College of Piping Winter School Germany 2007

Well, well what a week! The second College Winter School at Bruggen, Germany, proved to be everything we expected - a tough week of learning and a real lot of fun. I want to thank all the students who took part - all 77 of you. Your hard work and good humour made everything as easy as could be for your instructors. Our reward will be if you develop and sustain the knowledge imparted so that next year you come back better pipers and drummers. Congratulations to all those who took the PDQB exams in particular to Marcus Hug from Switzerland who now becomes the only authorised PDQB Piping Tutor in that country and to Dean Hall who now becomes an authorised PDQB drumming instructor/examiner based in Germany. To those who didn't quite make the standard required for the exams make sure you have next year's dates in your diary. Keep checking the CoP website and also the PipersCorner Shop for details. I want to thank personally all the instructors for mucking in so well. Schools such as Bruggen only work when everyone is prepared to give and take a little. I don't think we could have had a better teaching staff. Lastly a word for Eva and her team who kept us fed and watered and for Heike and Dave for the great organisation. See you all next year.

Robert Wallace, Principal

Here are just some of the comments made on the feedback sheets issued to every student.

	"I find it difficult to express the degree of how much my piping has benefited from this course, and it has also been great craic. Great to see the gang from last year again...." Davie Moir "A great week, the instructors were fantastic! Great work all of you; looking forward to 2009...." P Maxwell
"Since I enjoyed to the full being at the Winter School in Brüggen, I would like to take the liberty to thank you for your commitment, your teaching capabilities and dozens of valuable advices…." Dr. Henrik Mueller "Last week was great, thank you for such a worthwhile week of instruction!", Major Robert Gunther, US Army		"Surrounded by nice people who have the same passion for the highland bagpipe and it's music. What else could you ask for. A round of applause for the proffesional teachers who have the patience of angels...." Frans Oosthoek "I did enjoy very much the Winterschool in Brueggen and surely I'll be there next year too. It was a great time, I got so much inputs becoming also more motivated and enthusiastic, I can't belive that because I already thought to be it enough, about my Bagpipe learning. Now I'm aiming for the Second Level Certificate trying to get it - perhaps, if I'll get ready - in August when I'm intentioned to come to the Colllege for 2 weeks…" Claudia Zuechner
	Robert, Thanks once again for a tremendous week. I know I am a better piper as a result. Where else can you spend a week with the leading lights of bagpipe instruction in the world? The additional instructors, and the drummers made for a more complete musical week, if that were possible. Now, I am working to get the tunes we learned up to snuff - I want to make my piping teachers proud! Greatly looking forward to next year. Thanks! Sean Detmers