A late goal by James Kielt proved crucial as Derry saw off Monaghan in Sunday's Dr McKenna Cup semi-final at the Athletic Grounds in Armagh.

Kielt blasted into the roof of the net in the final minute of normal time as the Oak Leaf county battled to a 2-12 to 1-13 victory.
Derry will play Tyrone at Pairc Esler on Saturday, 28 January in what will be a repeat of the 2016 final.
Tyrone have won the competition for five years in a row.
Derry led for most of the semi-final, although Monaghan did edge in front for a spell in the second half thanks to a goal scored by substitute Conor McCarthy.
Damian Barton's men made the better start, easing into a three point lead with Aidan McLaughlin and Enda Lynn adding to Kielt's opening free.
Ciaran Hughes got Monaghan off the mark in the 15th minute but a Niall Loughlin free restored the Oak Leafers' three-point advantage.
Niall Loughlin (2) and Kielt added frees for the hosts while a Barry McGinn score and two from Conor McManus left it 0-6 to 0-4 at the break.
Derry had two players black-carded in the first half - Conor McAtamney, who had come on as a placement for Aidan McLaughlin, and Benny Herron.
The Oak Leafers led nine points to six early in the second period but Monaghan hit them with a goal and  three points to go 1-9 to 0-9 up.
McCarthy got a point to add to his goal with Fintan Kelly and McManus also splitting the uprights.
But Derry hit back with a goal of their own through Emmett McGuckin and the sides were locked at 1-11 each heading towards stoppage-time.
Kielt's goal, and a point from Niall Loughlin proved enough, even though Monaghan's Kelly and Barry McGinn got the last scores of the game.


A ban on the sale of alcohol in Ireland on Good Friday may be reversed after legislation passed all stages in the Seanad Éireann (Irish senate).

The prohibition of alcohol on the Easter holiday has been in place for 90 years.
The Intoxicating Liquor (Amendment) Bill was introduced by independent Senator Billy Lawless.
He said the passage of legislation was "a progressive step" towards "a separation of church and state".
According to Irish national broadcaster RTÉ, Senator Lawless said the move showed that "Ireland is a pluralist, globalist, forward-thinking country".
"In my mind the passage of today's bill is another progressive step in Ireland's long journey in the separation of church and state," he added.
"It is understandable when lawmakers try to introduce legislation that changes a practice that has been in place for almost 100 years, people pause to reflect, yet this is what lawmaking is about.
"There is an affinity to the closed day but that affinity is in fact leading to alcohol abuse in many cases."
The bill will now progress on to the Dáil (Irish parliament).


A convicted killer on trial for allegedly stabbing a fellow inmate to death at Dartmoor Prison may have been framed, a court has heard.

William Tolcher, 51, is accused of attacking Alex Cusworth, 37, with a prison issue kitchen knife used for cooking last November.
His defence lawyer questioned why Tolcher would use a knife specifically issued to him if he planned to kill.
Tolcher denies murder at Plymouth Crown Court.
Richard Smith QC asked the jury to consider whether someone else might have framed Tolcher while he was on his break. There was no CCTV covering the area at the time.
Liverpudlian Tolcher was convicted of murdering a woman in Newquay, Cornwall, in 1996 and was serving a life sentence, the court heard.
The jury has previously been told there had been no conversation between Tolcher and Cusworth before the attack, and it was suggested the victim had said something earlier which Tolcher had taken offence to.
The trial continues.


BBC Sport's football expert Mark Lawrenson is predicting the outcome of every game at the 2014 Fifa World Cup.

Lawro picked the correct winner in each of the eight last-16 ties.
Media playback is not supported on this device
He enjoyed a 50% success record in the group stage, correctly guessing the outcome of 24 of the 48 games.
The only group he failed to get a single correct result in was Group D, which was surprisingly won by Costa Rica as England finished bottom.
Before the tournament, Lawro chose 11 out of the 16 teams that went through to the first knockout stage.
He initially chose Argentina to win the final on 13 July... but now believes they will go out in the quarter-finals in a hugely open tournament.
Lawro was speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan.
Friday, 4 July
Lawro's prediction: 0-2
Read the match report and watch highlights
Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Read the match report and watch highlights
Saturday, 5 July
Lawro's prediction: 0-2
Read the match report and watch highlights
Lawro's prediction: 2-0
Read the match report and watch highlights


Adam Hammill's last-minute strike rescued a point for Barnsley at home to play-off hopefuls Bristol City.

Marley Watkins headed the Tykes into an early lead, before Sam Winnall's penalty, after he was fouled by Scott Golbourne, was saved by Frank Fielding.
Lee Tomlin equalised from the spot following Adam Jackson's handball, and Tammy Abraham slotted his 12th goal of the season to put City in front.
But Hammill's curling injury-time effort denied the visitors victory.
The 28-year-old former Wolves and Huddersfield winger, who had been linked with a move to Ashton Gate during the summer, had only been introduced from the bench in the final quarter of an hour.
His late equaliser was no more than Barnsley deserved, after they had mustered 20 shots at goal and struck the post through Adam Armstrong's 25-yard strike.
Yet the Robins looked to be heading for another remarkable comeback victory when 19-year-old loanee Abraham steered home a 12th goal of the season, having already overturned deficits to win four times in 2016-17.
Lee Johnson's side remain sixth in the Championship table, while Barnsley are 12th.
Barnsley head coach Paul Heckingbottom:
"It would have been a travesty if we hadn't got anything out of it, but when you've been behind and you score a late goal, you're satisfied with a point.
"The game could have been easy for us and then you're 2-1 down and you're scrambling to get a point and we managed to do it.
"The character of the lads is fantastic and, from the first minute to the last, they were great. Even in the build-up, helping Josh Kay through his debut."
Bristol City manager Lee Johnson:
"It was a rollercoaster for me, that's for sure. I'm disappointed to have not got the three points, but in fairness on the balance of play, a draw was probably a fair result.
"I have to look from the technical side of how we went from a throw-in in the top left-hand corner, with three minutes to go, to conceding 25 seconds later.
"It was end to end with lots of incidents. I thought the referee liked the sound of his own whistle in the first half. That was driving me a bit mad."
Match ends, Barnsley 2, Bristol City 2.
Second Half ends, Barnsley 2, Bristol City 2.
Foul by Sam Winnall (Barnsley).
Aden Flint (Bristol City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt saved. Lee Tomlin (Bristol City) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Attempt saved. Joe Bryan (Bristol City) left footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Goal!  Barnsley 2, Bristol City 2. Adam Hammill (Barnsley) right footed shot from the left side of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Adam Armstrong.
Joe Bryan (Bristol City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Adam Hammill (Barnsley).
Substitution, Barnsley. Ryan Williams replaces Josh Kay.
Taylor Moore (Bristol City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Adam Armstrong (Barnsley).
Attempt missed. Aaron Wilbraham (Bristol City) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Josh Brownhill with a cross.
Attempt saved. Sam Winnall (Barnsley) header from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by James Bree with a cross.
Attempt missed. Adam Armstrong (Barnsley) right footed shot from the left side of the box is too high. Assisted by Adam Hammill.
Substitution, Bristol City. Josh Brownhill replaces Adam Matthews.
Goal!  Barnsley 1, Bristol City 2. Tammy Abraham (Bristol City) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Lee Tomlin.
Substitution, Barnsley. Adam Hammill replaces Marley Watkins.
Frank Fielding (Bristol City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Adam Armstrong (Barnsley).
Corner,  Barnsley. Conceded by Tammy Abraham.
Corner,  Barnsley. Conceded by Aden Flint.
Attempt saved. Aaron Wilbraham (Bristol City) header from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Joe Bryan with a cross.
Joe Bryan (Bristol City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Joe Bryan (Bristol City).
James Bree (Barnsley) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt blocked. Joe Bryan (Bristol City) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Corner,  Bristol City. Conceded by Angus MacDonald.
Attempt blocked. Joe Bryan (Bristol City) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Gary O'Neil.
Corner,  Barnsley. Conceded by Korey Smith.
Attempt blocked. Sam Morsy (Barnsley) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Adam Armstrong.
Substitution, Bristol City. Taylor Moore replaces Bobby Reid.
Substitution, Bristol City. Joe Bryan replaces Scott Golbourne.
Corner,  Barnsley. Conceded by Hördur Bjorgvin Magnusson.
Attempt blocked. Ryan Kent (Barnsley) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Sam Winnall.
Attempt saved. Andy Yiadom (Barnsley) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Adam Armstrong.
Attempt saved. Marley Watkins (Barnsley) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Sam Morsy with a through ball.
Adam Armstrong (Barnsley) hits the bar with a right footed shot from outside the box. Assisted by Ryan Kent.
Attempt saved. Tammy Abraham (Bristol City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Gary O'Neil.
Tammy Abraham (Bristol City) wins a free kick on the left wing.


In a warehouse in north London, I'm surrounded by hundreds of painstakingly made card models and framed architectural plans, all meticulously presented.

