of the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games Scottish Cultural Village

The 2017 Scottish Cultural Village

Located in the chieftain tent

The Scottish Cultural Village has an exciting lineup for 2017. Join us for educational and entertaining presentations by ex-

perts who are eager to share their knowledge. Every thirty (30) minutes a new topic will enlighten you and enhance your

enjoyment of our Games. Review the schedule below and mark those you don’t want to miss. A brief bio of our experts

and demonstrators follows the schedule. See you at The Village!

Receive a special “Scottish Cultural Village Koozie” when you attend at least five (5) programs at the Scottish

Cultural Village. Bring this program and get an official stamp in the spaces below for each session you attend.

Get five (5) stamps and receive your koozie while supplies last!

Friday

11:00 Men’s Great Kilt. — “So you’re going to wear the great kilt, here’s how!” Mysteries of the great kilt

will be revealed through a wee chat and an entertaining demonstration. Learn why it looks fantastic on all men!

11:30 Women’s 18th Century Clothing —“What’s that up her petticoat?” Come see the scandalous Scottish

striptease with a very proper lass from the 1750’s. Learn about underpinnings to outerwear and how to wear it

appropriately.

12:00 Blue Ridge Brass / Pipes & Drums—The group will be the featured performers at a luncheon concert.

They will be presented by Ed Miller, premier Scottish Folk Singer. He will introduce the various musical selec-

tions with a brief history and explain why the songs are relevant today. Bring your lunch and enjoy a treat!

1:00 Scotsman on the Mountain — The famed conservationist and Scotland-born John Muir visited Grand-

father Mountain in September of 1898. “I couldn’t hold it in and began to jump about and sing and glory in it

all,” stated Muir. What was Muir so excited about? Join Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation natural-

ist Amy Renfranz to learn more.

1:30 The Darien Venture—A Scottish Tragedy? — Darien, a jungle-clad province on the Panamanian

isthmus, played a key role in the formation of Britain. The Company of Scotland’s attempt to establish a trading

post and colony in the late 17th century incurred massive debts that would become intrinsic to the negotiation of

the Act of Union between England and Scotland in 1707. Learn why Darien is synonymous with disaster; often

mentioned but never explored; the fate of its inhabitants obscured by infamy and the rainforest.

2:00 The Viking Invasion of Scotland— Viking depredations had been recorded in the British Isles since the

late 8th century and Scandinavian settlement on Scotland’s western seaboard may have begun before the turn of

the 9th century. Claims to this region by Norwegian kings date to the turn of the 12th century when the King of

Norway established himself in the Hebrides and the Isle of Mann.

2:30 Captain Kidd— Captain William Kidd was a Scottish sailor who was tried and executed for piracy after

returning from a voyage to the Indian Ocean. Some modern historians deem his piratical reputation unjust, as

there is evidence that Kidd acted only as a privateer. Kidd’s fame springs largely from the sensational circum-

stances of his questioning before the English Parliament and the ensuing trial.

Saturday 11:00 Men’s Great Kilt —“So you’re going to wear the great kilt, here’s how!” All of the mysteries of the

great kilt will be revealed through a wee chat and an entertaining demonstration. Learn why it looks fantastic

on all men!

11:30 Women’s 18th Century Clothing —“What’s that up her petticoat?” Come see the scandalous Scottish

striptease with a very proper lass from the 1750’s. Learn about underpinnings to outerwear and how to wear it

appropriately.

12:00 Blue Ridge Brass / Pipes & Drums Concert —The group will be the featured performers at a lunch-

eon concert. They will be presented by Ed Miller, premier Scottish Folk Singer. He will introduce the various

musical selections and explain why the songs are relevant today. Bring your lunch and enjoy a treat!

1:00 Bagpipe Demise, Fiddle Rise —In the mid 1700’s the highland bagpipes were labeled a “weapon of

war” by the English and their allied rulers in Scotland. Piping was strongly discouraged and often punished. So

fiddlers began to imitate and adopt the imperiled pipe tunes. Listen as live musicians reveal the tricks fiddlers

use to sound like bagpipes and how fiddlers made pipe music their own.

1:30 The Darien Venture—A Scottish Tragedy? — Darien, a jungle-clad province on the Panamanian

isthmus, played a key role in the formation of Britain. The Company of Scotland’s attempt to establish a trad-

ing post and colony in the late 17th century incurred massive debts that would become intrinsic to the negotia-

tion of the Act of Union between England and Scotland in 1707. Learn why Darien is synonymous with disas-

ter; often mentioned but never explored; the fate of its inhabitants obscured by infamy and the rainforest.

2:00 The Viking Invasion of Scotland— Viking depredations had been recorded in the British Isles since

the late 8th century and Scandinavian settlement on Scotland’s western seaboard may

have begun before the turn of the 9th century. Claims to this region by Norwegian

kings date to the turn of the 12th century when the King of Norway established him-

self in the Hebrides and the Isle of Mann.

2:30 Captain Kidd— Captain William Kidd was a Scottish sailor who was tried

and executed for piracy after returning from a voyage to the Indian Ocean. Some

modern historians deem his piratical reputation unjust, as there is evidence that Kidd

acted only as a privateer. Kidd’s fame springs largely from the sensational circum-

stances of his questioning before the English Parliament and the ensuing trial.

3:00 Scotsman on the Mountain —The famed conservationist and Scotland-born John

Muir visited Grandfather Mountain in September of 1898. “I couldn’t hold it in and began to jump about and

sing and glory in it all,” stated Muir. What was Muir so excited about? Join Grandfather Mountain Steward-

ship Foundation naturalist Amy Renfranz to learn more.

