed in this position for four years in order to take the first intake of students right through their degree programme until graduation having successfully implemented a four year course in higher education for pipers.
Captain (Retired) Stuart D Samson MBE
Stuart Samson was born in Laurencekirk and has been playing the pipes since the age of 8. He enlisted into the Army in 1978, as a junior piper and joined the Drums and Pipes of The Gordon Highlanders in 1980. He was appointed Pipe Major of the Gordon Highlanders from 1990 – 1994 and then went on to carry out several Pipe Major appointments including the Pipe Major of the Highlanders and the Warrant Officer Class One Senior Pipe Major at the Army School of Bagpipe Music and Highland Drumming.
The National Piping Centre and Glasgow University have created a unique opportunity for international students who wish to come to Glasgow University 
With excellent locations and facilities students are sure to enjoy the opportunity to learn from some of the World's leading exponents in piping and drumming.
The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) and The National Piping Centre (NPC) offer a specialist degree that allows pipers to study piping within the context of Scottish traditional music to the highest level. 
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