Verse exchange

Nov 28 2008 by Les Stewart, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

Verse exchange

MORE than 50 pupils, representing primary and secondary schools throughout Perthshire and Kinross, took part in the Perth Burns Club's 22nd Schools’ Festival which was held in the Salutation Hotel, Perth, last Sunday.

Once again, the standard of performance in all categories of Scots verse speaking, solo singing and accordion playing was extremely high and, in addition to the main awards, all competitors were awarded certificates.

The trophy winners were as follows:

Accordion Playing (adjudicated by Jimmy Lindsay): Primary pupils (The Hector Chisholm Quaic) – Alex Stewart, Goodlyburn.

Secondary pupils (The Dalriada Cup) – Murdo Elwes, Strathallan.

Solo Singing (adjudicated by Henry C Neil, MBE): Primary pupils (The Robert W Donaghy Quaich) – Thomas Henson, Dollar Academy; Secondary pupils (The Windyedge Bowl) – Hannah Holmes, Perth High School.

Verse Speaking (adjudicated by Lovina Roe): Primary pupils in classes 4 and 5 (The Binn Farm Quaich) – Janey Speed, Moncreiffe Primary.

Primary pupils in classes 6 and 7 (The Ruth Lumsden Quaich) – First equal, Hannah Fairbrother and Euan McSween, both Moncreiffe Primary.

Secondary pupils under 15 (The Grampian Cup) – First equal, Joanna Barrack and Charles Mearns, both Strathallan.

Secondary pupils over 15 (The Archibald Morrison Memorial Quaich) – Oliver Wale, Strathallan.

The President's Prize, presented by Bill Dawson, the current Burns Federation World President, for the best performance in the Festival of a Robert Burns song, poem or piece of music, was awarded to Eleanor Kemp, of Strathallan School, for her singing of ‘John Anderson, My Jo.’

The adjudication of this was carried out jointly by Bill Dawson and Perth Burns Club president Dr Donald F Macgregor.