Anyone else in a Pipe Band, or is it just me?

**Eric D Scott** · 6th April 13, 07:39 PM

I was wanting to know who else is in a Pipe Band out there ...

**pbutts** · 6th April 13, 07:45 PM

Just getting up on the pipes...first parade Was St. Patrick's Day.

**OC Richard** · 7th April 13, 05:33 AM

Yes! I play pipes.

In 2005 and 2006 I played in a band called Misty Isle, here we are in 2005. I can't find a video of 2006, when our playing was better and our set was better. The band folded when most of the pipe corps quit and went into the LA Scots Grade One.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6tammmA-GM

I ended up in the LA Scots Grade 3. Here we are

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnPKLiN-xiY

Another 09 video, our MSR. Boy if we only had had a pipe corps as good as our drum corps! We had great drumming.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=...ture=endscreen

Then the band broke up, lost its drum section, and came back in Grade 4. Here's our debut. My favourite thing in piping is writing harmonies, and I came up with all these...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ol46cM2QOg

**dadgad** · 7th April 13, 05:37 AM

I've been working at piping for about three years now. I've still got a ways to go, but I've got some tunes under my belt, and can contribute to the band's effort. The Baltimore City Pipe Band is pretty much just a casual band, so there's no pressure. We're just having fun.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_e9OEoZK8g

**Chas** · 7th April 13, 05:52 AM

As a child I used to play on the linoleum and now my wife says that I play the fool. But I am not good enough to be a professional.

Regards

Chas

**EagleJCS** · 7th April 13, 08:34 AM

I'm Pipe Sergeant of the Louisville Pipe Band (not that I'm all that good, but no one else wanted the job!). I'm still getting my fingers around the dance tunes (strathspeys, jigs, reels and hornpipes).

There's a community group on here called X Marks the Scot Pipes and Drums, not that it's all that active. Look under the Community tab on the top menu for the Groups link to see more groups.

**Pleater** · 7th April 13, 09:46 AM

Not a pipe band, but I beat my drum at various morris events in the year - and I take along my collection of recorders - that's the woodwind instrument - which range from the tiny to fairly big so I can play tunes for people to learn.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

**Macman** · 7th April 13, 11:49 AM

I'm a piper in the Greater Victoria Police Pipe Band. I started learning the pipes as an older player. I'm enjoying it and getting better slowly! For some reason our web site isn't responding.

**Urbane Guerrilla** · 7th April 13, 12:18 PM

And this is it? Oh goodness. Well, perhaps this forum, unlike BobDunsire's (of blessed memory -- himself; the site's still vibrant) is more one for the consumers of piping than for pipers per se.

I marched for a few years with Prince George's County Police PB -- the usual story, you didn't have to be a cop to join, though in joining you were definitely supporting your local police. We had at least one sworn officer in the band, who told me one reason he took it up was social; he wanted friends other than just other policemen. Had his fans in the department, too; he was their own piper in a way the rest of us wouldn't be, quite. I remember giving him a dram of malt scotch after a gig once. PG County Police have their own registered tartan, which the band wore. You can look the thing up on the tartan databases -- overall it has a rather dark-mauve look, designed to coordinate with typical colors of police uniform shirts, which were the top end of our band uniform, with any military or police decorations, topped with cheap glengarries whose toories were only held on with glue, daywear black sporrans that smelt of fish oil until you did something about it with neatsfoot. Black walking shoes, blue-gray lightweight hose. Maybe a sgian -- I forget.

That was the only tartan I ever saw that really would not go with a saffron shirt. No how. You'd look like a radiation warning. (Electric Scotland is all well and good... b- b- but Radioactive Scotland?!)

**imrichmond** · 7th April 13, 01:36 PM

Hey, MacMan, one of your band's drummers, Bob Hyslop, and I played in the same band (MacNish Distillery) in Ontario once upon a time. As I recall, Bob moved out west a few months after I joined the band. I'm currently pipe major of Powell River's Clansman Pipe Band. We are a grade5/street band with a preponderance of older players and late learners. I do have several kids I'm teaching, though, and we should be able to rejuvenate the band somewhat over the next couple of years. I was hoping to get the band down to the Victoria Highland Games next month to compete in grade 5, but I've had too many pipers beg off for various pressing reasons. We will be competing at the Comox Valley games, though. Last year, we played at Comox in grade 4 and came 3rd in piping and tied for 3rd overall in a field of 4. Got knocked down to 4th, though, because we were short one side drummer.