There are also dozens of other-worldly 3D-printed structures, some of which seem to resemble buildings.
This much you might expect at the annual Bartlett School of Architecture degree show.
But held aloft above them in a corner, is a monitor playing a haunting film - an animated  journey through a labyrinth - with a dramatic voiceover.
Why is an architect making a film like this?
It turns out that architecture students, who can spend five-figure sums on their seven-year training courses, are using their newly-learned digital animation and design skills to break into the world of film.
The film's creator, Angelika Vasileiou, explains the appeal of animation.
"I've never been so close to designing a space, realising how it feels, before I started making films," she says.
She looks exhausted as the show comes to a close. Her mind is on what to do after graduation.
"There are many possibilities for architects to work in film," she says. "It's exciting, we have the skills. A lot of students are considering film."
Ms Vasileiou is a product of Unit 24 at The Bartlett.
The unit, explains tutor Penelope Haralambidou, explores the relationship between architecture and film.
"Ever since architects began to draw digitally, a crossover with film has been a natural progression," she says.
On the one hand, this is practical. Architecture firms need to make animation films to dazzle prospective clients. And of course they use 3D software to originate designs and make plans for engineers and builders to follow for construction.
But Unit 24 encourages students to go beyond this.
In many ways the unit's output resembles that of a film school, at times more David Lynch than Sir Norman Foster.
The films encourage imaginative thinking and project management skills, says Bartlett tutor Simon Kennedy. And they also teach students the fundamental principles of design, he emphasises.
Most students arrive with no animation skills, but within two years are up to speed. They use animation modelling software like 3ds Max, Maya and After Effects.
The same software is also used in the visual effects (VFX) industry for film.
"Architects tend to have a vivid imagination and a strong visual sensibility," says Mr Kennedy.
"But this is tempered by their capacity for analysis and problem solving. These characteristics are directly applicable when first designing digital animations, and then executing them effectively."
Alumni of the school have already capitalised on this skills crossover. A group who graduated in 2011 has formed Factory Fifteen, an animation house. Recent projects include animations for Film4 and a visualisation of the Al Rayyan football stadium, made for the press launch of the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
There is also ScanLab, which specialises in recreating dramatic 3D environments. Their work includes the D-Day landings for PBS in the United States and classical Rome for the BBC.
But is it really that easy to build a film career from architectural foundations?
One man thinks so. Ben West is creative director at Framestore in Los Angeles.
Framestore is a London-based VFX company employing more than 1,000 people that has won Oscars for films such as Gravity.
After graduating in architecture in Sydney in the late 1990s, Mr West combined regular architecture work with a sideline in his true passion - film and animation.
This passion culminated in the award-winning short film Fugu & Tako - a buddy movie with a twist. Two Japanese salarymen's lives are transformed forever, when one of them eats a live puffer fish in a sushi bar, with surreal VFX-laden consequences.
"The reality, apart from a few extremely talented individuals, is that architecture has become very utilitarian in its focus," says Mr West.
"I aspired to more creative pursuits and my talents were better suited to film making, so I have no regrets."
With Framestore he has directed effects on Beyonce videos and Super Bowl half time shows.
Mastering the software was the easy part for an architect, says Mr West.
"Good architecture strives to relate to the human condition and tell a story, so, too, do good filmmakers.
The mantra at architecture school was always 'form follows function', now it's more about the picture serving the story."
So why are architects moving into film?
"Undoubtedly this is because both professions make use of similar software products," says Adrian Dobson, an executive director at the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
"During the recent recession turnover for UK architectural practices overall fell by more than a third and it was a difficult time for younger architects seeking to establish their careers in architecture, so flexibility in how they applied their skills was a must.
"It is probably more ad hoc than a trend, but it is a reasonably well-trodden path."
From the employer's point of view, architects "understand the structure of real-world built environments," says Amy Smith, Framestore's head of recruitment.
"They also bring a knowledge of the history of architecture and how certain features reflect the time or culture of buildings.
"All of these things bring a sense of believability to a computer-generated environment that allows an audience to engage with the story."
But others have found the transition into film animation more difficult.
Han Han Xue, a new recruit to Framestore in Montreal, graduated in architecture in 2014 from McGill University. He taught himself animation online.
"I would produce things which would baffle teachers, but are elementary in the film world," he says.
But he admits that "the skills required are much, much higher than what a highly competent architect would be able to offer."
And he doesn't rule out returning to architecture and using his enhanced film animation skills to create amazing buildings, he says.
Digital, it seems, has helped build a two-way street between architecture and film.
Follow Dougal Shaw and Technology of Business editor Matthew Wall on Twitter.


A British team has postponed its bid to break a 400mph land speed record after pilot Guy Martin crashed during the world's fastest road race.

The 33-year-old suffered several broken bones after suffering an accident while leading the Superbike race at the Ulster Grand Prix last weekend.
Despite his injuries it has been reported that Martin has already signed himself out of hospital in Belfast.
A spokesman for Triumph said Martin was "central" to their record attempt.
The TT racer and television personality from Grimsby, Lincolnshire, is planning to beat the current 376.363mph record (605km/h) in Triumph's 1,000 bhp Rocket III Streamliner.
A spokesman for Leicestershire-based Triumph said: "Guy is a unique talent and having such a pilot is absolutely central to our attempt.
"We wish him a full and speedy recovery and will confirm a new date for our 2016 bid as soon as we can."
On Monday, Martin tweeted: "I'm on the mend - few upgrades to me hand& back but feel right enough. All part of the job. Thanks very much for the support as always."
He is reported to have fractured a vertebrae, his sternum, and a number of ribs in the 100mph crash as well as damaging his throttle hand.


The pilot of a light aircraft has died in a plane crash in Oxfordshire.

The aircraft left Turweston Aerodrome in north Buckinghamshire but then crashed at Aston Rowant Nature Reserve at 14:35 GMT.
A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: "Sadly, the pilot of the aircraft, a man, has been pronounced dead at the scene."
Road diversions are in place around the area and an investigation into the crash is under way.
The man's next-of-kin are yet to be informed.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch said it had sent a team to investigate the crash site.
Police have locked down the Aston Rowant Nature Reserve after the aircraft accident, with a steady flow of police vehicles coming in and out of the site.
Conditions around the reserve were treacherous even for drivers on Sunday evening with very heavy fog on the Oxfordshire/Buckinghamshire border.
It is not known yet whether fog or poor visibility had a part to play in the fatal air crash at the nature reserve, which straddles the M40 near Stokenchurch.
What we do know is that recovery and investigations will continue throughout the night, although the fog may affect recovery overnight.


Alex Salmond has said his suggestion he would be writing Labour's Budget if it won power in May was meant as a "light-hearted" remark.

The ex-Scottish first minister was filmed making the joke at an SNP fundraising event on 13 April.
The video was tweeted by David Cameron, who said voters would be shocked. But Mr Salmond said the prime minister clearly had a "sense of humour bypass."
Labour dismissed the suggestion of any SNP influence as "total nonsense".
With the polls pointing to another hung parliament there is much focus and debate on possible coalitions and deals between the parties to form a government.
The Conservatives are warning of a Labour-SNP tie-up, which they say would cause chaos and be bad for the UK.
Although Labour leader Ed Miliband has ruled out a formal coalition with the SNP if his party falls short of a majority on 7 May - the Conservatives say there could be a looser arrangement with Labour relying on SNP support to win Commons votes.
In reply, Mr Miliband has accused the Conservatives of putting the future of the UK at risk by "talking up" rather than "taking on" the SNP.
In the footage, Mr Salmond says: "The Scottish Labour leader will not be writing the Labour Party budget. But then I knew that already - because I'm writing the Labour Party Budget.
Mr Salmond said: "The point made in a light-hearted way was that Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy had been slapped down by his party bosses at Westminster and told that he would have no role in a Labour Budget.
"David Cameron is clearly a prime minister with both a people bypass and a sense of humour bypass."
In his tweet David Cameron said "This footage will shock you: Alex Salmond laughs & boasts he'll write Labour's budget. Vote Conservative to stop it."
The video of Mr Salmond was raised during Wednesday's Daily Politics debate on the economy.
Labour's Treasury spokesman Chris Leslie said the SNP would have no influence on a Labour budget.
"It's total nonsense," he said, adding: "Why would we tie up in any way with... the SNP when we disagree so profoundly with them on the need to make sure we have fiscal responsibility?"
Put to him that independent economic think-tank the Institute of Fiscal Studies has said Labour's plans are broadly consistent with the SNP's, he disagreed.
"If you think that Stewart's proposal for additional borrowing is something that we would go along with, you are completely wrong," he told BBC economics editor Robert Peston.
But Stewart Hosie, the SNP's economic spokesman and parliamentary hopeful, took a different view, insisting that there was a deal to be done with Labour.
"I think there is a deal to be struck which is fiscally responsible and which actually lifts austerity from people, unlike Labour who signed up to £30bn of cuts in this year."
He stressed that under his party's plans there would be a "modest rise" in public spending and the deficit and debt would fall in every year of the next parliament.
But Mr Leslie replied: "We are not going to compromise in any Budget on the fundamental principle that we have to eliminate the current budget deficit as soon as possible in the next parliament."
Commenting on his former leader's remarks, Mr Hosie said: "I think he was having a bit of fun.... I thought it was quite amusing."
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Concerns over the handling of child abuse cases by an Essex Police team are "not surprising", the county's police and crime commissioner (PCC) has said.

Eight extra cases have been referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) on top of 30 already being looked into.
The investigations relate to a team covering north Essex.
Essex PCC Nick Alston said the increase was "distressing". The force has been asked to comment but has yet to do so.
"As the review into the quality of child abuse investigations instigated by Essex Police progresses, regrettably I do not find it surprising that it has identified further cases of concern and fresh referrals to the IPCC," he said.
But he stressed the number of cases being dealt with by the IPCC remained "a small proportion" of the total number of such cases investigated by the force each year.
"I am convinced the force is making real efforts to identify and resolve problems with the quality of child abuse investigations," Mr Alston added.
One of the force's officers was suspended and 11 others put on restricted duties following the force's referral of 28 cases to the IPCC.
The police watchdog was already reviewing two investigations by the same team.
Some cases are said to involve a "lack of honesty or integrity" by officers, and are based on allegations of historical abuse dating to the 1960s and 1970s.
Speaking to BBC Essex, chief constable Stephen Kavanagh, said the force had spoken or written to all the alleged victims involved in the cases.
"When we were concerned about shortfalls, we put the victims at the front of this," he said.


A new global hub for cancer research and treatment is to be established in London with the aim of accelerating the discovery of new treatments.

