Dr Daniel Milosavljevic University of Canterbury HB comes from and represents Scotland. Embodies tradition, history, heritage… Is primitive, brutal, undeveloped, basic… Is symbolic of place and ethnicity. Is treated as novelty, exotic, fringe, token… Preservation saved it and Highland culture. Speculation about events of the past. Since 1960s a more critical stance. A number have lead evidence based research. Lorimer, Collinson, Cooke, Blankenhorn, Campsie, Cannon, Chambers, Haddow, MacInnes, Buisman, MacDonald, McKay, Brown, Cheape, Donaldson, West, Gibson, Campbell, McKerrell, McLellan, Forrest, Dickson, MacKenzie, Paterson, Sanger, Fatone Progenitor likely from British Isles or Western Europe. Music transplanted from existing traditions. Function & context has changed dramatically. Modern form of the HB established ~ 1780. Aspects of ‘Highland’ culture (re)constructed. National standardisation in early 20th C. Tradition was never really threatened. HB now globally spread. Factors include Highland clearances Emigration Colonisation Empire Trade Opportunity Warfare/military occupation Popular culture Cultural bias evident in scholarship on HB. Expected given associations with Scotland. Scholars mention HB’s global spread. Yet have not explored this in depth. A few scholars have provided case studies. Diverse interpretations of Highland piping. Provide for referential comparison. Challenge ideas about ownership. Affirm (or deny) collective belonging. Reveal important social & cultural processes. Facilitate debate for culture and society. Learn about the world and what it thinks of us. Canada - Loten (1995), Gibson (2002) and Shears (2009). Hong Kong - Ho Wai-Chung (2001). New Zealand - Coleman (1996) Together Shears, Gibson, Loten, Ho WaiChung, Coleman, (among others) imply a global diversity of Highland piping traditions, customs, and practices that are both partly consistent with those found within Scotland, and are also divergent from them. Focus on NZ piping culture, national identity, authenticity, globalisation, and diaspora. MA thesis explored NZ national identity evident within a national pipe band festival. PhD thesis explored authenticity & localisation for the most traditional of Highland bagpipe repertoire - piobaireachd. NZ locals believe “we play the same”. Some standards consistent with Scotland. Yet localisation evident too. Local people = local values/local meaning. Authorities in NZ worried about divergence. Avoid displaying local culture in performance. St Andrews Pipe Band of Miami est. 1964. Performance for 4th of July Parade, 2012. Attire chosen for local conditions. Repertoire includes Yankee Doodle, etc... Is this authentic Highland piping? What about other places? Have they nuanced Highland bagpiping? Disclaimer… I present some examples from Asia. The mashak of India, Pakistan & Afghanistan. Being replaced by the HB. Other local pipes are being replaced as well. What the video’s creator has to say. HB plays an important role here. Why, and what is the role of ‘Scotland’ here? Several hundred pipe bands in Pakistan. Second biggest producer of HB. Cultural products sent to & sold in Scotland. Some factories sell 70% in Scotland. How is ‘Scotland’ a part of local economy? Sri Dasmesh Pipe Band, 2009, Sydney, Australia. Performing a parade central to ANZ patriotism. Incorporate Sikh identity into their performance. Play local ‘Asian’ tunes too. Yet aspects of Scottish HB culture are evident. How is ‘Scotland’ a part of what this band does? Didn’t even show the Omani camel band! What was the point of this? To illustrate diverse ideas about Scotland. Do these influence piping in Scotland? Is Highland bagpiping in Scotland authentic? Why such association with national identity? When does the HB cease to be Scottish? What defines the HB? When is something Scottish (or not)? Most importantly, who gets to decide? Diaspora = 100 million (Alex Salmond, 2009) People affect culture relative context. Yet still little mention of HB’s global forms. Is it a global culture? Diverse people = diverse definitions of culture I argue (as does Grant 2013) for a diaspora. A HB diaspora with Scotland as ‘home’. ‘Authenticity’ is integral for local people. ‘Scotland’ exists as a heterogeneous concept. Cameron 1856 - song about longing for home. ‘Scotland’ is a considerably complex idea. Where does nation begin (and end)? What does nationhood sound like? What defines an instrument or tradition? What does it mean to own culture? Communities are imagined (Anderson 1983) Understanding Scotland Musically: Can we? Well, we can try. Do we? I argue we do not. No disrespect intended but we could try harder. Embrace (post)modernity & global flows of culture. Recognise our limitations as researchers.