MUSIC
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Scott MacAulay was a fine man. A musician, a composer, a teacher, a businessman, an exciting and inspirational man. A storyteller. An entertainer. A man totally dedicated to his passion for piping and the celtic performing arts. A dear relative, a great friend to so many people. A complicated man of many aspects. Our province will feel the loss of him.
Scott was born in Hamilton, Ontario, of parents from the Isle of Lewis in Scotland. The MacAulay home in Hamilton was an exciting and happy home, a place where friends, relatives and bagpipers gathered. Scott took bagpipe lessons from an early age, and became one of the top pipers in the world, competing and winning in Canada, the United States and Scotland. He excelled at light music, then went on to study and master piobaireachd, the classical music of the bagpipe.
PEI is Canada’s most Scottish province based on the percentage of residents who claim Scottish ancestry, but in the 1980s, there were only a handful of Islanders who played the bagpipe. It happened that in 1989 when Don Groom was looking for someone to head the brand new College of Piping and Celtic Performing Arts of Canada in Summerside, Scott was available. He moved to PEI and started what became his life work as Director of the College in February, 1990.
Piping and the College were Scott’s passions, and he never took his College hat off. His enthusiasm and passion were infectious, and many very able men and women joined him in his efforts. He got the College going and kept it going through some pretty hard times. It was a job which could only have been done by him, and because he did it so well for so long, the College should now be able to continue despite this great loss.
Scott was an exceptional bagpipe teacher, arguably the best in the world. He taught throughout North America as well as in New Zealand and Australia. He taught well at all levels, polishing top level pipers and inspiring and encouraging rank beginners. At the same time he was ruthless in his pursuit of excellence and had no hesitation in cutting band members minutes before a competition began, but with a hug to let the young pipers know he valued them as pipers and as people. His efforts in teaching were reflected in the national and international successes of the College’s students, a number of whom went on to become North American and World Champions, and its pipe bands: three North American Champion bands and a fourth place finish at the World’s in Scotland.
Scott was an accomplished and prolific composer. The marches, strathspeys, jigs and reels he wrote have been played and recorded by a great many solo pipers, pipe bands and at least one orchestra.
Scott loved to work with dancers, singers, drummers, fiddlers, harpists—anyone and everyone who shared his love of music and dance. The College’s thousands of shows, performances and CDs are a testament to his success. Scott also did well dealing with government and tourism issues and doing fundraising, promotion, and many other matters not normally associated with music and dance.
Scott’s legacy to Prince Edward Island includes the thousands of talented pipers, drummers and dancers who passed through the College of Piping, and will continue to enrich the Island’s culture. Scott died at the age of 51 on September 10, 2008 of cancer. His ashes will be buried in Dalmore cemetery on the Isle of Lewis, near the graves of his ancestors.
—Ben Taylor
Meeting Scott MacAulay changed the course of my life. He introduced me to the heritage and music of my ancestors and influenced my passion to perform and teach. He taught me that it was worthy to share this culture with others and to be proud of the Island and its Scottish heritage. Throughout the course of the wake and funeral, I heard so many similar stories and reminiscences in which countless other students, friends and colleagues were affected by his enthusiasm and influence. A short conversation, or a sharing of ideas coupled by Scott's positive support, could and did change our lives. He was a giant of a man, both in stature and personality. It is hard to imagine the College without him, but because of all he dreamed and achieved, it is hard to imagine the Island without the College of Piping.
—Patricia Murray