Transport improvements are also planned for the London Cancer Hub in Sutton, ideally by a proposed £200m tram link.
The hub plans to create more than 13,000 jobs and deliver at least two extra cancer drugs every five years.
A community of 10,000 scientists, clinical and support staff will be brought together.
More on this story and other news from London
Professor Paul Workman, Chief Executive of the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London, said the ICR and The Royal Marsden were already "world leaders" in cancer research and treatment, but aimed to take its facilities "to a new level".
He said: "The ambition is to discover more innovative cancer drugs, to run more clinical trials, and to partner with industry to take even more treatments to patients."
Councillor Ruth Dombey, leader of Sutton Council, said the London Cancer Hub would create "thousands of employment and training opportunities for local people".
It is hoped that research and development space will also be created for biotech, pharma and software companies, and equipment manufacturers.
The new buildings will closely integrate research and cancer care - providing both laboratories and clinical facilities to promote interactions between scientists and clinicians.
Sutton Council also plans to create a new secondary school on the site which will specialise in the sciences.


A former policeman has admitted pushing a black man off a Paris Metro train but said the man started the altercation, a court has heard.

Richard Barklie, from Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland, is one of four Chelsea fans facing a football banning order over a confrontation filmed ahead of a Champions League game in February.
Footage of the alleged incident showed several fans chanting: "We're racist and that's the way we like it."
Mr Barklie, 50, denies any wrongdoing.
He told Stratford Magistrates' Court he pushed Souleymane Sylla because there was no room in the train carriage, adding: "Mr Sylla, and it's my view, was the only one using aggression".
When asked by his defence barrister, Nick Scott, if "there was any issue in relation to the colour of his skin", Mr Barklie replied "none whatsoever".
Mr Barklie served as an officer with the Royal Ulster Constabulary and as a director with the World Human Rights Forum.
In addition to Mr Barklie, of Victoria Street in Carrickfergus, three others are challenging the ban: Jordan Munday, 20, of Ellenborough Road, Sidcup, south-east London; Josh Parsons, 20, of Woodhouse Place, Dorking, Surrey; and William Simpson, 26, of Hengrove Crescent in Ashford, Surrey.
The court heard Mr Munday, who is also accused of being involved in the incident, said there was enough space for him to force himself through the carriage and see the aftermath.
However he claimed he did not see the incident and had not been chanting "John Terry is a racist and that's the way we like it, ooh ooh ooh".
Adam Clemens, representing the Met Police, said: "At the end of the ooh ooh ooh your mouth was moving and it closes at the end."
Mr Munday told the court: "There was movement - I was breathing. I have to breathe."
Both Mr Munday and Mr Barklie were in a group of about 150 Chelsea fans walking through Paris on their way to the match.
Video footage appeared to show Mr Munday "fronting up" to a black man and shoving him twice, but Mr Munday claimed he had been stalked by the man and felt threatened.
A fifth man, Dean Callis, 32, of Liverpool Road in Islington, north London, earlier received a five year banning order for his role in Paris and other incidents involving violence.
The case continues.


Cash payments are to be offered to residents of a newly-built estate on the preferred route of HS2 in South Yorkshire.

A minimum of £30,000 is being offered to people who opt to stay on the Shimmer estate at Mexborough.
Residents will still be able to sell their homes to the government if they wish to move.
The government said the final route was yet to be determined but it would continue to support residents.
Even if this route was ultimately chosen, the majority of homes would not need to be demolished and even those that would be affected by the railway would not be needed for some time, it added.
It said the offer was designed to help people who wished to remain in their homes.
Read more about this story and others from across Yorkshire
Transport Minister, Paul Maynard, said the intention was that the development remained a "pleasant and secure" place to live.
"I recognise that this is a difficult time for Shimmer residents and I would like to thank them for their patience and reassure them they will be treated fairly and with compassion," he said.
"We are making this cash offer to eligible Shimmer homeowners to encourage those who wish to continue living on the estate do so."
Residents who apply for the scheme but then later decide to sell to the government would have the cash deducted from the sale price.
It would not have to be repaid if the property was sold to a private buyer.
HS2 Ltd said it would continue to work with the estate's developer to ensure roads, amenity areas were completed in accordance with the planning permission and said the developer would complete the remaining unsold houses.


One of the most complex efforts toward a quantum computer has been shown off at the American Physical Society meeting in Dallas in the US.

It uses the strange "quantum states" of matter to perform calculations in a way that, if scaled up, could vastly outperform conventional computers.
The 6mm-by-6mm chip holds nine quantum devices, among them four "quantum bits" that do the calculations.
The team said further scaling up to 10 qubits should be possible this year.
Rather than the ones and zeroes of digital computing, quantum computers deal in what are known as superpositions - states of matter that can be thought of as both one and zero at once.
In a sense, quantum computing's one trick is to perform calculations on all superposition states at once. With one quantum bit, or qubit, the difference is not great, but the effect scales rapidly as the number of qubits rises.
The figure often touted as the number of qubits that would bring quantum computing into a competitive regime is about 100, so each jump in the race is a significant one.
"It's pretty exciting we're now at a point that we can start talking about what the architecture is we're going to use if we make a quantum processor," Erik Lucero of the University of California, Santa Barbara told the conference.
The team's key innovation was to find a way to completely disconnect - or "decouple" - interactions between the elements of their quantum circuit.
The delicate quantum states the team creates in their qubits - in this case paired superconductors known as Josephson junctions - must be manipulated, moved, and stored without destroying them.
"It's a problem I've been thinking about for three or four years now, how to turn off the interactions," UCSB's John Martinis, who led the research," told BBC News.
"Now we've solved it, and that's great - but there's many other things we have to do."
The solution came in the form of what the team has termed the RezQu architecture. It is basically a blueprint for a quantum computer, and several presentations at the conference focused on how to make use of it.
"For me this is kind of nice, I know how I'm going to put them together," said Professor Martinis.
"I now know how to design it globally and I can go back and try to optimise all the parts."
RezQu seems to have an edge in one crucial arena - scalability - that makes it a good candidate for the far more complex circuits that would constitute a quantum computer proper.
"There are competing architectures, like ion traps - trapping ions with lasers, but the complexity there is that you have to have a huge room full of PhDs just to run your lasers," Mr Lucero told BBC News.
"There's already promise to show how this architecture could scale, and we've created custom electronics based on cellphone technology which has driven the cost down a lot.
"We're right at the bleeding edge of actually having a quantum processor," he said. "It's been years that a whole community has blossomed just looking at the idea of, once we have a quantum computer, what are we going to do with it?"
Britton Plourde, a quantum computing researcher from the University of Syracuse, said that the field has progressed markedly in recent years.
The metric of interest to quantum computing is how long the delicate quantum states can be preserved, and Dr Plourde noted that time had increased a thousand fold since the field's inception.
"The world of superconducting quantum bits didn't even exist 10 years ago, and now they can control [these states] to almost arbitrary precision," he told BBC News.
"We're still a long way from a large-scale quantum computer but it's really in my eyes rapid progress."


Claims ex-police and crime commissioner (PCC) Shaun Wright lied to MPs in parliament over the Rotherham child abuse scandal are to be sent to police.

The Home Affairs Select Committee said it would be referring two complaints to the Metropolitan Police.
Mr Wright resigned in 2014 in the wake of a report, which found at least 1,400 children were abused in the town from 1997 to 2013, after resisting pressure.
He was Rotherham council's head of children's services from 2005 to 2010.
Mr Wright has not commented publicly on the claims.
He became South Yorkshire's PCC in 2012, before facing MPs in September 2014, telling the committee he had received a report in 2007 outlining some cases.
However, he said he "did not recall it indicating the scale of child sexual exploitation at that time".
In a statement the committee, chaired by Yvette Cooper, said: "The Home Affairs Committee has received two complaints alleging that a witness who was examined on oath by the former committee in the last parliament deliberately misled the committee.
"Since lying to a committee of the House when under oath would constitute the criminal offence of perjury, the committee has resolved today to refer the complaints to the Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis for investigation.
"Any further action is for the police and the prosecuting authorities to consider.
"Since a criminal offence is alleged, it would not be appropriate for the committee to make any further comment."
No details have been disclosed about the specific nature of the complaints.
As PCC, Mr Wright initially defended his position, refusing calls to stand down from then Prime Minister David Cameron, former Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg and the then leader of the Labour Party Ed Miliband at the time, before eventually resigning.
Professor Alexis Jay's report was published on 26 August 2014.


Three former care workers have been convicted of historical indecent assaults against boys at a school for vulnerable children in Kent.

Colwyn Baker, 71, David Hennessy, 74, and Nigel Putman, 62, abused youngsters at the now closed Swaylands School, in Penshurst, between 1963 and 1979.
Jurors at Maidstone Crown Court returned partial verdicts against them.
Baker was convicted of five counts of indecent assault, Hennessy of two and Putman of one.
Baker was cleared of one charge of sexual assault and one indecent assault.
The jury is still considering 38 other charges.
Baker, of Craighouse Avenue, Morningside, Edinburgh, had denied 24 indecent assault and three serious sexual assault charges.
Hennessy, of Westfields, Narborough, King's Lynn, Norfolk, had denied 17 indecent assault charges, one of gross indecency with a child and one serious sexual assault.
Putman, 62, of Kings Road, Slough, Berkshire, had denied three indecent assaults.
Swaylands School, a residential facility for boys with emotional and behavioural difficulties, closed in 1993.
The jury was later sent home for the weekend and will resume its deliberations on Monday.


Nike co-founder Phil Knight has donated $400m (Â£287m) to his former college, Stanford University.

His donation is part of a $750m fund to help post-graduate students.
Called the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program, each year it will fund 100 new students in masters, doctoral or professional degree programs.
It was modelled on Oxford University's Rhodes Scholarship. Stanford describes it as the world's biggest fully endowed university scholarship program.
Fully endowed means the scholarships can be paid for by returns from the $750 investment pot, so Stanford will not have to raise funds for the programme each year.
John Hennessy, who will step down as Stanford's president later this year, will become the programme's director.
Mr Knight said the scholarships would create a new generation of "skilled problem-solvers".
"John and I dream of a future 20, 30 or 50 years from now, when thousands of graduates - who can think outside the box as skilled problem-solvers - will be working together for a more peaceful, habitable world," said Mr Knight.
Mr Knight received his MBA from Stanford in 1962 before he started Nike.
Since then he has regularly donated to the university.


A £1bn deal for Nama's Northern Ireland loan book would be rendered illegal if any third party "fixers" were wrongly involved, the High Court has been told.

