---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It would have come as a considerable…"
description: "\"“It would have come as a considerable shock to Arch. Campbell and other members of the Piob. Society to know that when MacDougall Gillies played the tu..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/alistair-campsie-36765_quote_it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-sho_859249.jpg"
---

#  It would have come as a considerable shock to Arch…

![“It would have come as a considerable shock to Arch. Campbell and other members of the Piob. Society to know that when MacDougall Gillies played the tune in competitions which they were judging, he was playing it 'at' them instead of 'to' them ... and they did not realise he was expressing his…” quote by Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/alistair-campsie-36765_quote_it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-sho_859249.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/alistair-campsie-36765_quote_it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-sho_859249.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/alistair-campsie-36765_quote_it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-sho_859249.jpg)

> ““It would have come as a considerable shock to Arch. Campbell and other members of the Piob. Society to know that when MacDougall Gillies played the tune in competitions which they were judging, he was playing it 'at' them instead of 'to' them ... and they did not realise he was expressing his loathing and contempt for them. When Robert Reid told me this, he added that I should not attempt to play the tune until I was forty. 'You won't be mature enough to understand hatred until that age.'— hatred being the emotion behind the tune.””

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A performer used a musical piece to covertly express contempt for judges, highlighting how art can convey hidden emotions.

**In simple terms:** Music can hide contempt.

Key Takeaway

Recognize subtext in artistic expression.

Themes

art communication psychology subtlety

Mood

intriguing critical

Type

analytical philosophical

When to use this quote

- competitions
- judging panels
- creative expression
- interpersonal conflict

Key Concepts

musical irony emotional signaling performance dynamics

Questions to Reflect On

- What cues reveal hidden emotions in art?
- When is it ethical to embed criticism in performance?

A Different Perspective

Interpretation may be subjective and misread.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Age Hatred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age-hatred-833711/) [Contempt Robert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contempt-robert-833713/) [Hatred Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hatred-age-833710/) [Hatred Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hatred-emotion-833712/) [Understand Hatred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understand-hatred-833714/)

## Related quotes

> [“Memory will lay its hands upon your breast, and you will understand my hatred.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwendolyn-bennett/memory-will-lay-its-hands-upon-your-breast-and-you-will-understand-my/)

[Gwendolyn Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwendolyn-bennett/)

> [“Understand their hatred is beyond human comprehension. They abhor the Creator and so also the creation. Whatever brings joy, whatever brings peace, whatever redeems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/understand-their-hatred-is-beyond-human-comprehension-they-abhor-the/)

[Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/)

> [Yes, it's true that the way I play is very heavy and I understand the hatred that people who do not know me can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordi-alba/yes-it-s-true-that-the-way-i-play-is-very-heavy-and-i-understand-the/)

[Jordi Alba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordi-alba/)

> [“People that hold onto hate for so long do so because they want to avoid dealing with their pain. They falsely believe if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/people-that-hold-onto-hate-for-so-long-do-so-because-they-want-to/)

[Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/)

> [I got hundreds and hundreds of poisonous e-mails from Jews all over the world. I couldn't understand this hatred toward me. I fought against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikis-theodorakis/i-got-hundreds-and-hundreds-of-poisonous-e-mails-from-jews-all-over/)

[Mikis Theodorakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikis-theodorakis/)

> [“Hating you shall be a game Played with cool hands And slim fingers. Your heart will yearn For the lonely splendor Of the pine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwendolyn-bennett/hating-you-shall-be-a-game-played-with-cool-hands-and-slim-fingers/)

[Gwendolyn Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwendolyn-bennett/)

## More by Alistair Campsie

> [“Pipers at the Edinburgh contest were using two-droned pipes up until 1821, when such pipes were forbidden, because they allegedly gave an unfair advantage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/pipers-at-the-edinburgh-contest-were-using-two-droned-pipes-up-until/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“I gave a kiss, a kiss, a kiss I gave a kiss to the King's hand No man who filled a sheepskin bag with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/i-gave-a-kiss-a-kiss-a-kiss-i-gave-a-kiss-to-the-king-s-hand-no-man/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“The outrage which greeted the announcement that the Scottish Arts Council had awarded me a Writer's Bursary to complete this book scrutinising the MacCrimmon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/the-outrage-which-greeted-the-announcement-that-the-scottish-arts/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“with a predeliction for enticing people to approach him, then punching or kicking them in the testicles.  He was Angus MacKay, Queen Victoria's first household…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/with-a-predeliction-for-enticing-people-to-approach-him-then-punching/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“When owing to the infirmity of his years, he could not play the Warpipe, he would sit in a sheltered spot, facing the sun…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/when-owing-to-the-infirmity-of-his-years-he-could-not-play-the/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“Against the "supposed cause of insanity" is emphatically stated: "Disappointment and drink", bearing out the original newspaper story. But a later hand has scored through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/against-the-supposed-cause-of-insanity-is-emphatically-stated/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“is to certify that someone so far unidentified wrote deliberate errors into the corrected final proofs of this book after they left my hands,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/is-to-certify-that-someone-so-far-unidentified-wrote-deliberate/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“it is doubtful if they could differentiate between pibroch and a proctalgic twinge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/it-is-doubtful-if-they-could-differentiate-between-pibroch-and-a/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“The Act also forbade the carrying of weapons, later claimed to ban the bagpipes, which had been judicially declared a weapon of war, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/the-act-also-forbade-the-carrying-of-weapons-later-claimed-to-ban-the/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“was an advanced eccentric, and had the disconcerting habit of seizing people in the High Street of Edinburgh, and chanting and crooning these incomprehensible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/was-an-advanced-eccentric-and-had-the-disconcerting-habit-of-seizing/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

> [“Musick they have, but not the harmony of the sphears, but loud terrene noises, like the bellowing of beasts; the loud bagpipe is their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/musick-they-have-but-not-the-harmony-of-the-sphears-but-loud-terrene/)

[Alistair Campsie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

[Explore all 12 Alistair Campsie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“It would have come as a considerable shock to Arch. Campbell and other members of the Piob. Society to know that when MacDougall Gillies played the tune in competitions which they were judging, he was playing it 'at' them instead of 'to' them ... and they did not realise he was expressing his loathing and contempt for them. When Robert Reid told me this, he added that I should not attempt to play the tune until I was forty. 'You won't be mature enough to understand hatred until that age.'— hatred being the emotion behind the tune.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Alistair Campsie"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-shock-to-arch-campbell-and-other/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Hatred Age"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-shock-to-arch-campbell-and-other/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/alistair-campsie-36765_quote_it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-sho_859249.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/alistair-campsie-36765_quote_it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-sho_859249.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e4/alistair-campsie-36765_quote_it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-sho_859249.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It would have come as a considerable shock to Arch. Campbell and other members of the Piob. Society to know…” — Alistair Campsie",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Alistair Campsie",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-campsie/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“It would have come as a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-shock-to-arch-campbell-and-other/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-campsie/it-would-have-come-as-a-considerable-shock-to-arch-campbell-and-other/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