Sunday 12:30 Bagpipe Demise, Fiddle Rise —In the mid 1700’s the highland bagpipes were labeled a “weapon of

war” by the English and their allied rulers in Scotland. Piping was strongly discouraged and often punished. So

fiddlers began to imitate and adopt the imperiled pipe tunes. Listen as live musicians reveal the tricks fiddlers

use to sound like bagpipes and how fiddlers made pipe music their own.

1:00 Blue Ridge Brass / Pipes & Drums Concert —The group will be the featured performers at a lunch-

eon concert. They will be presented by Ed Miller, premier Scottish Folk Singer. He will introduce the various

musical selections and explain why the songs are relevant today. Bring your lunch and enjoy a treat!

2:00 Men’s Great Kilt —“So you’re going to wear the great kilt, here’s how!” The mysteries of the great

kilt are revealed through a wee chat and entertaining demonstration. Learn why it looks fantastic on all men!

2:30 Women’s 18th Century Clothing —“What’s that up her petticoat?” Come see a scandalous Scottish

striptease with a proper lass from the 1750’s. Learn underpinnings to outerwear and how to wear it appropri-

ately.

Scottish Cultural Village Experts and Demonstrators

The Village’s list of experts and demonstrators is below. Don’t miss an opportunity to hear and learn from this

impressive group of individuals who will both entertain and enlighten you on all things Scottish.

Blue Ridge Brass / Pipes & Drums. The band was formed in 1985 at the request of the GMHG Board of Directors.

Its purpose was to play the anthems for the opening ceremonies of the games and music for the worship service. The

band is currently composed of fifteen brass players, six pipers and three drummers. They have played all opening

ceremonies and worship services for the games since 1986 and have also performed at the National Cathedral Kirkin’

of the Tartans, The Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts, Arlington National Cemetery and many other churches

and highland games around the Southeast. The band is under the direction of James Laughridge who is also the com-

poser and arranger for the band.

Beth Hyland, fiddle, and Tracey Maxwell, cello, perform regionally as the Celtic duo Bonnie Bows. They are also

2/3 of the Celtic trio Belles on Strings (bellesonstrings.com). Classically trained, both musicians are deeply immersed

in the Scottish and Irish musical traditions, lured by the music's beauty and rich cultural heritage. They are based in

Winston-Salem, NC.

John McKendrick LLB, LLM, MSc, Q.C. is a British lawyer and the Attorney General of the British Overseas Terri-

tory of Anguilla. He is Scottish and grew up in the village of Strathblane. He was schooled at Kelvinside Academy in

Glasgow and received his further education at the London School of Economics, the University of Leuven, and Uni-

versity of Oxford. He was called to the English Bar in 1999, the Scottish Bar in 2008, and the Bar of the Eastern Car-

ibbean Supreme Court in 2013. In 2016 Her Majesty the Queen appointed him Queen’s Counsel and later that year

the Foreign and Commonwealth Office appointed him for a two-year term as the Honourable Attorney General of the

beautiful Caribbean Island of Anguilla.

John Miles is a retired US Marine Officer and former college professor that now delivers lectures on Scottish history

and other historical topics. John volunteered as a guest history lecturer at the VT Veterans’ Home. He served as the

2014 guest speaker at the Wounded Military Heroes Ski Weekend with the adaptive ski program at the Bart Center at

Bromley Mountain Ski Resort and spoke to the Vermont Governor’s Veterans Education Committee (GVEC). He

also gives historical presentations at multiple Assisted Living Facilities in South Carolina. John is a six-time pub-

lished author in Marine Corps Gazette, the professional journal of the Marine Corps and has also been published by

Scot’s Heritage Magazine in its Spring 2017 edition.

Amy Renfranz is the interim Director of Education and Natural Resources for the Grandfather Mountain Steward-

ship. Most recently, Amy Renfranz worked as a resident instructor/naturalist at the Yellowstone Association Institute.

Before moving to the Yellowstone area she worked five years as a National Park Service interpretive ranger on the

Blue Ridge Parkway. She has earned certificates from the state of North Carolina as a “Certified Environmental Edu-

cator” and the National Association for Interpretation as a “Certified Interpretive Guide.” In 2014 Amy received her

Master’s Degree in Park, Recreation, and Tourism Management. Her published work includes a syndicated column,

“Dear Naturalist.”

Virginia Watson: Virginia is an award winning costume designer who has been creating beautiful Renaissance and

Medieval clothing for over 30 years. After her initial training in pattern-making for clothing, she trained under world

famous boot maker and founder of Merrell Shoes, Randy Merrell. For a number of years she designed and made cus-

tom leather boots, handbags and leather garments in Potomac Leather Co., a company she cofounded with her hus-

band, Bill Watson. After many trips to Scotland and England, studying every piece of historical clothing she could

find, Virginia found her true calling - making Celtic historical clothing. Twenty years ago, Virginia started another

company, Wolfstone Kilt Company. Her latest collection, "The Mists of Time," is inspired by Scottish and French

clothing, circa 1750’s and it continues her business mission of, "Creating clothing for your romantic journeys through

time." 2016 was a banner year for Virginia and Wolfstone Kilt Co., culminating with an invite to participate as a de-

signer in the 2017 "Dressed to Kilt" kick off event for New York Fashion Week!

The Event Director for the Scottish Cultural Village is Betty Johnson. If you have questions, comments or ideas

for future programs, come by the Village or email her at: bettyj0415@gmail.com.