Lawyers for businessman Gareth Graham told a judge investigations into the sale to US investment fund Cerberus are under way in three jurisdictions.
Mr Graham is a director and shareholder in property firms whose loans were among those transferred over to Nama.
He is challenging the appointment of administrators to his companies.
Contending that his businesses were financially strong and never missed a repayment, his legal team are set to claim that an improper motive was involved.
With the main case not due to be heard until January, administrators acting for Cerberus are now seeking to sell the Lyndon Court building in Belfast city centre.
Their lawyers argued that previously issued judicial directions only require that notification is given to the court.
However, Mr Graham is opposed to the deal going through without his consent or court order.
Mr Graham's barrister said the administrators had signed up to a restraint on any sale until after the court case.
She told the court: "The context we are dealing with here is a possible illegality... any possible illegality concerning the sale of the Northern Ireland loan book to Cerberus."
Pressed for details by the judge, she mentioned the potential involvement of third parties in the deal.
The barrister later referred to Frank Cushnahan, a former Nama adviser who also worked for the Graham bookmaking business from 2005 to 2008.
Earlier this month Mr Graham told a Stormont inquiry the adviser was conflicted in his Nama role because he retained shareholdings in some Graham property companies that were moved into the "bad bank" category.
The barrister told the court on Monday that those shares amounted to 5%.
Mr Cushnahan has rejected the criticisms made at Stormont, saying that he gave up the shareholdings in 2009.
According to his account he would only remain on the share register if Graham companies have not provided the necessary updates.
The court was also told on Monday that investigations into the loan portfolio deal are now being carried out by authorities in Northern Ireland, the Irish Republic and the United States.
"One of the allegations is that there was corruption," the barrister said.
"For example, that £7m was paid to include third parties as fixers for that transaction."
She said that if any were involved, without declaring any necessary interest, "that would also render the sale illegal".
The case continues.


The government has given more details of a package of measures to improve cancer treatment in England.

It includes a target that 95% of people should be given a cancer diagnosis or the all-clear within 28 days of being referred by a GP, by 2020. Implementing it will cost Â£300m a year until then.
Faster diagnosis could save up to 11,000 lives a year, according to an Independent Cancer Taskforce report.
The health secretary said the measure was a "simple promise".
Jeremy Hunt said the UK lagged behind other western European countries in cancer survival rates and the new measures would help "close the gap".
"We know that the biggest single factor that means that our cancer survival rates lag those of France, Germany and other European countries is the fact that we have too much late diagnosis; we don't get an answer to people quickly enough," he said.
"And what we're saying here is a very simple promise to all NHS patients by 2020 that if your GP has a concern that you may have cancer, we will get you an answer - either a cancer diagnosis or an all-clear within 28 days - that will be one of the fastest diagnosis rates anywhere in the world."
Speeding up diagnosis would require more cancer consultants, specialist nurses, staff trained in endoscopies and diagnostic tests, he added.
Currently 280,000 people in England are diagnosed with cancer each year - with half surviving for at least 10 years.
Patients are meant to see a specialist within two weeks of a GP referral under existing targets but may then face a long wait for test results, meaning a growing number of patients do not get their treatment started within the recommended 62 days.
Cancer patients will also get online access to their test results if they choose, under the new measures.
Harpal Kumar, chief executive of Cancer Research UK and chairman of the Independent Cancer Taskforce, said services for diagnosing cancer were under immense pressure, which is why increased investment and extra staff were so important.
"Introducing the 28-day ambition for patients to receive a diagnosis will maximise the impact of this investment which, together with making results available online, will spare people unnecessary added anxiety and help cancer patients to begin treatment sooner," he said.
The announcement comes after a cross-party group of MPs warned that cancer services had "lost momentum" in the past two years.
The health service has been struggling to meet waiting times and seen resources reduced, the Public Accounts Committee warned.
Juliet Bouverie of Macmillan Cancer Support, said: "We desperately need to see continued action from the government and the NHS to ensure that all the recommendations laid out in the recently published Cancer Strategy for England are fully funded and implemented."


A 77-year-old man has gone missing after setting out for a walk near Dornie in the Highlands.

Roger Fletcher was last seen at about 08:30 on Sunday after leaving his holiday home in Bundalloch.
Police said he was thought to have gone for a walk in the Bundalloch and Camuslighne areas.
Mr Fletcher, who walks with the aid of two walking poles, failed to arrive at the location where he was to be picked up and taken back to his holiday home.


Forest Green Rovers have the advantage in their National League play-off semi-final after a narrow, hard-fought victory in the first leg at Dover.

Brett Williams, who scored the only goal in Forest Green's win at Dover in their final match of the regular season on Saturday, curled the visitors ahead.
The hosts almost levelled late on when Stefan Payne struck narrowly wide.
Dover must now win Saturday's second leg at the New Lawn to reach 15 May's final at Wembley.
Grimsby host third-placed Braintree Town in the first leg of their semi-final on Thursday.
Forest Green, who sacked manager Ady Pennock just one week before their first leg to give the side the "best possible chance in the play-offs", according to chairman Dale Vince, are looking to reach the Football League for the first time in their history.
Caretaker boss Scott Bartlett has now led the Gloucestershire club to two victories in his two games in charge - both away to Dover - ending a seven-match winless run.
Rovers, who lost to Bristol Rovers in last season's semi-finals, had suffered an early blow when an injury to Marcus Kelly saw him replaced by Williams on 12 minutes.
But after the hosts twice failed to clear a right-wing cross into the box, substitute Williams had time to curl an exquisite effort into the top corner from the edge of the area.
Dover's best chances came just before half-time but Forest Green defenders Charlie Clough and Dale Bennett did well to block Ricky Miller and Payne efforts respectively.
The scoreline could have been better for the visitors - who completed an entire league season without failing to score away from home - but Elliot Frear volleyed over.
Forest Green Rovers caretaker boss Scott Bartlett told BBC Radio Gloucestershire: "There are no wild celebrations because we all know there are twists and turns in play-offs.
"I wanted to come here and win. We're in a great position. We need to prepare properly now for Saturday.
"I'm confident we'll actually get promoted. I've got to be, because it rubs off on the players. But they're confident as well."


Raffaele Sollecito was 23 and about to finish his degree when he was arrested along with then-girlfriend Amanda Knox for the 2007 murder of British student Meredith Kercher in Italy.

The pair stood accused of committing manslaughter and sexual violence against the exchange student. They were convicted in 2009, but acquitted two years later.
The acquittal was overturned and a subsequent appeal ruling in January 2014 saw Mr Sollecito again found guilty and sentenced to 25 years in jail.
But in March 2015, Italy's highest court overturned that decision - the final ruling.
Last year, the police found Mr Sollecito near the Italian border and confiscated his passport. He remained free while awaiting the Supreme Court's decision.
Amanda Knox, residing in the US, also had her conviction overturned. She had been sentenced to 28 years and six months.
From the start of the highly publicised case, Ms Knox - who lived with Ms Kercher - became the primary focus of media attention, leaving Mr Sollecito a somewhat shadowy figure in the background.
"Even though Amanda and I shared the same unjust fate, the case was always about her," the Italian wrote in his 2012 memoir Honor Bound: My Journey to Hell and Back with Amanda Knox.
"I vanished so far from public view that I thought of myselfâ€¦ as Mr Nobody."
The book was released after the former couple's acquittal and thrust Sollecito into the limelight for the first time.
In it, he describes how he refused to cave in to pressure from his family to testify against his then girlfriend. He said his main aim had been to "save" Amanda from finishing her days in prison.
"If I had changed my testimony, Amanda would have remained behind bars for the rest of her life, not just the 26 years to which she was originally sentenced. And that was something my conscience could never permit."
The son of a successful urologist, Raffaele Sollecito was born on 26 March 1984 in the southern Italian city of Giovinazzo.
He was on the verge of completing a computer science degree at Perugia University when he met Amanda Knox, an exchange student from Seattle, at a classical music concert in October 2007. Their encounter took place just days before Ms Kercher's death.
"It was a really nice relationship," he said in an interview.
"In that period she was much more at my apartment than in her one. It was an intense story, it was the start. It was crazy."
It was the same flat - bought for Mr Sollecito by his parents - where Ms Knox claimed she spent the night when Ms Kercher was murdered. This contradicted reports of her initial police statement, which originally placed her at the scene of the crime.
Mr Sollecito's defence was that on the night of the murder he was at home surfing the internet - although police said his computer records did not support the alibi.
He has also admitted smoking marijuana at the time. Both Mr Sollecito and Ms Knox admitted a fondness for the drug - which they blamed for their inability to recall their movements on the night Ms Kercher died.
In a letter to an Italian magazine he wrote: "One morning you return to her house and find a big mess. The problems begin: the police arrive, break down the locked door to a bedroom and discover the lifeless body of one of her (Amanda's) friends. From then on they suspect everyone and everything."
The pair's defence was not helped by CCTV evidence leaked to the Italian press, reportedly showing them buying erotic lingerie and discussing "wild sex" barely 24 hours after Ms Kercher's death.
Mr Sollecito's DNA was found on Ms Kercher's bra clasp.
In the end, the jury sided with the prosecution and found them both guilty. Mr Sollecito's impassive face provided a stark contrast to Ms Knox who broke down in tears in the courtroom.
Sent to separate prisons, Mr Sollecito later said of Ms Knox that her image continued to conjure up "the image of a nightmare".
In letters from his cell, he wrote: "The Amanda I know... lives a carefree life. Her only thought is the pursuit of pleasure."
"But," he added, "even the thought that she could be a killer is impossible for me."
The pair spent four years in jail before their conviction was overturned in October 2011 on the grounds that DNA evidence was flawed.
Appearing on US talk shows, Mr Sollecito revealed that he still shared "a really strong bond" with Ms Knox, whom he had visited in Seattle a few months after their release.
"After she hugged me, I realised that Amanda is the Amanda that I dated for that week. She's not the Amanda that was the ghost Amanda during those four years," he said in an interview with ABC.
When asked if they were still dating, he replied: "No, no - she's with another boyfriend and I am going on with my life. We are really good friends now but no, no there is nothing between us now."
In July last year he distanced his legal case from hers saying that Ms Knox was not present in his house at the time of Ms Kercher's murder as she has claimed.
The BBC's Ruth Alexander met Mr Sollecito in Perugia in August last year and said although he sounded exasperated at times over the accusations made against him, he only rebuffed questions about Amanda Knox.
"I really don't want to make any comment or be a defence team for her," he said.


