BY DANIEL CULLEN
The 43rd Colonel Jock MacDonald memorial competition was held at Viewfield house in Portree last Saturday.
The Colonel Jock, as usual, brought some of the finest young traditional musicians from across Skye and Lochalsh to Viewfield House to take part in the piping, Gaelic singing, clarsach and fiddle competitions.
In the piping section, the standard was high across all age groups and categories, beginning in the chanter competitions where Uig’s Kiro Brendon took first place in the advanced category, followed by Sandy MacDonald of Treaslane in second and Portree’s Hamish Mackay in third. In the novice category, Cameron McGilvray from Portree secured first place, with Logan Milne of Portnalong second and Sleat’s Domhnall Crisdean MacKinnon placing third.
Strong performances were also seen in the under-14 piping events.
Finn MacDermid of Kyle enjoyed a particularly successful day, winning both the march and the Strathspey and reel competitions. He was followed in both events by Eoghainn MacDonald from Treaslane in second place, with Innes MacNeil of Sleat taking third in the march and Aonghas Iain Ferguson of Skeabost third in the Strathspey and reel.
In the piobaireachd ground competition, first place went to Eoghainn MacDonald, with Innes MacNeil in second and Logan Mackay of Uig in third.
The under-18 piping events were keenly contested. In the march competition, Peter Martin of Cuidreach took first place, ahead of Seonaidh Forrest from Sleat in second and Lochalsh’s Lewis Fraser in third.
Lewis Fraser went on to win the under-18 Strathspey and reel, with Finlay James of Portree in second and Sam de Vries from Sleat in third.
In the under-18 piobaireachd, Finn MacDermid claimed another win, followed by Seonaidh Forrest and Sam de Vries – before Finn MacDermid added to his haul by winning the open jig, with Sam de Vries second and Finlay James third.
The Admiral’s Cup for most promising junior piper was awarded to Jordan Broadbent of Uig, with the under-18 mainland points trophy going to Finn MacDermid. Seonaidh Forrest was named the highest points scorer among Skye competitors in the under-18 category. Piping judges for the day were John Don Mackenzie and Alasdair Mackay.
Gaelic singing once again proved a highlight of the competition. In the primary 3–5 category, Hector Kontou of Dunvegan took first place, with Sadie Robertson from Glendale second. Third place was shared between Luca Ranicar of Dunvegan and Logan Milne of Portnalong.
In the primary 6/7 competition, Maili MacLennan of Sleat was awarded first place, followed by Anna Lewa and Isla James, both from Portree. The high school Gaelic singing title went to Peigi Ferguson of Skeabost.
In a touching tribute to Megan MacKenzie, who passed away in late 2025, a new award for the most promising Gaelic singer was announced in her name. The first winner of the award was Ashton Ranicar of Dunvegan, marking a poignant moment in the day. Gaelic singing was judged by Arthur Cormack.
The clarsach competitions were judged by Deirdre Graham, with Elsa Martin of Cuidreach winning the beginners category and Isla James from Portree took first place in the improvers section.
The fiddle competitions, judged by Jamie MacDonald, saw strong participation across all levels. In the beginners category, Elie Munro of Sleat claimed first place, followed by Talitha Mockett of Lochalsh and Mabel MacRae, also of Lochalsh.
The improvers section was won by Anna Robertson from Glendale, with Elsa Martin second and Ashton Ranicar third.
At intermediate level, Isla James of Portree took first place, ahead of Olivia Mackenzie from Dornie in second and Peigi Mackay of Lochalsh in third.
The advanced fiddle competition was won by Seumas Stiubhart of Sleat, with Rosina Matheson from Glenhinnisdale second and Mairidh Anne Mackenzie of Kensaleyre third.
In the fiddle duet competition, first place went to Elsa Martin and Isla James, with second place awarded to Talitha Mockett and Mabel MacRae, whilst the most promising fiddler award was presented to Matthew Taylor of Kyle.
The mixed instrument duet competition, judged by Sophie Isaacson, was won by Iona Wilson and Ruairidh James, with second place going to Ruairidh James and George Martin.
In the composition competitions, Ashton Ranicar capped a successful day by winning the under-14 category, while the under-18 prize was awarded to Innes Wilson of Portree. Composition entries were judged by Mairi MacKinnon.
