Dear @FISH. The sound of bagpipes can move me to tears. About ten or fifteen years ago, I was in a local cemetery, paying my respects to World War One dead on Memorial Day. Off in the distance, I could hear someone playing the bagpipes. I walked over and found a guy all dressed up in bagpipe clothing, standing on a flat, open concrete slab with a covered top. I was the only one there and it was really cool because he seemed to enjoy me listening to him. I began to chat with him in between songs. They all sounded great, but then he started in on one that really hit me emotionally. I don't know, there was something extra special about it, and, at certain parts of the song, the player would do these interesting hop, skip little dance moves. When he finished I asked him what the song's title was and wouldn't you know, I totally forgot what it was by the time I got home. I do remember him explaining the song to me though. It had something to do with a small brook by a certain town, and of course, the WWI soldiers from that town would have loved to hear it being played by their regimental piper. I have spent a lot of time searching for the song online, but with no success. Still, it was one of those moments in life that one never forgets. I really enjoyed listening to the fellow play the bagpipes.
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@Rikki Gins , if the bagpipes made you cry, you were really listening to the story. You don’t need to remember the name of the song, you were paying your respects to the fallen Veteran from WW1. I would enjoyed seeing this piper do his dance. The Great War with its great loss of life, makes me sad.
During WW1, there were pipers not holding guns but bagpipes. I cannot imagine going “Over The Top†only holding a set of pipes. “The Ladies From Hell†was a nickname applied to the kilted units of the British and Canadian armies in the First World War.
One famous song, written by Pipe Major William Laurie (1881-1916) is “Battle of the Somme.†It is almost mandatory to play "Battle of the Somme" if you are going to dance a Scottish
Lilt Jig.
“Battle of the Somme†is not linked to the military maneuver of retreating in or from battle but is linked to the idea of refuge and safety in the camp.