Tanzania's president has sacked two senior officials for opening a fake account to siphon money from an earthquake fund, his office has said.

An accountant had been suspended for being part of the plan to take money collected for earthquake victims, John Magufuli's office added in a statement.
At least 16 people died and 200 were wounded in the 10 September earthquake in the northern Kagera region.
Foreign governments have donated money to the earthquake fund.
On Tuesday, India's government donated 545m Tanzanian shillings ($250,000; Â£190,000) towards the fund, Tanzania's privately owned Citizen newspaper reports.
The two dismissed officials had opened a bank account which "bears the same name as the one opened by the government," the statement said.
The two, along with the suspended official, intended to "use the account to collect money for their benefit while it was meant to help the victims" of the earthquake.
Amantius Msole, Kagera's regional administrative secretary, and Steven Makonda, Bukoba city municipal council director, were fired while accountant Simbaufoo Swai had been suspended, local media reports.
The three have not yet commented on the allegations.
The  magnitude 5.7 earthquake caused significant damage to buildings in Bukoba, a city of more than 70,000 people where most casualties were reported.
Tremors were felt as far away as western Kenya.
East Africa's Great Rift Valley runs along a geological fault line but major earthquakes there are rare.
A magnitude six quake struck the Tanzanian town of Arusha, east of Bukoba, in July 2007.


Coneygree, who won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March, has been sidelined until next year with an injury.

The horse - the first novice to win the Gold Cup for over 40 years - will miss the festive meetings.
Some reports have suggested the eight-year-old is out for the season.
Sara Bradstock, wife of trainer Mark, told the Racing Post, "Coneygree won't run in the King George (at Kempton on Boxing Day) having sustained a new injury."
She added: "He's being assessed by vets this morning."


The Scotland Office said there were no plans to change its name after a revamp of its social media accounts.

The office has rebranded its Facebook page and Twitter accounts to UK Government for Scotland and @UKGovScotland.
The former @ScotlandOffice handle was taken over by someone running a parody, but it has since been suspended.
The Scotland Office said the branding was to explain what the department does and that no major changes are planned.


Animal rights activists in India have challenged a government order lifting a ban on Jallikattu, a form of bull fighting which has been popular for centuries in the state of Tamil Nadu.

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the petition on Tuesday.
At the annual festival held in January, thousands of men chase the bulls to grab prizes tied to their horns.
The Supreme Court imposed the ban in 2014 following objections from animal rights activists.
In its order, the Supreme Court had said that use of bulls in the sport "severely harmed" the animals and was an offence under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, but last Friday the government issued an order lifting the ban.
The sport is due to resume this month, after no events were held last year.
But on Monday, the Animal Welfare Board of India, animal rights groups and activists filed six petitions in the court, challenging the "cruel sport".
"We have petitioned the Supreme Court to immediately quash the government order," one of the petitioners, Gauri Maulekhi of People for Animals, told the BBC.
"The government order is against every law and ethic, it is a politically-motivated, people-pleasing exercise," she said.
In Jallikattu, bulls are released from pens, with bullfighters supposed to hold on to the animals hump for about 15-20 metres or three jumps of the bull to win the prize.
The ban had been criticised by political parties and cultural organisations in the state who had argued that Jallikattu was a part of their cultural tradition.
Jallikattu is more than 2,000 years old and considered to be one of the oldest sports still practised in the modern era.
Over the years, scores of people have been gored or trampled to death in the contests.
Hundreds, including spectators, have been mauled or injured.


A nugget of gold found in a river in the Southern Uplands is thought to be the most significant discovery in Scotland in the past 70 years.

The 20 carat golden nugget, which weighed about 18.1g (0.6oz), has an estimated value of £10,000.
It was discovered by a Canadian man during a gold panning course near Wanlockhead in the Lowther Hills.
However the man, known as John, was so unimpressed by his discovery, he almost threw it back in the water.
He said: "We were a few minutes into panning when I found the nugget with a bean tin, an underwater viewing tin with a glass base.
"I saw the piece lying just under the surface of the water and picked it up. It didn't look like much and I was just about to throw it back when I thought I should double-check with Leon first.
"I said 'is this gold?' and couldn't understand his excitement.
"Looking at the size of the piece I still can't believe it's such a big deal but it's very interesting to watch the reactions."
His instructor, Leon Kirk, said the last significant find of Scottish gold was a fraction of the size.
It was found in the area in 2002 and it weighed 4.1g (0.14oz).
"I like to tell my students that everyone goes home with a flake or two of gold, but this is exceptional," Mr Kirk said.
"I always knew there were sizable nuggets in these hills but, in my decades of panning, have only found very small pieces or flakes."
He added: "This is such a major discovery that people will be talking about it in 30 years' time."
Gold nuggets of this size are extremely rare in Scotland and any that are found command a premium price.
Mr Kirk said: "I am over the moon. This find leaves a really positive message that there are still big nuggets out there to be found just a few inches beneath the water."
The gold panning course operates out of Wanlockhead's Museum of Lead Mining.
Museum trustee Gerard Godfrey said: "We are absolutely delighted with such a significant find. No doubt there will be a mini gold rush once this gets out but we are very happy with that.
"We welcome responsible panners to the area and have all the equipment and information necessary for experienced or novice enthusiasts.
"There is now no doubt that there are some very large pieces of gold in these hills which are just waiting to be discovered."


Nintendo has reported a bigger first-quarter loss than expected, causing its share price to tumble.

The Japanese company posted a 9.9bn yen ($97m; Â£57m) deficit for the April-to-June months, compared with an 8.6bn yen profit for the same period a year earlier.
Sales were 8% lower, despite the release of a Mario Kart game in May - one of its most popular franchises.
The firm did not alter its prediction of a return to full-year profit.
It sank to a loss in its last financial year.
Nintendo said it expected the release of key titles over the coming months to boost demand before the critical Christmas shopping season.
These include new Super Smash Bros fighting games for its Wii U and 3DS consoles, as well as the action title Hyrule Warriors for the living-room machine and two Pokemon monster-collecting remakes for the handheld device.
Nintendo won praise for the innovative titles it showcased at the recent E3 video games expo in Los Angeles, where it unveiled a new open-world Legends of Zelda title and the paintball arena shooter Splatoon, both due to be released in 2015.
But one analyst suggested the releases would come too late.
"They have a relatively good games pipeline, but the big question is about its hardware," said Ed Barton, a games industry analyst at the Ovum consultancy.
"The Wii U is so far behind now, and the perception of the audience that it's a relatively under-powered console compared to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One is now pretty firmly cemented.
"Given how inaccurate some of Nintendo's forecasts have been going into their results in terms of hardware and software sales in the past, I'm not optimistic."
Nintendo originally forecast it would sell nine million Wii Us in its last financial year. In May it revealed it had sold only about 2.7 million units despite a price cut.
A further 510,000 Wii Us were sold over the most recent quarter, taking the total tally since its 2012 launch to 6.7 million consoles sold.
Nintendo did not host a conference call following the earnings release, as it normally does, meaning analysts were unable to quiz executives about the progress of previously announced plans to establish a health division and release new devices for emerging markets.
Its president, Satoru Iwata, had previously cancelled appearances at E3 and the firm's annual shareholders' meeting after doctors found a "growth" in his bile duct, requiring him to have surgery.
He wrote a letter late last month saying he had resumed work "by email and by other means" but was not yet ready to return to his regular schedule.
Documents posted online do, however, offer a couple of other insights:
The news was released after the close of the Japanese markets, but Nintendo stock traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange had fallen about 6% from its opening price by early afternoon.


Derby County have signed Middlesbrough midfielder Julien de Sart on loan for the rest of the season.

The Belgium Under-21 international defensive midfielder joined Boro from Standard Liege in February 2016, for an undisclosed fee of about £2m.
De Sart, 22, has made three appearances for the Riverside club, with his only start coming in the League Cup against Fulham in August 2016.
"He is a talented player with plenty of potential," said boss Steve McClaren.
De Sart is eligible for the FA Cup third-round tie at West Brom on Saturday.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


Marine experts say rarely seen Risso's dolphins spotted near Anglesey are one of the largest pods ever witnessed off the Welsh coast.

More than 50 of the marine mammals were sighted at the weekend in the sea between Point Lynas and Porthwen.
Sea Watch Foundation director Dr Peter Evans said he came across several groups on Saturday and Sunday.
He described the numbers gathered in Welsh waters as "exceptional".
The dolphin species is not a common visitor to UK shores, with only a handful normally seen in this area every year.
"They do come to the same areas every year - but normally there are no more than about 10 or a dozen at most," said Dr Evans.
The Risso's dolphin is the largest of the species, with adults appearing almost white, which has seen them sometimes mistaken for killer whales.
There were also large numbers of younger animals in the groups, which are a darker grey and brown.
"These were engaged in lots of playful behaviour, swimming in a tight bunch often in direct contact with one another," said Dr Evans.
The mammals feed on squid, octopus and cuttlefish, which experts believe are the clue to why so many of the dolphins have appeared.
"I imagine there is plenty of food around at the moment, and that is what has attracted them," he said.
The sightings will help provide vital scientific data for the Sea Watch Foundation and researchers, as the migration patterns of the dolphins are still shrouded in mystery.
Some images snapped by Dr Evans show known individual dolphins, identified by scars, and will be compared with photographs of Risso's dolphins seen recently near the Isle of Man.
Dr Evans said it will help establish the movements of the groups over the autumn months, before they disappear into deeper westerly waters for the winter - returning to the Irish Sea in the spring.
He also urged anyone spotting dolphins off the Welsh coast to let the Sea Watch Foundation know, so they can continue to monitor and help protect dolphin populations.


