Scottish pipes, Guyanese drums close UK–Guyana cultural exchange ahead of King’s visit
Pipers from Scotland’s National Piping Centre performed alongside Guyanese drummers at the National Cultural Centre in Georgetown on Wednesday evening, bringing a musical evening to a close.
The performance capped a week-long cultural exchange, which concluded just hours before the start of His Majesty King Charles III’s state visit.
Over the past week, the pipers travelled to seven of Guyana’s ten regions, including Kaieteur Falls in Region Eight, Essequibo in Region Two and New Amsterdam in Region Six, sharing their craft and collaborating with local musicians.
British High Commissioner to Guyana Joseph Fisher said the evening celebrated the people-to-people links between the two countries.
“I hope very much that tonight and this week represent the start of a long-lasting and very special partnership ahead,” he said.
The High Commissioner said the exchange grew out of visits to Scotland earlier this year by President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, during which both heard the National Piping Centre’s pipers perform.
He thanked the government here for its vision in making the visit possible.
The King’s visit, on the invitation of President Ali, is the first by a serving British monarch since Queen Elizabeth II’s visit in 1994. It also marks 60 years of bilateral relations between the United Kingdom and Guyana.
Lady Oona Ivory, founder and Executive Chair of the National Piping Centre, said the group met students from 12 to 13 schools during the visit.
On Wednesday afternoon alone, about 1,000 students came onto the stage to try the pipes and drums.
Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport Charles Ramson Jr. said the evening demonstrated how culture travels and evolves, pointing to the Indian and African musical instruments Guyanese have preserved for centuries, retaining many of their original features.
He said this cultural fusion is a defining element of Guyana’s identity and positions the country as an example for the world.
“Despite origins, despite struggles, despite challenges, human beings have the ability to come together and share what is most important, and that is us as individuals, and us as a collective, and also what we value most, which is our culture,” he said.
Also in attendance were Minister of Labour and Manpower Planning Keoma Griffith; Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister Kwame McCoy; Minister within the Ministry of Housing Vanessa Benn and members of the diplomatic corps.
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