Non-South-American Guest Players/Instructors for Pipe Bands

• SPBASA's Executive Committee approved a new competition clause that allows foreign players to compete as guests within South American pipe bands. There are two sides to this new clause:what happens before the gathering/competition: Having overseas "non-South-American" pipers, drummers and dancers as part of the pipe band practices and prep work for the Gatherings is a great opportunity to learn from experienced players. SPBASA is ultimately encouraging pipe bands to expand their knowledge at a higher exposure rate than our current 1-hour-every-2-years at the Gathering workshops.

• what happens during the competition itself: SPBASA is likewise trying to allow these guest players/instructors to compete as part of the band, yet not make a noticeable difference in the band's competition results (as compared to if these guests had not been competing with the band). This ensures that bands continue to be on "fair-grounds" in the competition arena.

SPBASA is looking forward to seeing this clause enable all bands to accelerate their learning path and their exposure to top players and dancers.