Co-manager Heimir Hallgrimsson wants to build on Iceland's "fairytale" journey to the quarter-finals of Euro 2016 by qualifying for the next World Cup.

Iceland, the smallest nation to qualify for a major finals, beat England in the last 16 before losing 5-2 to France.
"The World Cup is what we talked about before this tournament," Hallgrimsson said. "Success is not a destination but a journey in the right direction.
"We are going in the right direction and we should build upon this."
Hallgrimsson masterminded Iceland's success alongside Swedish co-manager Lars Lagerback but will take his country into the World Cup qualifiers on his own.
They will play Croatia, Ukraine, Turkey and Finland with just one team qualifying automatically for the finals in Russia in 2018.
Hallgrimsson, 49, a former dentist, told the BBC World Service: "People probably expect now that Iceland qualifies for every major tournament.
"Next is the World Cup. We have a tough group and it's tough to be the top team.
"We could use this and should use this as a brick to build on. That's our task."
Swansea midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson, Iceland's most high-profile player, echoed those views.
"This has been a fairytale story around the world: a small nation going all the way to the quarter finals," he said.
"We will set the target to go all the way to the World Cup. It will be very difficult, we have got some really good teams in our group.
"But we will go away for a couple of weeks then set our minds to it."
Iceland president Olafur Ragnar Grimsson puts the team's performance down to forward planning and says it has brought the whole nation together.
He said: "Twenty years ago we started a systematic training programme for young kids in football and the team is now the first generation that produces the result of that training programme.
"But of course it was for us not just about football.
"It became a national journey which brought the nation together in an extraordinary way and proved that through training and education and team spirit you can indeed excel, even if you come from a small country."


One of America's largest cinema chains, Regal, is now searching bags of film-goers following several attacks on movie theatres across the US.

Regal's updated policy says it wants customers and staff "to feel comfortable and safe" in its cinemas.
It is not clear when it began, but reports say some people had their bags checked at some of the company's 570 cinemas this week.
Earlier this month, a man attacked cinema-goers in Tennessee with an axe.
He was shot dead by Nashville police, but no-one else was killed.
"Security issues have become a daily part of our lives in America," Regal Entertainment Group's admission policy now reads on the company's website. The company has not yet commented publicly on the new regulations.
"To ensure the safety of our guests and employees, backpacks and bags of any kind are subject to inspection prior to admission," it continues.
Last week, police were deployed outside the Regal cinema in Los Angeles ahead of the premiere of the film Straight Outta Compton.
Two weeks before the Nashville attack, two people were shot dead and nine others injured when a man attacked a cinema in Lafayette, Louisiana.
The change in policy also comes the same month Colorado theatre killer, James Holmes, was given a life sentence for killing 12 people and injuring 70 others at a screening of a Batman film in 2012.


Oil giant Shell is being sued in London for the second time in five years over spills in the Niger Delta.

Two communities are claiming compensation and want Shell to clean up their land.
Shell said it is at an "early stage" in reviewing the claims and that the case should be heard in Nigeria.
The Ogale community of about 40,000 people in Rivers State, on the coast of Nigeria, who are mainly farmers or fishermen, are some of the claimants.
Their case is being handled by law firm Leigh Day.
Spills since 1989 have meant they don't have clean drinking water, farmland or rivers, their claim says.
It points to a November 2015 report by Amnesty International which says four spill sites Shell says it planned to clean up are still contaminated.
The first court hearing at the Technology and Construction Court, held on Wednesday, found that the claimants can can lodge a case against Shell's Nigerian business, known as Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).  Shell declined to comment on the ruling.
Amnesty's findings followed a 2011 report by United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) which found water contaminated with oil by-products including benzene, thought to be a carcinogen. It suggested a clean up, but said a "sustainable recovery" of the area could take up to 30 years.
Shell says it has agreed a clean-up plan.
"In mid-2015 SPDC JV, along with the government, UNEP and representatives of the Ogoni community, agreed to an 18-month roadmap to fast-track the environmental clean-up and remediation of Ogoniland which includes a governance framework," it said in a statement.
The Bille community, who are mainly fishermen and are the other party to sue, claims Shell should be liable for "failing to protect their pipelines from damage caused by third parties", according to Leigh Day.
Pipelines in the area have been targets for thieves who steal crude oil and try to refine it locally. This has lead to more spills and damage though explosions.
"Both Bille and Ogale are areas heavily impacted by crude oil theft, pipeline sabotage and illegal refining which remain the main sources of pollution across the Niger Delta.
"Ogale is in Ogoniland and it is important to note that SPDC has produced no oil or gas in Ogoniland since 1993.  Access to the area has been limited following a rise in violence, threats to staff and attacks on facilities," Shell said.
But the communities say Shell pipelines lack the technology to detect and shut off leaks, whatever the cause.
Daniel Leader, partner at Leigh Day said: "It is scandalous that four years after the UNEP Report Shell is yet to clean up its oil in either Ogale or Bille.   Our client's patience has now run out and we intend to force Shell to act since it is clear they have no intention of doing so on their own."
In January last year, Shell agreed to an $84m (Â£55m) settlement with residents of the Bodo community in the Niger Delta for two oil spills.
The same law firm, Leigh Day, said their 15,600 clients would receive $3,300 each for losses caused by the spills.
The remaining $30m would be left for the community, which Leigh Day said was "devastated by the two massive oil spills in 2008 and 2009".
That dispute began in 2011.
During the trial emails, letters and internal reports submitted to a court in London, and seen by the BBC, showed that senior Shell employees were concerned before the spill that Shell's pipelines in the area had reached the end of their lives and needed replacing to avoid danger to lives, the environment and the economy.
Two spills in 2008 affected about 35 sq miles (90 sq km) in southern Nigeria, according to the Bodo community which sued Shell.
Shell said at the time it "dismisses the suggestion that it has knowingly continued to use a pipeline that is not safe to operate".


Solicitors and barristers in Northern Ireland have been granted permission to take legal action to try to overturn planned cuts to the legal aid budget.

A judge granted the Law Society and Bar Council leave to seek a judicial review of Justice Minister David Ford's rules.
The hearing is scheduled to take place in September.
A barrister representing the two bodies said the reduced payments did not give lawyers fair reward for their work to ensure defendants got a fair trial.
"They will have a devastating impact on the criminal justice system both now and in the future," said Karen Quinlivan QC.
"Our concern is it will lead to an erosion in due course of advocacy and representation."
She added: "If we are successful we will be seeking to quash retrospectively the unlawful rules."
Mr Ford, who is facing cuts to his departmental budget along with other Northern Ireland Executive ministers, introduced new rules this month that reduce the legal aid payments available to lawyers who undertake criminal case work.
Earlier this week, barristers who are part of the Criminal Bar Association withdrew from all new criminal cases requiring legal aid, in protest against the reduced payments.
A barrister for the minister told the court he had received 2,000 pages of legal exhibits as part of the challenge, with further documentation from a forensic accountant's report still to come.
Seeking six weeks to assess the material, Tony McGleenan QC said: "We have quite a substantial body of work in responding to this."
Granting leave to seek a judicial review, the judge agreed to list the case for a full, week-long hearing in September.
In a statement, Mr Ford said he would be "robustly defending the legal challenge".
"The levels of remuneration were set following detailed analysis; adjusted following consultation; and have been through the legislative process," he said.
"Given that this challenge is now before the courts, I will not be making any further public comment on the issue until the legal process is completed.
"However, my department will monitor the impact the withdrawal of services will have on the courts and they will engage with all sectors of the justice system to try to mitigate any impact on defendants, victims and witnesses."


Nine people have been arrested by police in Austria on suspicion of planning to join Islamist militant groups in Syria.

The suspects were detained close to the country's border and were being questioned, reports from Vienna say.
The interior ministry said they were all Chechens with Russian citizenship who had been granted asylum in Austria.
Hundreds of European Muslims are known to have travelled to Syria to fight in the country's civil war.
EU member states are trying to prevent radicalisation at home and are also taking measures to tackle the security threat from jihadists returning from Syria.
Last May, four people were murdered at the Brussels Jewish museum. A French Islamist who had returned from Syria has been accused of carrying out the attack.
The nine people detained in Austria were arrested in the southern province of Carinthia and Burgenland in the west, reports said.
Police in Vienna were said to be deciding whether to remand them in custody.
If they are remanded, the interior ministry has said it will start the process of withdrawing their asylum status.
"There can only be a zero-tolerance policy against jihadists," Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner was quoted as saying.


New Zealand have become the first top-tier nation to win 18 consecutive Tests after beating Australia 37-10 in the Bledisloe Cup.

The Wallabies, who have not won at Auckland's Eden Park since 1986, had a try disallowed in a close first half.
However, winger Julian Savea scored two tries after the break to help the All Blacks dominate the closing stages.
Hooker Dane Coles scored the hosts' sixth try as Australia slipped to their third defeat of the competition.
New Zealand beat the record of 17 straight Test wins set by themselves between 1965 and 1969.
That was matched by South Africa in the late 1990s and the All Blacks again before they were beaten by Australia in 2014.


Italian Premier Enrico Letta has won a confidence vote after a last-minute U-turn by former PM Silvio Berlusconi.

