Muirhead & Sons Pipe Band

Last updated

Muirhead and Sons Pipe Band
Established1928
Disbanded1978
Location Grangemouth
Grade 1 (former)
Tartan Princess Elizabeth
Notable honoursWorld Champions: 1955, 1956, 1961, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969

Muirhead and Sons Pipe Band was a pipe band based in Grangemouth, Scotland. The band was highly successful, winning the World Pipe Band Championships a total of eight times. [1] This total has been surpassed only by Strathclyde Police, Shotts and Dykehead, and Field Marshal Montgomery pipe bands who held the title twenty-one, fifteen, and thirteen times respectively, and equalled by the Clan MacRae Society Pipe Band which also won eight times.

Contents

History

The band was named after, and affiliated with, the company Muirhead & Sons, a sawmill based in Grangemouth and founded by George A. Muirhead in the 1880s. [2] [3] Muirhead & Sons Pipe Band was founded in 1928, and started competing in 1932. [4] After a hiatus during World War II, the band reformed in 1946. [4] It won all the Major Championships in Grade 2 in 1948, and was therefore promoted to Grade 1. [5]

The pipe band won the World Championships in 1955, 1956 and 1961 under the leadership of Pipe Major Jackie Smith. [6] [7] Under Robert G. Hardie the band won the World Championships in 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968 and 1969. [8] This run of five consecutive wins (still an unbeaten record for a civilian band) was a record until the Strathclyde Police Pipe Band won six times in a row between 1981 and 1986, a record that still stands. [9]

Jim Hutton was leading drummer when the band won the World Championships in 1961. [10] [11] David Hutton was a member of the band along with Andrew Dowie for all eight of the band's World Championship victories. [12]

The band was disbanded in 1978, the year of its 50th anniversary. [12] [13] The City of Victoria Pipe Band in British Columbia was founded by James Troy on the model of Muirhead and Sons and Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia. [14] [13]

Pipe Majors

Discography

The band made several recordings, and has also appeared in later compilation albums. [4] [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band</span> Northern Irish pipe band

The Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band is a competitive grade one pipe band from Lisburn, Northern Ireland named in honour of Field Marshal Viscount Montgomery of Alamein. The band has won the World Pipe Band Championships 13 times, making it the third most successful competing pipe band in history behind the Strathclyde Police Pipe Band and the Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glasgow Police Pipe Band</span> Scottish pipe band

Glasgow Police Pipe Band is a grade one pipe band from Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1883 as the Burgh of Govan Police Pipe Band, the band enjoyed its greatest competitive success as the Strathclyde Police Pipe Band.

The Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band is a grade 1 pipe band from Shotts, in the North Lanarkshire region of Scotland. The band has won the World Pipe Band Championships sixteen times. The current pipe major is Emmett Conway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Fraser University Pipe Band</span> Canadian pipe band

The Simon Fraser University Pipe Band is a grade one pipe band affiliated with Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. It is led by pipe major Alan Bevan and leading drummer J. Reid Maxwell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shotts</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Shotts is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is located almost halfway between Glasgow and Edinburgh. The village has a population of about 8,840. A local story has Shotts being named after the legendary giant highwayman Bertram de Shotts, though toponymists give the Anglo-Saxon scēots as the real source of the name. Shotts is the home of the 2015 world champion pipe band, Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band.

Alex Duthart was a Scottish drummer. He is widely regarded as having revolutionised pipe band snare drum playing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">78th Fraser Highlanders Pipe Band</span> Canadian pipe band

The 78th Fraser Highlanders Pipe Band, is a grade 1 competitive pipe band from Campbellville, Ontario, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">78th Highlanders (Halifax Citadel) Pipe Band</span> Canadian pipe band

The 78th Highlanders Pipe Band is a grade one pipe band formed in 1983 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. They work in conjunction with a re-enactor troop for the 78th (Highlanders) Regiment of Foot, the regiment that spent almost three years stationed at Citadel Hill (1869-1871).

The World Pipe Band Championships is a pipe band competition held in Glasgow, Scotland.

The Police Scotland Fife Pipe Band is a Grade 1 pipe band from Fife in Scotland, established in September 2007.

Margaret Dunn is an Irish bagpiper, originally from Cullen, County Cork, now living in Scotland.

The City of Victoria Pipe Band was a grade 1 pipe band based in Victoria, British Columbia.

Invergordon Distillery Pipe Band was a pipe band associated with the Invergordon Distillery. The band was characterised by the extremely high calibre of the individual players.

Jim Kilpatrick MBE is a Scottish pipe band drummer, and leading drummer of the Spirit of Scotland Pipe Band. He has won numerous drumming titles as both a solo drummer and in pipe band competitions, enjoying his greatest competitive success with the Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band.

Red Hackle Pipe & Drums, sometimes known as the Hackle, was a grade 1 pipe band based in Glasgow, Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Callum Beaumont</span> Musical artist

Callum Beaumont is Scottish bagpipe player.

The Spirit of Scotland Pipe Band is a pipe band formed from top-class solo players.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of Dunedin Pipe Band (United States)</span> Pipe Band out of Dunedin, Florida

The City of Dunedin Pipe Band is a Grade 1 pipe band out of Dunedin, Florida. It is led by pipe major Iain Donaldson and drum sergeant Eric MacNeill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Worcester Kiltie Pipe Band</span> Pipe Band from Worcester, Massachusetts

The Worcester Kiltie Pipe Band is a Grade 2 pipe band from Worcester, Massachusetts. It is led by pipe major Davy Methven and lead drummer Colum Lundt. They compete in the United States, Canada and the UK and wear the Modern Scott tartan. They were the first band from the United States to rise to prominence in Grade 1, and in 1964 became the first US band to compete at the World Pipe Band Championships.

Gail Brown is a Canadian musician who was the first female bagpipe player to play in the World Pipe Band Championships. She is also the first female bagpiper to win the highest level competition in the World Pipe Band Championships in 1973, with the Shotts & Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band.

References

  1. ↑ "World Champions". pipeband.com. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ↑ "Scottish Post Office Directories". National Library of Scotland . Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  3. ↑ "Timber Industries Finding Aid" (PDF). falkirkcommunitytrust.org. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 "Muirhead & Sons Pipe Band finding aid" (PDF). falkirkcommunitytrust.org. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  5. ↑ "Successful Pipe Band". The Timber Trades Journal and Saw-mill Advertiser. 208–209: 1378. 1954.
  6. ↑ Michael Grey. "5 Seminal Moments in Pipe Band History". dunaber.com. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  7. ↑ "World Championship Winning Pipe Bands". pipingpress.com. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
  8. ↑ "History". rghardie.com. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  9. ↑ "Strathclyde Police Pipe Band". schoolofpiping.com. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  10. ↑ "022: Jim Hutton". piperspersuasion.trad.org.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  11. ↑ "Jim Hutton". pipesdrums.com. 30 November 2000. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  12. 1 2 "David Hutton, 1934-2012 (updated)". pipesdrums.com. 31 January 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  13. 1 2 "Interview with Donald MacBride" (PDF). thepipingcentre.co.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  14. ↑ "James W. Troy". jwtreeds.com. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  15. ↑ "Muirhead and Sons Ltd. Pipe Band". musicmoz.org. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.