Organisers of the 2020 Piping Live! Glasgow International Piping Festival revealed they are heartbroken that this year’s festival has been cancelled.
The festival, which was due to take place from August 8 to 16, and was expected to welcome 40,000 visitors to Glasgow, with 5,000 performers due to put on over 150 events throughout the city.
But, due to the ongoing and unprecedented effect of coronavirus, organisers have now made decision to cancel, encouraging fans to focus on the wellbeing of themselves and their families instead.
Read more: Coronavirus in Scotland: Number of deaths from Covid-19 soars to 126
Finlay MacDonald, Artistic Director of Piping Live! Glasgow International Piping Festival, said: “Last night, we were on our doorsteps, piping up in honour of our family and friends in key service roles - applauding their heroic work and extending our humble gratitude. Today, we share this heart-breaking news.
“This hasn’t been an easy decision, but it’s one we feel is entirely necessary to help safeguard the health and wellbeing of our staff, performers, volunteers and attendees. Year on year, Piping Live! attracts crowds from across the world and we believe it’s our responsibility, as a tourism hotspot, to do our bit in helping reduce the further spread of this pandemic. We are ever hopeful the situation gets better quickly. If that happens, we will consider the possibility of a smaller event later in the year.
“The piping community really is like no other and we consider ourselves incredibly lucky to have thousands of the most loyal fans. People who we know will continue to do their part in getting one another through these challenging times."
Read more: Piping up! Glasgow plays its part as it hosts the world championships
He added they were committed to making 2021 their biggest and best year yet.
Piping Live! Glasgow International Piping Festival receives support from public bodies including Glasgow Life and EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate - each playing an essential role in the continuing strength of traditional music in Scotland’s cultural scene.
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