Berlusconi had initially promised to topple the government by withdrawing his party's support - a move which prompted the Senate vote.
But he backed down when it became clear that several of his senators would back the government.
Mr Letta had earlier said that if he were defeated in the vote, it might prove a "fatal risk" for Italy.
In the event he won easily: the Senate voted 235 to 70 in favour of the government.
Some of Berlusconi's most hardline followers left the chamber and did not vote at all.
The result of the vote increases the possibility of Berlusconi being thrown out of the Senate on the grounds he is a convicted criminal.
On Friday a Senate committee is due to vote on whether to strip him of his seat following his conviction for tax fraud.
As he left the Senate building on Wednesday, people outside greeted him with catcalls, whistles and cries of "go away".
By Alan Johnston BBC News, Rome
Silvio Berlusconi believed he was in a position to torpedo this government.
And when he pulled out his ministers, he did tear a hole in it. But he did not manage to sink it.
It was going to be patched up with the help of rebels from his own ranks, and go sailing on.
As the scale of the mutiny became clear, Mr Berlusconi knew he could only try to limit the damage.
When he rose to speak he was forced into a humiliating U-turn.
He said he and his whole party would support the government that he had just tried to destroy.
Mr Berlusconi emerges from this affair weakened - his credibility undermined. His capacity to rock Italian politics to its core has been diminished.
Last weekend, Berlusconi demanded that five ministers from his centre-right People of Freedom party (PDL) leave the government and bring it down.
But some of his closest colleagues said they would defy him, and the BBC's Alan Johnston in Rome says it gradually became clear that Berlusconi had badly overreached himself.
Our correspondent says the former prime minister has been forced into a humiliating climbdown, and will emerge a weakened figure with his capacity to influence Italian politics diminished.
But Berlusconi's close ally Renato Schifani insisted he had not been weakened by the vote, telling Italian news agencies that his leadership "has been strengthened".
When he rose to speak in the Senate to announce his turnaround, Berlusconi said: "Italy needs a government that can produce structural and institutional reforms. We have decided, not without internal travail, to back the confidence vote."
The Milan stock exchange gained nearly 2% on the announcement.
In his address to the Senate, Mr Letta defended his government's performance and said Italy "runs a risk, a fatal risk" if it were to fall.
He said: "Give us your confidence to realise [our] objectives. Give us your confidence for all that has been accomplished... a confidence vote for Italy and Italians.''
Berlusconi had accused Mr Letta of allowing his "political assassination through judicial means" - a reference to Berlusconi's criminal conviction for tax fraud in August.
Berlusconi said he asked his ministers to defy the government to protest against an impending rise in VAT, not because of the attempts to throw him out of the Senate.
But the prime minister accused Berlusconi of using the VAT issue as an "alibi" for his own personal concerns.
He refused to accept the resignation of the five PDL ministers and hence called the vote of confidence.
Berlusconi's plan to bring the government down began to unravel when the ministers signalled their own unwillingness to leave the government, and even his deputy and party secretary, Angelino Alfano, said that PDL members should back Mr Letta.
Analysts say the crisis threatened to hamper badly needed reforms to tackle Italy's economic problems that include debt, recession and high youth unemployment.
Mr Letta's cross-party alliance was formed in April after two months of political deadlock following an inconclusive election.
Berlusconi dominated Italian politics for nearly two decades before resigning in November 2011, in the midst of a storm over the failing economy.
Despite legal woes and sex scandals, the 77-year-old billionaire has served as prime minister three times.
He was ousted from power in 2011, but nearly came back again earlier this year after an effective election campaign won him almost a third of the vote.
But recently it appears that his problems have begun to catch up with him.
He has been convicted for tax fraud - for which he will have to serve a one-year sentence, probably under house arrest or via community service because of his age.
He has also been sentenced to seven years in jail for paying for sex with 17-year-old prostitute Karima El-Mahroug, known as "Ruby the Heart Stealer", and for abuse of office. He is appealing against the verdict.
Despite some analysts saying his failure to topple the government spells his end in Italian politics, others are less sure, pointing out that he has endured numerous political setbacks in the past, only to re-emerge seemingly unscathed.
Lucio Malan, a senator from his party, told the BBC that Berlusconi would still be "the person who represents so many electors in Italy".


A roadside bomb in Afghanistan has killed at least 12 members of the same family, including women and children, in southern Helmand province.

The blast struck the family's van in the Marjah district, a Taliban stronghold, local police chief Nabil Jan Mullahkhail told reporters.
Several people were injured and the death toll could rise, he added.
Violence has increased across the country since the departure of most US and Nato forces last year.
The family had been fleeing the area after hearing a government offensive against the Taliban was imminent, a relative told the AP news agency.
The attack is yet to be claimed by any group but the Taliban routinely plant roadside bombs in the area to target Afghan security forces.
In February, the United Nations said more than 10,000 civilians had been killed or injured in Afghanistan in 2014, the highest number since 2009.
That figure included 3,699 civilian deaths, up 25% from 2013.


Northampton full-back Ben Foden says England head coach Eddie Jones has told him to "get back to running rugby".

The 30-year-old won the last of his 34 caps against New Zealand in 2013.
"I had a phone call from Eddie before he picked the England squad saying I need to get back to the running rugby and get hands on the ball in the wide channels," said Foden.
"That's the first time anyone's ever told me that from England - it was always the other way around."
He added to BBC Radio Northampton: "They always said my counter game was good and I was good with ball in the wide channels but the rest of the game needed working on so it was quite bizarre for him to turn around and say that to me."
Saints, losing Premiership semi-finalists last season, have struggled for form this term and are currently seven points off fourth-placed Harlequins in sixth.
And Foden said his conversation with Jones was linked to the problems his club side have had.
"It just shows where we are as a Northampton back-line, we haven't been firing," he added.
"Individually, I haven't been getting the ball in the wide channels and doing what I used to do in a Northampton Saints shirt.
"Hopefully that will light a fire for a few of us - I think Luther [Burrell] had the same conversation as well."


A woman's body has been discovered at a beach on Anglesey, police have said.

Emergency services were called to Holyhead's Newry Beach at about 22:50 GMT on Sunday.
The woman was pronounced dead at the scene. Officers believe she is local to the area, although no formal identification has taken place.
The death is not being treated as suspicious and the coroner as been informed.
Insp Jason Higgins of North Wales Police said: "We are now in the process of locating and informing her family. Our thoughts are with them at this very difficult time"


Apple is to put up the price it charges for apps in the UK, India and Turkey.

UK costs will numerically match those of the US, meaning that a program that costs $0.99 will now be 99p.
That represents a 25% rise over the previous currency conversion, which was 79p.
"Price tiers on the App Store are set internationally on the basis of several factors, including currency exchange rates, business practices, taxes, and the cost of doing business," it said.
"These factors vary from region to region and over time."
The rise will also affect in-app purchases but not subscription charges.
A spokeswoman for Google was unable to comment about whether it had plans to alter prices on its Play store for Android apps.
Apple had already adjusted the UK prices of its iPhones and iPads in September and then its Mac computers in October by a similar degree.
Other tech firms to have announced price rises in the country in the months following the Brexit vote - which has been linked to a fall in sterling's value - include Microsoft, Dell, Tesla and HP.
To mitigate the impact of the latest increase, Apple is introducing new lower-price tiers.
Publishers will be able to charge users 49p or 79p for purchases but will have to re-price their products to do so.
"I don't think many publishers will respond to that change," commented Ben Dodson, an app consultant and developer of Music Tracker among other software.
"It's just throwing money away and there's no reason to give people in the UK a discount.
"I won't be discounting my own apps."
At present, $1 trades for 82p.
However, the price quoted by Apple in the UK version of its store includes the 20% VAT sales tax. In the US, state sales taxes are not included in advertised prices but are added at the point of sale.
"It was certainly inevitable that Apple would change the price point for apps in the App Store to reflect currency changes," commented Ian Fogg from the IHS Technology consultancy.
"But this is a normal part of the way the store works because it does not have dynamically changing prices that would change gradually."
The cost of a $0.99 app will become 80 rupees in India, representing a 33% rise from the previous price of 60 rupees.
In Turkey it will change from 2.69 to 3.49 lira, which is a gain of 30%.
The news site 9to5Mac was first to report the development.
It said the change would occur over the next seven days.
Apple has also altered the cost of apps in Romania and Russia to take account of local changes to VAT made at the start of the year.


The government is set to announce "significant" changes to its planned rules on an in-out EU referendum.

The changes will focus on the so-called purdah rules, which stop ministers using public money to campaign for one side, from 28 days before such a vote.
The government had wanted to suspend these laws so ministers could continue to discuss European matters in public.
Some Tories argued this would favour the pro-EU camp and now restrictions are likely to stay but with exceptions.
The Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 sets out a 28-day period ahead of any referendum, during which ministers, government departments and local authorities are banned from publishing material relating to the issue in question.
Prime Minister David Cameron claimed suspending these rules was necessary to allow the government to continue dealing with EU matters during the referendum period.
Ministers also said the purdah rules would stop them being able to defend the national interest in Brussels.
In June, 27 Tory MPs rebelled against the government plans for suspension of the rules, which avoided defeat only because Labour chose to abstain.
Then in July a report from the Public Administration Committee said it was also unconvinced by ministers' arguments.
In a critical report, it said such a move would "cast a shadow of doubt over the propriety" of the referendum on whether the UK should remain in the EU or leave.
BBC deputy political editor James Landale said the changes - set to be tabled later - were "designed to reassure the government's critics".
He added: "The changes are expected to restore the restrictions on ministers, with some exceptions."
One Whitehall source told the BBC: "There will be a pretty significant shift in the government position.
"There is no wish within the government to be in a position where doubt is cast on the fairness of the referendum.
"It has got to be fair. And it has got to be seen to be fair."
The amendments have to be published on Wednesday so there is time for MPs to consider them before debating and voting on them next Monday.
Meanwhile, allies of Mr Cameron, who has pledged to hold an EU referendum by 2017, are contemplating staging it as early as next April, BBC Newsnight understands.
Senior Tories would like to get the referendum staged earlier in Mr Cameron's second term, to allow him to capitalise on what Conservatives think could be Labour Party infighting over the potential election of leadership hopeful, Jeremy Corbyn, the programme reported.
A government source said a referendum in April was "possible" but pointed out that the referendum legislation was still likely to be held up in the House of Lords, as peers tried to amend it.
The SNP's foreign affairs spokesman Alex Salmond told Newsnight that there was no way the government would get parliamentary approval - the support not just of Tories but of opposition parties too - for a referendum as early as April 2016.
On Tuesday, the government accepted the Electoral Commission's recommendations to scrap plans for a Yes/No vote and instead ask voters if they want to "remain in" or "leave the EU".


