LORD BYRON
LORD LYON KING OF
ARMS IS SPECIAL GUEST AT BIGGEST EVER MELBOURNE
SCOTTISH FESTIVAL
THE MELBOURNE TARTAN FESTIVAL WILL PROVIDE A FULL MONTH OF SCOTTISH ACTIVITIES
The Melbourne Tartan Festival , to be held from 30 June to 31 July 2024 , is gearing up to be the biggest festival celebrating everything Scottish ever held in Australia .
The festival will consist of a full month of Scottish activities , including pipe band recitals , the Victorian Pipers ’ Association Solo Piping Championships and the Victorian Scottish Dancing Members ’ Association Commonwealth Championship .
As well as a high energy Ceilidh Dance at Collingwood Town Hall with music by the Melbourne Scottish Fiddle Club , there are singing and fiddler concerts and jams , Scottish films , Burns poetry readings , a ‘ Kirkin ‘ o the Tartan ’ service , walking tours , ancestry and Scottish history , Gaelic speaking , and rare and old whisky tasting functions .
Two big events will headline the festival . The Melbourne Tartan Day Parade on Sunday 7 July at 2pm will be a stirring and colourful spectacle , with massed pipe bands including our own Scotch College Pipe Band and the Old Scotch Pipes and Drums , totalling more than 250 pipers , drummers and dancers in traditional dress marching down Collins Street , Melbourne .
SCAN CODE TO BOOK FOR THE TARTAN FESTIVAL
This will be followed by massed pipers playing to a large group of highland dancers performing a mass highland fling in the forecourt of the Westin Hotel near the corner of Collins and Swanston Streets .
The second headline event , on Saturday 20 July , is the Formal Gala Dinner and Concert at the Melbourne Town Hall . This is a great night and includes a welcome reception in the Melbourne Town Hall foyer followed by a gourmet dinner with fine wines , the traditional Haggis Ceremony and a night of Scottish music and entertainment .
This year the festival will have a very special guest of honour coming from Scotland , the Right Honourable Lord Lyon King of Arms , Joseph Morrow CVO CBE KStj KC LLD DL FRSE . The Lord Lyon is the Chief Herald of Scotland , and is responsible for regulating Scottish heraldry , issuing new coats of arms to individuals and organisations , as well as confirming pedigrees and claims to existing Arms , and recognising clan chiefs after due diligence .
The Lord Lyon is also responsible for all Scottish state ceremonies , and is one of the few individuals in Scotland officially permitted to fly the ‘ Lion Rampant ’ – the royal banner of Scotland from which the Court of Lord Lyon was named . The current Lord Lyon , Joseph Morrow , was appointed by her late Majesty the Queen on 17 January 2014 .
He will be guest of honour at the Formal Gala Dinner and Concert and will be present at events throughout the ensuing week . The Lord Lyon will bring to Melbourne the new coat of arms for the Victorian Scottish Heritage Cultural Foundation ( VSHCF ). The VSHCF sponsors and supports the Melbourne Tartan Festival , working alongside the Scots of Victoria Coordinating Group and the wider Scottish community to stage the monthlong festival . Throughout the year the VSHCF provides financial grants , support and assistance in promoting participation in Scottish culture for the benefit of all Victorians .
The Old Scotch Collegians ’ Association is involved in a number of ways with the VSHCF , having three directors on the board alongside three representatives of Melbourne Scots , which has been promoting local Scottish culture since 1919 .
Alan Beck , Immediate Past President of the Robert Burns World Federation and a world-renowned tenor , presented the Address to a Haggis at the 2023 Gala Dinner , and will arrive from Scotland to perform the Address again this year . Alan has sung all over the world – throughout Australia , New Zealand , South America , USA , Canada and Europe , as well as in the UK and all over Scotland – and we are delighted to announce that he will perform at this year ’ s gala event .
All members of the Scotch Family are invited to attend this event on Saturday 20 July at the Melbourne Town Hall , which is very popular with many OSCA clubs and societies , who take tables . Tickets are now available online through the Melbourne Tartan Festival website : melbournetartanfestival . com . au , and through the trybooking link : www . trybooking . com / COAUQ .
www . scotch . vic . edu . au Great Scot 85