An inaugural crime novel festival is getting under way in Aberdeen.

Granite Noir is being held from Friday until Sunday.
Guests include crime writers Christopher Brookmyre, Stuart MacBride and Denise Mina, as well as authors from Scandinavia.
The festival has been organised by Aberdeen Performing Arts (APA), the Belmont Filmhouse, Aberdeen City Council's Library and Archive, and freelance writer Lee Randall.
APA chief executive Jane Spiers added: "We're thrilled to be launching this new festival in the city and we're particularly proud to be heralding Scottish talent, as well as welcoming some masters of Nordic Noir.
"Sales of Nordic Noir books are soaring and the genre has also become incredibly popular on television, with programmes such as The Bridge, Wallander and The Killing gaining mass followings.
"There will be something for everyone, from crime novel enthusiasts through to those just discovering the genre, from aspiring authors to young creatives who love to put pen to paper."


The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) is embarking on its first tour of the US in 35 years.

The orchestra, together with music director Peter Oundjian and star violinist Nicola Benedetti, will perform throughout the state of Florida over the 10 days from Monday.
RSNO tours US for first time in 35 years
When the orchestra departed for Philadelphia via Shannon Airport in Ireland and New York on 19 October 1982, my first son Jonathan was just eight months old.
A few weeks ago he celebrated his 35th birthday. Johnny is now married and has two daughters of his own.
How quickly time passes.
I remember the orchestra's percussionist Alan Stark's outrage at Shannon Airport when it was revealed that a pint of draught Guinness cost the princely sum of 99p.
The '82 tour (I was also on the 1975 US tour) was exactly three weeks long, more than the forthcoming Florida tour.
Jonathan was noticeably older when he and Moira came to meet me at Glasgow Airport on my return.
I see from the schedule that there were 16 concerts. Wow! It's a wonder that any of my family recognised me when I got back.
From Philadelphia we travelled by coach (three coaches required to transport the whole orchestra) to Worcester near Boston, then on to Long Island, Worcester again (different hall), then Amherst.
We flew to Chicago where E.T. The Extra Terrestrial was showing at the cinemas.
I decided to go to see one of the Rocky films, and remember the audience getting very excited at the shooting scenes while a young mother sitting somewhere behind me was breastfeeding her small baby.
The orchestra management were quite nervous about us leaving the hotel in Chicago on the free day there but I think most of us managed to get to the Hancock Center and Sears Tower.
We later heard that there had been a shoot-out at a pub close to the hotel.
From Chicago we flew to Columbia in South Carolina.
Programmes for the tour, which was conducted by our music director at the time, Sir Alexander Gibson, mainly included Sibelius' Symphonies Two and Five, and Mahler's Symphony No 4.
A mock rendition of the opening of Mahler's Fourth Symphony, with its sleigh bell intro, was provided by SNO Bass player Jim Hamilton nearly every day on the 3rd coach, using empty beer cans shaken rhythmically inside a black bin bag.
There was no lack of entertainment on the 3rd coach.
Britten, Richard Strauss, Elgar, Mozart, Mendelssohn and Brahms were also represented; the latter's first Piano Concerto being played by one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century, the distinguished Claudio Arrau.
Scottish soprano Margaret Marshall was the soloist in the last movement of Mahler 4.
More concerts followed in Radford Virginia and Knoxville Tennessee.
On 31 October we flew to Ottawa via Pittsburgh.
After a concert and free day there, we were bussed to the New Massey Hall in Toronto.
Concert 12 was in Hartford, Connecticut followed by Wilmington, Delaware (2 concerts).
It was amazing that we had any energy left for the last (and probably the most important) concerts in Washington DC (Kennedy Center) and New York (Carnegie Hall).
I'm sure I wouldn't have the energy to do a tour like that again.
It certainly was quite an experience though.
I still can't listen to Mahler 4 without imagining the sound of empty lager cans and a bus full of lustily singing musicians.
The orchestra gave its first North American tour in November 1975 to mark the 25th anniversary of the transformation of the Scottish Orchestra to the Scottish National Orchestra.
It was a great undertaking with 17 concerts given over three weeks in different cities from Ottawa in the north to Danville, Kentucky, in the south - finishing up with concerts in New York and Washington.
I was on the board of the orchestra back in 1975 and had the pleasure of travelling with them.
All the concerts were conducted by Alexander Gibson with soloists John Lill, Michael D Davis and Keith Pearson - the latter two being respectively leader and principal clarinet.
The repertoire was extensive (14 different works) including one world premiere (Iain Hamilton's Aurora  ) and two other substantial contemporary works by Scottish composers - Hamilton's Violin Concerto and Musgrave's Clarinet Concerto.
The concert halls were generally much larger than is usual in Europe, having capacities from 3,000 to 6,000.
Sam Borwho, who had recently retired as leader, travelled with us to sit out front and assist Alex Gibson with advice on balance issues during rehearsals.
The highlight concert for me was the penultimate one in Carnegie Hall, which had the premiere performance of Aurora in the presence of its composer and concluded with Elgar's Enigma Variations.
It was quite the most overwhelming performance of the piece I have heard in more than 60 years of concert-going, with the final bars reinforced by the optional organ part.
It was the memory of that performance which many years later fired my determination that the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall should have an organ, which I am delighted to say it now has.
That Carnegie Hall concert was also notable for a number of the audience deciding that Highland Dress or rather their perception of Highland Dress was appropriate.
Most of them looked as though they had strayed from a production of Brigadoon.
In Washington we were invited to a reception at the British Embassy where Sir Robert Mayer, then aged 95, was staying as a guest of the Ambassador.
Sir Robert spent most of his life and wealth promoting music for young people until his death at the great age of 105.
It was a thrill to meet and speak to someone who at the age of 11 had met Brahms and played one of his piano works for him.


Specific information about the number of EU migrants paying tax and claiming benefits in the UK will be published in the run-up to June's EU referendum.

The move to release data on the number of National Insurance numbers actively used by EU citizens follows pressure from Eurosceptic MPs and economists.
They have long argued official figures on inward migration from the EU vastly underestimate the true numbers.
Revenue and Customs said it would give a "fuller picture" of migration trends.
The BBC's deputy political editor Norman Smith said the figures, which could emerge by the end of April, had the potential to have an "incendiary effect" on the referendum campaign.
Voters will decide on 23 June whether the UK should remain in the EU or leave, with immigration expected to be a key battleground.
Those campaigning to leave the EU argue the UK cannot control levels of migration from Europe - which have risen sharply in the past decade - while remaining a member and abiding by the EU's rules on the free movement of people.
Reality Check: Are NI numbers a good migration measure?
Campaigners to leave the European Union have been badgering the government about the reliability of the official immigration statistics.
Nigel Farage is wondering why, as Jonathan Portes has been pointing out, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures for migration to the UK from other EU countries is so much lower than the number of National Insurance numbers allocated to EU nationals.
According to the most recent comparable statistics, migration to the UK from the rest of the EU was 257,000 in the year to September 2015, but during the same period, 655,000 EU nationals registered for National Insurance numbers (Ninos).
Mr Farage smells a rat: "They are pulling the wool over our eyes. Ninos are a simple and clear reflection of the real numbers of people in this country, as without them you can neither legally work, nor claim benefits."
Now the government has promised to tell us how many of the Ninos issued are still active - in other words, how many of the EU citizens who registered are currently paying UK tax or claiming benefits. But are Ninos a good measure of immigration?
Read more
But those pushing to stay in the EU argue that the UK, which is not a member of the Schengen area, does have controls in place and curbs on future in-work benefits for EU migrants negotiated by David Cameron will reduce the "pull factors" attracting people to the UK.
Figures published by the Office for National Statistics suggested that 257,000 EU migrants came to the UK between September 2014 and September 2015.
But other figures for the same period show 630,000 National Insurance numbers were allocated to EU nationals, up 7% on the year before. Of these, 209,000 were from Bulgaria and Romania.
The ONS has said its figures include migrants only in the UK for a short period and are not a "direct measure" of when they arrived in the UK, pointing out that many Bulgarians and Romanians may have been living and working on a self-employed basis in the UK for several years.
Economists have long called for details of how many National Insurance (NI)  numbers - which are issued to those entitled to study or work to help pay tax and benefits - are being actively used to be released to show the current impact of EU migration on the UK economy and labour market.
MPs have been pushing for information about the number of EU nationals who have paid income tax and NI and received benefits over the last year to be published, as well as information about the nationalities of new NI applicants over the past four years.
Andrew Tyrie, the Conservative MP who chairs the Commons Treasury Select Committee, said he now expected to receive the data by the end of the month, saying it was "late but a good deal better than never".
"This has been obtained as a result of a good deal of persistence," he said.
Jonathan Portes, from the National Institute of Economic and Social Research - who first requested the information - said it would show how many EU nationals getting NI numbers in the past four years had remained and what economic contribution they made vis-a-vis the cost to the taxpayer.
"What we are going to find out how many of those are still active - and by active I mean are they claiming benefits or, more likely, are they paying tax?" he told BBC Radio 4's Today.
"The government's computer systems can tell us but it is that information that they have so far been very reluctant to release."
Ministers have sought to explain the discrepancy between the ONS and the NI figures by arguing many workers applying for National Insurance numbers are only in the UK for short-term work.
Downing Street said the prime minister had been pushing for HMRC to issue "greater information" on NI numbers.
Lin Homer, the chief executive of the HMRC, said the data and tax authority's analysis of it would be published as part of or alongside other ONS figures.
"We are working closely with ONS and will be providing our data and analysis to them once it has been compiled to allow them to combine it with their own data, analysis and quality assurance work and thereby produce a fuller picture," she said.
According to the British Labour Force Survey, there are now two million EU nationals in the UK workforce, a sharp rise on four years ago.
The Conservatives have consistently missed their target of reducing net migration - the difference between the number of people leaving and arriving - in the UK to below 100,000.
The latest figure, for the year to September, was 323,000.